AOW, pension and tax in China: the treaty that doesn't quite do enough
China is on the SVB's list of treaty countries — and yet a single person gets the married rate of the AOW (the Dutch state pension) there, almost a third less gross, because the treaty doesn't arrange export. What it does arrange: posting. Plus the tax treaty that lets the Netherlands levy, and the Chinese six-year rule with its 30-day reset.
6 min read
Written and checked by Auke on , against the sources at the bottom. Is something no longer right? Report it below and I'll fix it.
If you live in China, only the Netherlands taxes your AOW (the Dutch state pension). China taxes your accrued pension as the country of residence, but the Netherlands may tax it too if you built it up here with tax relief.
Three things to know up front:
- There is a social security treaty between the Netherlands and China, and China is neatly on the SVB's list of treaty countries. Whoever concludes from that that their AOW travels along safely walks into the best-hidden pitfall of this corridor.
- The treaty doesn't arrange export of benefits, so it doesn't ensure that you keep the full AOW in China. A single person drops there to the married person's AOW.
- Don't expect an exemption from wage tax, the tax your fund withholds directly, for your pension.
This article sets out what the treaty does and doesn't do, and what the tax authorities on both sides expect of you.
| Question | Rule |
|---|---|
| AOW for a single person in China | 50 instead of 70 percent of the net minimum wage: the treaty doesn't provide for export |
| AOW accrual | 2% less per year outside the Netherlands |
| Voluntary insurance | apply within 1 year of the end of compulsory insurance (usually departure); 17.9% of your income, at least € 569 a year (2026) |
| Posted by a Dutch employer | up to 60 months in the Dutch system |
| Tax on the AOW | the Netherlands only (tax treaty, article 18 paragraph 3) |
| Tax on accrued pension | China as the country of residence, and the Netherlands may levy if it was built up with tax relief (paragraphs 1 and 2) |
| Chinese tax on foreign income | exempt, if paid from outside China, as long as you have been in China 183 days or more for fewer than six consecutive years |
| The counter back to zero | one trip of more than 30 days in one of those years |
| Chinese pension account on departure | stays in place, or paid out in one go on written request |
| Tax-free expat allowances | up to and including 31 December 2027 |
Why don't I get the full AOW in China?
The 2017 treaty arranges no export of benefits. The explanatory memorandum says so in so many words. The minister confirmed in 2024 that the Netherlands exports the full AOW to all treaty countries "with the exception of China and Pakistan".
Concretely: the AOW itself you get anywhere in the world, but outside the export countries the married person's rate applies, the AOW for married people. A couple notices nothing of that (twice 50%). But a single person gets 50 instead of 70 percent of the net minimum wage, almost a third less gross. At current amounts that is hundreds of euros a month, for as long as you live there. Whoever leaves for China as a single person later in life must have this figure in their pension plan.
For accrual the usual story applies: every year outside the Netherlands is 2% less AOW. Voluntary insurance can close that gap. You apply for it within one year of the end of the compulsory insurance (usually the day you leave). The premium is 17.9% of your income, in 2026 at least € 569 a year.
What does the treaty do, then?
The treaty was made to stop double contributions, and it does that. Whoever is posted by a Dutch employer, meaning sent to China temporarily, stays under the Dutch system for a maximum of sixty months. In China they are then exempt from the contributions for the basic pension and unemployment insurance. The proof of that is a Certificate of Coverage from the SVB.
Whoever signs locally with a Chinese employer gets nothing out of it. Then the country-of-work principle applies: you are insured in the country where you work, and you simply pay the Chinese social contributions.
One consolation at the end: whoever leaves before the Chinese pension age keeps their individual pension account. On written request they can end the social insurance and have the balance paid out in one go.
Who taxes my AOW and pension?
The 2013 treaty has a double sting in Article 18. On social security benefits, so the AOW too, the Netherlands levies exclusively. And on pension and annuity built up with Dutch tax relief, the Netherlands may also levy. So don't expect an exemption from wage tax as with pure residence-state treaties, in which only the country of residence taxes.
