How does the right of withdrawal work?
The right of withdrawal belongs to the rules for distance contracts. The idea is that someone who was not standing in a shop, could not hold the product or could not see the service, should get a real opportunity to go back on their decision.
The duty to inform is the hinge. Everything you may expect from the consumer depends on what you told them in advance. That applies to the cooling-off period itself, to the exceptions to it, and to the question of who bears the return costs.
With a subscription, two things are added, and they are often mixed up. The first: a cancellation that is only possible by registered letter, while the customer could sign up online, does not hold. The second is new since 25 June 2026: if you sell online to consumers, a withdrawal button belongs on your site. With it the customer withdraws within the cooling-off period, with a second button to confirm and a confirmation by email with date and time.
Where is the right of withdrawal in the law?
These legal sources were checked against the statutory text itself on 24 September 2026. Mind the difference that becomes large in a dispute: a statutory article next to a value is where that value is found, not a justification for how it applies to your situation.
- Article 6:230o of the Dutch Civil Code (BW)the fourteen-day cooling-off period for a distance contract
- Article 6:230p of the Dutch Civil Code (BW)the exceptions, including digital content and a service that has already started, with the consent requirement
- Article 6:230oa of the Dutch Civil Code (BW)the withdrawal button on the online interface, with a second confirmation button and a confirmation on a durable medium; in force from 25 June 2026
- Article 6:236 under o of the Dutch Civil Code (BW)a clause that requires cancellation in a stricter form than the one in which the contract was entered into is on the blacklist
The links go to the statutory text on wetten.overheid.nl, in the version that applied on 24 September 2026.
What does basestep do with the right of withdrawal?
This falls outside what the tax engine does: it is contract law and not a calculation. It is here because it determines how you invoice your own customers and when you may keep an amount. For your own basestep subscription, the rule from Article 6:236 under o applies: if you took it out online, you can also cancel it online.
All calculations, explanations and signals in basestep are calculation support and instruction, not tax or legal advice. Amounts are estimates based on your own input; the Dutch tax authority (Belastingdienst) sets the assessment.
Where does it go wrong with the right of withdrawal?
The two mistakes you run into most often in practice with this term, and what they cost you.
Assuming the exception without consent
A service that starts immediately or digital content you supply directly only falls outside the cooling-off period if you informed the customer in advance and they expressly consented. Without that trail, the exception does not apply.
Lumping business and private together
The right of withdrawal only applies towards consumers. If you do not know which customers are consumers, you also do not know which invoices fall under it.
Further reading
Three places this term is tied to, inside this glossary and beyond.