On what amount is the bpm calculated?

The Tax and Customs Administration calculates the bpm:

• for a passenger car over the CO2 emission and the net list price
• for a delivery van or motorcycle only over the net list price

Net list price

The net list price is the list price minus the VAT. The list price is the selling price recommended by the manufacturer or importer of the passenger car, delivery van or motorcycle in the Netherlands.

When it concerns a new passenger car, delivery van or motorcycle, the applicable list price is the list price of the date on which the vehicle receives a registration number.

When it concerns a used passenger car, delivery van or motorcycle, the applicable list price is the list price of the date on which the vehicle was first put into use.

Extra options, accessories and special versions

Part of the net list price are also:

• extra options installed by or on behalf of the importer or manufacturer
• accessories installed by or on behalf of the importer or manufacturer
• additional costs for special versions

So you have to pay bpm on these as well. When you file a declaration or statement, the Tax and Customs Administration will check the passenger car, delivery van or motorcycle for the presence of options and accessories.

Net list price of delivery vans of the chassis cabin type with specific features

For delivery vans, too, the net list price is the point of departure in calculating the bpm. However, in respect of delivery vans of the chassis cabin type that are customised to the user's wishes, you are not required to calculate bpm on the costs of the modifications to make the vehicle suitable for business use. For example, this concerns costs of installing:

• a loading platform of specific dimensions
• a pulley installation
• racks for carrying glass
• a platform for carrying damaged cars

With regard to this type of vehicle, therefore, the bpm is calculated on the net list price of the delivery van in the chassis cabin version.

However, you will have to pay bpm on the additional costs of features other than the modifications for business use. the Tax and Customs Administration will be able to tell you on which modifications and features you will have to pay bpm.

Information about the various prices (list price, net list price and consumer price) and about the prices of extra options, accessories and special versions can be obtained for instance from the importer, dealer or car clubs.

Calculation of the bpm

With the CO2 emission (for passenger cars) and the net list price (for passenger cars, motorcycles and delivery vans) you can calculate how much bpm you will have to pay. We call this the gross bpm amount. The Tax and Customs Administration checks whether the CO2 emission and net list price (excluding VAT) are correct. The net list price is the new price at the moment when the vehicle was first given a registration number.

The net bpm amount is the gross bpm amount less the reduction on the basis of the depreciation of the motor vehicle.

If you buy a new passenger car, delivery van or motorcycle and have it registered, the gross bpm amount will be the final amount which you will have to pay.

Are you registering in the Netherlands a used passenger car, delivery van or motorcycle that you bought abroad? If so, there are 3 ways of establishment the value.
Are you having a delivery van converted into a passenger car, for example? If so, you are liable for the payment of bpm. Has bpm previously been paid for the delivery van? And is the bpm for this passenger car higher or the same as the bpm applicable to the delivery van at the time of conversion? In that case you can deduct the bpm still applicable to the delivery van at the time of conversion from the bpm payable for this passenger car.

Historical gross bpm amount

In the case of used passenger cars, delivery vans and motorcycles, the bpm may not be higher than the bpm for comparable vehicles that are already registered in the Netherlands. That is why you can use the gross bpm amount that applied in accordance with the legislation at the time that the vehicle was first taken into use. We call this the historical gross bpm amount. It concerns definitions over the list price that applied at that moment (including the rules for the accessories that should or should not be calculated into the list price) and the tariff that should be applied (including, for example, the CO2 surcharge, the particulate matter reduction, the label regulation and suchlike).

Do you believe that the historical gross bpm amount is lower than the current gross bpm amount? Then you may use this historical bpm amount as basis for the bpm calculation. In that case, you should request in your bpm declaration that the historical gross bpm amount should be applied. You must calculate the historical bpm amount yourself. Include this calculation as an extra appendix with your declaration. You will find explanatory notes for the calculation of the historical gross bpm amount under Old bpm tariffs.