Christmas campaign in the Netherlands: 6-week plan

Plan a Christmas campaign in the Netherlands in six weeks: ANBI, ordinary and periodic gifts, municipal rules for collections and raffles, and thanking donors.

In short You can organise a Christmas campaign in the Netherlands in six weeks, from 12 November to 24 December. First decide whether you are an ANBI, because that determines what your donors can deduct. Then set up a donation page, ask your municipality for permission for anything involving the street or raffle tickets, and thank everyone personally.

This article describes the rules in the Netherlands.

A Christmas campaign is mostly a matter of order. This plan runs week by week from 12 November to 24 December 2026, for a foundation, association, school or neighbourhood group. You need a goal, a small team and an explanation in one sentence.

Week 1 (12 November): goal, date and ANBI

Write down what you want to raise, for whom and until when. Present it to your board. Check straight away whether you are an ANBI (an institution for the public benefit recognised by the tax authority), because only then are ordinary gifts deductible.

You can check your status with the ANBI search tool on the Belastingdienst (Dutch Tax Administration) website. Without ANBI status, an ordinary gift to you is not deductible. Associations only qualify for periodic gifts, under conditions, including at least 25 members. So be honest about this in your campaign.

Ordinary gift and periodic gift: what your donors can deduct

With an ordinary gift to an ANBI, only the part above a threshold is deductible. The threshold is 1% of the donor's threshold income, with a minimum of €60. The maximum is 10% of the threshold income.

A small Christmas gift therefore often earns a donor nothing, and you need not hide that. A periodic gift has no threshold: someone gives the same amount to the same institution every year for 5 consecutive calendar years, recorded in a notarial deed or written agreement. Gifts made before the agreement do not count, and the donor may not receive anything in return.

Cash gifts are not deductible. The donor proves the gift with a bank statement. Raffle tickets and other payments where something is received in return do not count as a gift. What a gift yields depends on the donor's situation. Refer to the Belastingdienst and do not promise an amount.

Week 2 (19 November): team and tasks

Find 5 to 10 people and give each a role: a leader who decides, someone for texts and photos, someone for the donation page, someone for contact with the municipality and someone who says thank you.

Agree how many hours per week everyone can give, for example 2 to 3. Need ideas for the format? Read Christmas campaign ideas for the Netherlands.

Week 3 (26 November): set up the donation page

Set up your donation page before you announce anything. On WeGlow.world a donor goes through three steps: amount, personal details and summary. It also works on a phone.

You can offer one-off and monthly gifts, each with its own amounts and a label per amount, such as a warm meal. A donor fills in a first name and an e-mail address. The automatic thank-you e-mail is only sent if you have written a thank-you text yourself. More in the donation page for your Christmas campaign.

Are you an ANBI? Then show on your own website who you are: name, RSIN (an organisation's tax number), contact details, mission and report. That is the ANBI's own publication duty, not a requirement for the donation page.

Week 4 (3 December): announce and consent

Announce the campaign by e-mail, on social media and to people you know personally. Ask for one thing: give, and share the page with three people.

For an e-mail to your donors, assume you need consent, and every message contains an unsubscribe link. According to the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (Dutch data protection authority), the exception for charities concerns phone calls; for e-mail that is not confirmed. Unsure? Ask them. Sample texts are in Christmas e-mails for donors.

Street collections, raffles and Christmas markets: what the municipality decides

Collecting money door to door generally requires a permit from the municipality. Municipalities choose for themselves: a permit, reserving a week or free. Ask yours, well in advance.

The collection calendar of the Centraal Bureau Fondsenwerving (CBF) is advisory. It lists no organised collection for 20 to 26 December 2026, but permission remains municipal. Selling at the door can also require a permit.

We treat a raffle as a lottery under the Wet op de kansspelen (Dutch Betting and Gaming Act); that is our reading, not a wording of the Kansspelautoriteit (Gambling Authority). If the prizes stay below €4,500, you need a permit from the municipality. From €4,500 you ask the Kansspelautoriteit. For bingo and wheel of fortune you notify the municipality at least 14 days in advance, with prizes of at most €400 per series and €1,550 in total. An online game open to everyone with paid participation is not allowed.

Want a stall at a Christmas market? Pitch and stall rules are municipal and differ per place. Read Christmas market for a good cause and ask your municipality about the conditions.

Week 5 (10 December): remind and show

Send a progress update and a reminder. Show how much you have raised and what an amount means in concrete terms.

Let supporters start their own campaign page. On WeGlow.world people can create a page for your cause themselves, so family and colleagues give too. For atmosphere, see the Christmas experiences below.

How to do it with WeGlow.world

In the Glow Room there is a 3D living room with a Christmas tree, where every gift becomes a decoration. In the Starry Sky every gift becomes a star.

These are concepts until the official launch, so do not build your whole campaign on them. You can already arrange the basics: a donation page in three steps, one-off and monthly, with thank-you texts and campaign pages for supporters. Create an account on WeGlow.world and start with your page.

Week 6 (17 to 24 December): final week

This is the week of the final appeal. Send a final appeal on 17 December and a short reminder on 23 December. Put the end date clearly at the top.

On 24 December post a short thank-you message with the interim total, and agree who will compile the total on 27 December.

After the campaign: thank and account for it

Say thank you within a week. Write personally, say what the gift made possible and show the result.

A Dutch tax certificate like the Belgian one is not confirmed as an obligation for an ordinary gift: the donor proves it with a bank statement. For a periodic gift the agreement is the proof. If you are an ANBI, publish your financial data on your website within 6 months after the end of your financial year.

Frequently asked questions

Charities ask us these questions most often about Christmas campaigns in the Netherlands.

Do we have to be an ANBI to run a Christmas campaign?

No, an ordinary foundation or association can run a campaign too. However, an ordinary gift to an organisation without ANBI status is not deductible. Tell your donors openly.

Can an association receive periodic gifts?

Only under conditions, including at least 25 members, full legal capacity and no profit motive. If in doubt, ask the Belastingdienst.

Can I just collect money in the street?

As a rule, no. Collecting door to door usually requires a permit from the municipality. Each municipality decides for itself, so ask yours well before the campaign.

Are we allowed to run a raffle?

In our reading, a raffle falls under the lottery rules of the Wet op de kansspelen. Below €4,500 in prizes, a municipal permit applies. Ask your municipality which conditions it sets.

Can I e-mail donors without consent?

Assume you need consent and that every e-mail has an unsubscribe link. According to the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens, the exception for charities concerns phone calls. If in doubt, ask them.

Sources

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