← Part of the Netherlands money guide
Netherlandschecked Aug 2026Netherlands tourist tax, and the VAT rise that landed in January
Short answer: two separate charges sit on a Dutch hotel bill, and only one of them is a surprise. The 21% VAT is already inside the rate you were quoted. Amsterdam's city tax is not, and it adds about 10% at checkout.
At a glance
Amsterdam
12.5% of the room rate
Most other towns
A few euros per person, per night
Hotel VAT
Rose from 9% to 21% in January 2026
Amsterdam, added at checkout
About 10% of the quoted rate
A Dutch hotel bill carries a city tourist tax and national VAT, and they are unrelated to each other. In Amsterdam the city takes 12.5% of the net room rate, a percentage no other European city beats, and it keeps taking it however long you stay. Elsewhere the model is different: most municipalities ask for a few euros for each guest, each night, a flat figure set town by town. The second charge is national. Hotel VAT stood at 9% until the end of 2025 and became 21% on 1 January 2026, wherever in the country you sleep. Stacked in Amsterdam the two come to roughly a third of the room in total government take, but that is not what lands at checkout. Dutch law requires consumer prices to include VAT, so the 21% is already inside the rate you compared. What is genuinely added is the city tax, and because it is charged on the room before VAT it works out at about 10% of the price you were quoted. That is the number to budget for.
The official route
The national VAT change. City tourist tax is set by each municipality, so the rate for anywhere outside Amsterdam is published by that town rather than nationally.
Dutch government: VAT on overnight accommodation rose to 21%(opens in a new tab) we earn nothing
Amsterdam takes a percentage, and takes the most in Europe
The capital bills a proportion rather than a flat sum, and 12.5% of the net nightly rate is not matched anywhere else on the continent. Nothing caps it, so a fortnight attracts the same proportion as a weekend, and the sum is worked out on the room price before VAT goes on.
It is collected by the property, not by you at a desk, and it usually appears as a separate line when you settle up. That timing is what catches people: a rate compared on a booking site is frequently the pre-tax number, so the figure you decided on and the figure you are asked for can differ by a noticeable margin.
Everywhere else charges by the head, not by the rate
Outside the capital the model changes completely. Most towns ask for a modest fixed sum for every guest, every night, usually a handful of euros, with the figure decided locally, which means no single national number exists to quote you. On a cheap room that flat fee is proportionally heavier than Amsterdam's percentage. On an expensive one it is far lighter.
The practical consequence is that the tax is worth checking per town rather than assumed from the country. A family of four in a modest place outside the capital can pay more tourist tax than a couple in a similar room in Amsterdam.
The VAT on your room more than doubled this year
Through 2025 a Dutch hotel room sat in the reduced VAT band, at 9%. With effect from 1 January 2026 accommodation was moved up to the standard band, 21%. Campsites were left where they were. This is national, so it applies in Maastricht exactly as it does in Amsterdam.
Because it landed recently, displayed prices are the thing to watch. When this page was checked, some booking platforms had not fully worked the new rate into the totals they showed, which means the number you are quoted deserves a second look rather than trust.
What to actually do about it
Ask the property for the total including tourist tax and VAT and compare hotels on that, because the advertised rate is not a like-for-like number between a platform and a direct booking. If you are choosing between Amsterdam and a base outside it, run the sum both ways: the percentage model and the flat-fee model can reverse which option is cheaper.
Do not expect to reclaim any of it. Tourist tax is not refundable, and hotel VAT is not part of the visitor refund scheme either, which covers goods you carry home unused rather than anything you consume in the country. Shopping is a separate matter, and worth a form if you spend meaningfully in one store.
Common questions
Quick answers.
How much is the tourist tax in Amsterdam?
The city takes 12.5% of the net room rate, a proportion nowhere else in Europe matches, and no cap limits how many nights it applies to. It is charged on the price before VAT and normally added when you check out rather than when you book. On top of it sits the national 21% VAT on hotel rooms, which takes the total government take on the room to roughly a third. Only the city tax is added at checkout though, because the VAT is already inside the quoted rate, and measured against that quoted price the city tax comes to about 10%.
Did hotel VAT really go up in the Netherlands?
Yes. On 1 January 2026 VAT on overnight accommodation moved from the reduced 9% band to the standard 21% band, nationwide. Camping stays remained at 9%. It is a large jump and it arrived recently, so some displayed prices lagged behind it, which makes checking the all-in total worthwhile rather than assuming the quoted rate already includes it.
Can I get the tourist tax or hotel VAT refunded?
No. Neither is refundable to a visitor. The Dutch VAT refund scheme covers goods that non-EU visitors take home unused, above a per-store minimum, and it specifically excludes accommodation, meals and anything else consumed while you are in the country. Budget for the hotel taxes as a real cost rather than something recoverable later.
More on Netherlands
The little money things nobody warns you about.
- Taxis in the Netherlands, and the Schiphol trainIn the Netherlands the train and the bike do most of the work, and when you do need a taxi, an app is the safe bet. Amsterdam street taxis have a reputation for overcharging, so here is how to avoid it.
- Do I need cash in the Netherlands, or can I use cards?Short answer: a card for almost everything, very little cash. The Netherlands is strongly card-first, and if anything the risk runs the other way, with some places taking cards only. Here is how to handle it.
- Tipping in the NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a light-tipping country. Service is included, staff earn a proper wage, and nobody expects a US-style percentage. A modest fooi for good service is welcome but never required. Here is what you actually owe.
- Bringing your dog or cat to the Netherlands.the Netherlands runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for the Netherlands, and the local parts worth knowing.
- Do you need a rail pass in the Netherlands?This is the shortest rail answer on the site, because the Dutch network removes the question. Trains are frequent, distances are short, nothing needs reserving, and you pay by tapping the card already in your pocket.
- Staying connected in the Netherlands.The Netherlands has some of the best mobile coverage in Europe, trains and countryside included, so there is nothing here to plan around. That makes this page short and the decision purely financial.
- What does getting sick in the Netherlands cost a visitor?The Netherlands is easy to be ill in, provided you use it the way it is designed. Almost everything runs through the GP, and turning up at a hospital instead is the mistake visitors make.