Note: the treaty applies only to mainland China. Hong Kong has a treaty of its own and Macau none at all.
Alongside that the familiar departure points. On pension, annuity and substantial-interest assets (such as shares in your own private company) the Netherlands imposes a protective assessment on departure: an assessment for which you can get deferral of payment. Outside the EU you don't get that deferral automatically. You apply for it. For a substantial interest you provide security. For a pension or an annuity insurance with a Dutch pension fund or insurer, that isn't needed.
And qualifying non-resident taxpayer status lapses: the arrangement that lets you keep Dutch deductions as a resident of another country. So no more mortgage interest deduction on a home you keep.
How does China tax me as a newcomer?
China taxes newcomers mildly. Income from outside China that is also paid from outside China is exempt as long as you have been in China 183 days or more in each year for fewer than six consecutive years. The condition is that you report it to the tax authority. One trip of more than thirty days in such a year sets that counter back to zero. For whoever has Dutch assets or rental income, the long summer holiday is therefore also a tax instrument.
On top of that, as a foreigner you may still choose up to and including 31 December 2027. You take the regular Chinese deductions, or the tax-free allowances for housing, language training and your children's school fees. You can't have both.
How the AOW rate, Article 18, the protective assessment and the six-year rule exactly come together for you is something to discuss with a tax adviser who knows both countries. That one conversation really pays off here: the difference runs into thousands of euros a year.
In Vertrekklaar this is phase 3 of 5 of the journey: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to China.
What this means for your numbers →
What this rests on
The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.
- Answer to parliamentary questions (2024) — no full AOW export to China — zoek.officielebekendmakingen.nl
- Netherlands-China Social Security Agreement (2017) — wetten.overheid.nl
- Explanatory memorandum to the treaty — "does not cover export" — zoek.officielebekendmakingen.nl
- SVB — voluntary insurance after departure — svb.nl
- Netherlands-China Tax Treaty (2013), Article 18 — wetten.overheid.nl
- Belastingdienst — protective assessment on emigration — belastingdienst.nl
- IIT Law — the Chinese residence rules — chinatax.gov.cn
- Implementing regulations of the IIT Law — the six-year rule and the reset after 30 days (article 4) — fgk.chinatax.gov.cn
- Ministry of Finance and STA — tax-free expat allowances extended up to and including 31 December 2027 — zhejiang.chinatax.gov.cn
- MOHRSS Decree 16 — social insurance of foreigners, payout of the pension account on departure (article 5) — gov.cn
- SVB — voluntary insurance premium outside the Netherlands (17.9%, at least € 569 in 2026) — svb.nl
Read on
- ChinaClosing the Netherlands4 min
Healthcare in China: compulsory in the Chinese insurance, and you arrange the rest yourself
Whoever works in China must join Chinese social insurance, with a basic medical insurance whose premium employer and employee share. There is no CAK route, and the treaty with the Netherlands does not cover healthcare. For your family and for care outside the public system you arrange something yourself, and that differs per city.
Updated 26 September 2026
- BulgariaOrientation5 min
AOW, pension and tax in Bulgaria: the Netherlands taxes, Bulgaria doesn't
The treaty with Bulgaria from 2020 is a source-state treaty without threshold: the Netherlands may tax your occupational pension, your annuity and your AOW. And Bulgaria doesn't tax pensions — not its own, and expressly not those from compulsory insurance abroad either. So your Dutch rates are your rates, without wage tax exemption and without credit. What Bulgaria does tax, it taxes at a flat rate of ten percent.
Updated 14 October 2026
- HungaryOrientation5 min
AOW, pension and tax in Hungary: the occupational pension taxed nowhere, the AOW in the Netherlands instead
The treaty with Hungary from 1986 places your occupational pension exclusively with Hungary, and Hungary declares a treaty pension to be nyugdíj — and nyugdíj is tax-free there. Your AOW works exactly the other way round: the Netherlands may tax it as the paying state, and Hungary exempts it. The government pension stays Dutch. Whoever applies for the wage tax exemption for the wrong part gets an additional assessment.
Updated 14 October 2026