A donation to a cultural ANBI such as the Van Gogh Museum is tax deductible. This makes it even more attractive to make a donation to the museum. Read more about the tax benefits.
Private donors can support the museum in two ways:
For more information on tax deductible donations, please see the Dutch Tax and Customs Administration website (in Dutch):
With a recurring donation, you commit to giving a fixed annual sum for at least five years. This is set out in a donation agreement with the museum. An example agreement is available on the Dutch Tax Administration (Belastingdienst) website. We would be happy to send you a copy, or you can download it.
Below is an overview of your donation, including the tax relief, for all of Vincent's Circles. Would you like more information about any of the other Vincent's Circles?
Sunflower Circle
Theo van Gogh Circle
Yellow House Circle
Your income is used to determine both the threshold and the maximum deductible sum for standard (non-recurring) donations.
The threshold for donations is 1% of your income (with a minimum of € 60), and the maximum deductible sum is 10% of your income.
Would you like to make a one-off donation?
(Co-)owners of a private limited company (bv) can support the Van Gogh Museum through their company, either through a donation or sponsorship. In principle, sponsorship contributions are fully tax deductible. A donation is not considered a business expense, but under certain conditions, may be tax deductible. A donation can be deducted from the taxable profit for corporation tax (vennootschapsbelasting, Vpb). This applies to both one-off and periodic donations.
The maximum tax relief is 50% of the profit, with a maximum sum of € 100,000. The multiplying factor for a donation to a cultural ANBI (Public Benefit Organisation) is 50% of the first € 5,000.
The tax relief is dependent on the Vpb rate applicable to your company (in 2022 this was 15% or 25.8% and it is 19% or 25.8% in 2023). In addition to the tax relief, as director and major shareholder, you also benefit from box 2 income tax savings (26.9% this year; from 2024 onwards: 24.5 up and until 31%). Your total savings can therefore amount to between 37.87% and 45.75%.
Your private limited company donates € 5,000 annually. The tax deductible amount for your company is € 7,500 (50% multiplying factor). The tax rate is 15%, which amounts to tax relief of € 1,125. The net cost to your company of your € 5,000 donation is therefore only € 3,875. The box 2 saving on this sum is € 1.042. The ‘total cost’ of a private limited company donation of € 5,000 is ultimately € 2,833.
You can appoint the Van Gogh Museum as a beneficiary in your will, but you can also include a legacy to the museum in your will. This legacy may be an item of property or a certain amount of money. The Van Gogh Museum is not required to pay inheritance tax on this legacy. If you make a donation during your lifetime, income tax relief is available to you. This tax relief is not available if you leave assets to a good cause in your will.
In the Netherlands, it is also possible to pay inheritance tax with works of art. In such cases, a 20% discount applies. For example, if your beneficiaries are required to pay € 1,200,000 in taxes, they can settle the assessment by transferring works of art to the value of € 1,000,000. The art becomes the property of the Dutch State, but can be released on permanent loan to a museum. This regulation is subject to several conditions.
If you own an artwork that would make a suitable addition to the Van Gogh Museum collection and are interested in using this regulation, we would be pleased to help. For more information, please contact Paul van Dalsen by sending an email or calling +31 (0) 6 31 01 5278.
Would you like to know more about all the ways you can support the museum? For more information, please contact Paul van Dalsen by sending an email or calling +31 (0) 6 31 01 5278.