The VAT on food in the Netherlands in 2026 is the simplest in the EU: all food and all non-alcoholic drinks are taxed at 9%, in shops, takeaway, and restaurants. It does not matter whether it is bread, ham, chocolate, sweets, coffee, mineral water, or a sugary soft drink. Only alcohol — beer, wine, cider, and spirits with more than 0.5% — is taxed at 21%, the standard rate.
The legal basis is Table I of the Dutch VAT Act (Wet op de omzetbelasting 1968). Section a.1 applies 9% to food products for human consumption, including non-alcoholic drinks, and section b.12 extends that rate to food served in bars, cafés, hotels, and restaurants. Anything not listed in the table is taxed at 21%. The standard rates are in our guide to VAT in the Netherlands in 2026; here is the item-by-item breakdown.
What VAT applies to each food item in the Netherlands
| Food or service | VAT | Wet OB 1968 |
|---|---|---|
| Bread, flour, pasta, rice, and cereals | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Meat, ham, and cured meats | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Fish and seafood, including lobster, oysters, and caviar | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, margarine, and eggs | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Fruit, vegetables, legumes, and nuts | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Olive oil and other oils | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Sugar, chocolate, sweets, biscuits, and ice cream | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Coffee, tea, and cocoa | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Mineral water, juices, and soft drinks, with or without sugar | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Non-alcoholic beer, wine, and cider, up to 0.5% | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Tap water | 9% | Table I, a.28 |
| Takeaway or delivery food | 9% | Table I, a.1 |
| Food and non-alcoholic drinks served in bars and restaurants | 9% | Table I, a.1 and b.12 |
| Beer, wine, cider, and spirits, in shops and bars | 21% | outside Table I |
Rates verified on 29 September 2026 against Table I of the Wet op de omzetbelasting 1968 and the European Commission’s TEDB database, which reproduces it with its exclusions.
Two questions to classify a food item in the Netherlands:
- Does it contain more than 0.5% alcohol? Then it is taxed at 21%.
- If not, and it is food or drink for people, it is taxed at 9%, wherever it is sold.
Bars and restaurants: 9%, except alcohol
Food and non-alcoholic drinks served in a bar, café, or restaurant are taxed at the same 9% as in a supermarket. Beer, wine, and spirits served are taxed at 21%. A menu with wine therefore has two rates. In Spain, everything served is taxed at 10%, including alcohol.
Takeaway or delivery food is also taxed at 9%. For Dutch VAT, food prepared on the spot at a food stall, cinema café, or sports canteen is a sale of goods, unless the service element predominates. Since the rate is the same, the distinction hardly changes the bill.
The cases that cause the most doubt
There are no luxury foods
Unlike France or Belgium, the Netherlands does not increase VAT on any food because it is expensive or unhealthy. Lobster, oysters, caviar, margarine, milk chocolate, and sweets are taxed at 9%, just like bread.
Non-alcoholic drinks: VAT is 9%, but there is another tax
Mineral water, juices, soft drinks, and plant-based drinks are taxed at 9%. In addition to VAT, they are subject to a special consumption tax on non-alcoholic drinks (verbruiksbelasting), charged by volume. If you sell those drinks to Dutch consumers from Spain, check with an adviser whether that tax applies to you: it is not declared through the one-stop shop.
Alcohol-free beer and wine
The limit is 0.5%. Beer, wine, and cider labeled “alcohol-free” up to that level are taxed at 9%; “low-alcohol” versions above that threshold are taxed at 21%.
Selling food from Spain to customers in the Netherlands
A Spanish store that ships food to Dutch consumers applies Spanish VAT while its distance sales to consumers in other EU countries — in total — do not exceed €10,000 per year. Above that, it applies Dutch VAT and reports it through the one-stop shop (OSS), as explained by the European Commission. We explain this in the €10,000 threshold for distance sales.
With a single rate for food, the calculation is simple, but it does not match Spain’s:
| Product | VAT in Spain | VAT in the Netherlands |
|---|---|---|
| Common bread, milk, cheese, and fruit | 4% | 9% |
| Olive oil | 4% | 9% |
| Cured ham, cured meats, and preserves | 10% | 9% |
| Chocolate, nougat, and sweets | 10% | 9% |
| Coffee | 10% | 9% |
| Mineral water and juices with no added sugar | 10% | 9% |
| Sugary soft drinks | 21% | 9% |
| Wine and beer | 21% | 21% |
| Food served in a restaurant | 10% | 9% |
| Wine served in a restaurant | 10% | 21% |
Spanish rates verified on 17 September 2026 against Article 91 of Law 37/1992 (boe.es) and the Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT) document “VAT tax rates 2026”. Details in VAT on food in Spain.
Three more things before sending the first package:
- Wine and beer: they count as distance sales for VAT purposes, but excise duties on alcohol are handled separately; the one-stop shop only covers VAT.
- Business customers: if you sell to a restaurant or a Dutch store with a valid VAT number and the goods leave Spain, the intra-Community supply is exempt and the customer self-assesses the VAT in the Netherlands. Check the number first with the VAT number checker in VIES.
- Caribbean territories: Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, and the BES islands (Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba) are not part of the EU VAT territory. A shipment there is an export.
How to set it up in WooCommerce
The Netherlands has no super-reduced rate, so products that in Spain use the “super-reduced” 4% class fall into the Dutch 9%, and those in the “reduced” 10% class do too. Both are correct. The only common mistake is in the standard class: a sugary soft drink taxed at 21% in Spain would also be taxed at 21% in the Netherlands, instead of 9%. A custom class for non-alcoholic sugary drinks is enough. For a quick check, the EU VAT calculator gives you the rate and amount according to the customer’s country, whether they are a business or an individual, and the product type.
Do you sell food to the Netherlands from your WooCommerce store?
When destination VAT applies, EHERO Woo VAT applies each country’s rate according to the product tax class (standard, reduced, or super-reduced) and respects any custom classes you create for foods that change rate between countries. It also monitors the €10,000 threshold, validates the VAT number in VIES during checkout, and prepares the OSS report by country.
Frequently asked questions
What VAT do food products have in the Netherlands in 2026?
9% for all food and all non-alcoholic drinks, in shops, takeaway, and restaurants. Alcohol is taxed at 21%.
How much VAT is paid in a restaurant in the Netherlands?
9% on food and non-alcoholic drinks, and 21% on beer, wine, and spirits.
What VAT applies to soft drinks in the Netherlands?
9%, with or without sugar. They also pay a separate excise tax per liter.
Has VAT on food in the Netherlands changed in 2026?
No. The reduced rate has been 9% since 2019, and food has not changed category in 2026.
What VAT applies to wine in the Netherlands?
21%, in shops and restaurants. Alcohol-free wine, up to 0.5%, is taxed at 9%.
Continue here
- VAT in the Netherlands in 2026: the two rates and when each applies
- VAT on food in Spain in 2026: what is taxed at 4, 10, and 21%
- VAT on food in Belgium in 2026: 6, 12, and 21%
- VAT rates by EU country in 2026: the full table
