Does the letter say you must pay, or that you will receive money?

The letter shows €480, then another amount, then an IBAN. Before making a transfer, read the words beside the number. The same page can show a total, earlier payments and a balance.

Read who is paying whom

Dutch wording	Meaning
U moet betalen	You must pay
Door u te betalento be paid	Payable by you
U ontvangt	You will receive
U krijgt terug	You will get a refund
Wij maken het bedrag aan u over	We will transfer the amount to you
U moet terugbetalenrepay	You must repay money you received

These are illustrative phrases. Teruggaafrefund on a tax letter means a refund to you. U moet terugbetalenrepay says you have to return money. Betaling alone only means ‘payment’; the rest of the sentence tells you its direction.

A refund can be offset against a debt

Verrekeningoffsetting amounts owed means amounts owed are set against each other. Suppose a €480 refund is reduced by €150 owed on another debt. The remaining €330 may reach your account. The first amount in the letter is not necessarily the bank transfer amount. The Belastingdienst explains this process on its offsetting page. Belastingdienst

Check which debt the offset refers to and match its case or assessment number to the earlier letter. If a deposit is smaller than expected, find the explanation before making another payment. The Belastingdienst explains how the number in a bank transaction can help you find the relevant decision. Belastingdienst

Separate the total from what remains

Example statement	Amount
Total debt	€600
Reeds betaaldalready paid	€400
Resterend bedragremaining amount	€200

Only €200 remains in this example. Check whether interest and costs have also been included in the final balance. A minus sign or the colour of a number is not enough to identify who owes whom. Read the labels around saldo.

Check the period attached to the amount

Termijnbedraginstalment or periodic amount is an amount for an instalment or payment period. Check whether that period is monthly, every four weeks or something else. A voorlopige aanslag refund may show an annual amount paid in instalments across the year. The Belastingdienst explains that the amount on such an assessment is a yearly total. Belastingdienst

When noting an amount, write ‘monthly’, ‘annual total’ or ‘one-off’ next to it. Do not assume that an annual total must all be paid on the date shown elsewhere on the page.

Identify the IBAN

The account shown could belong to the organisation collecting payment or be your own account for a refund. Read its heading and the adjacent sentence. An IBAN on a letter is not in itself an instruction to transfer money. If payment is requested, check the recipient, amount, deadline and betalingskenmerk together. Ask the organisation through its official contact channel if anything is unclear.

Understand the amounts with Letrin

We built Letrin to explain the numbers in Dutch letters in your own language. Scan a letter to see amounts separately, with an explanation of money requested from you or payable to you where the text allows that distinction. You can also read the relevant dates and actions in English.

Letrin does not check bank transactions or the organisation’s accounts. Verify the amount, direction and period against the original. If a line is unclear, prepare a Dutch question with an English version before sending it.

Download Letrin from the App Store or Google Play to make sense of the letter in front of you. No account is needed, and your first explanations are free.