In the Netherlands you may combine several separate deliveries or services for the same client into one periodic invoice (periodieke factuur), as long as the period covers no more than one calendar month. For ongoing services such as a subscription or a running contract, the invoice states the period in which you delivered the service. Every recurring invoice is a normal invoice: its own consecutive number, all invoice requirements, and sent no later than the 15th of the following month.
ProFaktura Pro creates your recurring invoices automatically every month - with the next number in your series and the right period on each one. 30 days free.
"Recurring invoice" covers two different situations, and the Belastingdienst (the Dutch tax office) treats them slightly differently:
Both are fine. What changes is what you must write on the invoice and how long the period may be.
When you combine several separate deliveries or services for one client, the invoice may cover a period of at most one calendar month. October is fine. 15 October to 14 November is not, and neither is a quarter.
On a periodic invoice you list each delivery or service with its own date, or at least make clear which jobs from which days are included. The client - and later the Belastingdienst - must be able to see what was delivered when.
Example: a cleaner with a weekly client. You clean an office every Tuesday. In October 2026 that is four visits: 6, 13, 20 and 27 October, 3 hours each at € 30. One periodic invoice for October:
What you may not do: wait and put October and November together on one invoice in December. That is two months - so two invoices.
Note: if you work as a subcontractor for another cleaning company in the Netherlands, the reverse charge applies and the invoice shows "btw verlegd" instead of VAT - see reverse charge VAT.
For a continuous service under a running agreement, the invoice must show the period in which you performed the service. Instead of a single delivery date you write, for example, "Period: 1-31 October 2026" or "Service period: October 2026".
Typical cases:
Monthly is the common choice for subscriptions. Whatever rhythm you agree with the client, put the exact period on every invoice so it is clear which stretch of service each invoice pays for.
A recurring invoice is not a lighter document. Each one must meet all the factuureisen (Dutch invoice requirements):
The full checklist is in how to invoice in the Netherlands, and you can see the fields on a real invoice on the invoice example page.
The usual deadline applies: the invoice goes out no later than the 15th day of the month after the delivery or service. For a periodic invoice covering October, that is 15 November. For an ongoing service with the period October, the same.
For your btw-aangifte (VAT return), the period is normally decided by the invoice date, not by the date the client pays. An October invoice dated 31 October belongs to Q4 - it is due in the return that you file and pay by 31 January. If you invoice late, the sale belongs to the period in which the invoice should have gone out at the latest. More in VAT return in the Netherlands.
Recurring invoices take the next number in your normal, gapless series. You do not need a separate "subscription series", and a number may never be skipped or reused. If a monthly invoice was wrong, you do not delete or edit it - you issue a credit note and a new invoice.
Watch out with copy-paste. The most common way recurring invoices go wrong is duplicating last month's invoice in Word or Excel: the number stays the same, the period still says September, or the VAT total is not updated. One duplicated number already breaks your gapless series. A program that numbers and dates each invoice by itself removes that risk.
With ProFaktura Pro you set up a recurring invoice once: client, lines, VAT rate, amount. After that the program creates the invoice automatically every month, with the next number from your series and its own date - you do not have to remember it on the first of the month.
Pro costs € 9.99 + VAT per month, with 30 days free and cancellation in one click. Regular one-off invoices stay free in the Gratis plan, without limit. Your accountant can get free access to your administration - see for accountants.
Yes. If you deliver several separate goods or services to the same client, you may combine them on one periodic invoice, as long as the period is no longer than one calendar month. List the jobs with their dates.
Not with one periodic invoice for separate jobs - that may cover at most a calendar month. For a quarter you send at least three invoices, one per month.
The invoice date plus the period in which you delivered the service, for example "Period: 1-31 October 2026". For ongoing services the period replaces the single delivery date.
No later than the 15th of the month after the delivery or service. An invoice for October goes out by 15 November at the latest.
No. They take the next number in your normal gapless series. Every recurring invoice is a full invoice with its own unique number and all invoice requirements.
You never delete or edit an issued invoice. Issue a credit note that refers to the wrong invoice, then send a new, correct invoice with the next number.
Read next: invoice example · how to invoice in the Netherlands · credit notes · VAT return