3 possible destinations for your holiday pay

In May and June, Dutch employees receive their holiday allowance. This isn’t a treat from your boss, but a right you have as an employee. Your holiday allowance has to be at least 8% of your gross annual salary.

Although it’s called ‘holiday allowance’, it’s entirely up to you what you do with it. We’ve listed 3 options for you.

1. Use it for your holiday

Fun fact: we have trade unions to thank for holiday allowance. In the first half of the 20th century, they fought for (paid) holiday leave, because they believed that employees’ lives should consist of more than just work.

Later, once paid holidays were secured, the fight for holiday allowance began. The trade unions believed that people should be able to do something special in their free time, and that required (extra) money. In 1968, holiday allowance became a legal entitlement in the Netherlands.

So, by spending your holiday allowance on your holiday, you’re not just rewarding yourself for a year of hard work. You’re also doing exactly what generations before you had in mind!

2. Use it for major purchases or outstanding payments 

But you don’t have to spend your holiday allowance (entirely) on your holiday. Around 3 in 10 Dutch people also use it for other things.

Holiday allowance can be useful for a large expense, for example. Some people also use the money to pay off debts. That's less fun than a trip to the Côte d’Azur, but a sensible way to get their finances in order. Just think of it as bringing peace of mind.

3. Use it to invest

Is your holiday allowance really just a bonus for you? If so, you could invest (part of) it.

It could be a great starting sum, or a perfect one-off deposit to give your existing investments a boost. Or perhaps you still have some space in your pension plan, allowing you to invest your holiday allowance with tax benefits for your retirement.

Another option, if you have children: deposit part of your holiday allowance into a tax-efficient investment account for your child.

That's how you turn your holiday allowance into a sunny investment.

Win tickets to Loveland Festival with your holiday allowance

Want a chance to win tickets to Loveland Festival in August? Then deposit €300 or more of your holiday allowance into a Peaks account!

Do this in one go (not in instalments) during the campaign period from 15 May to 5 June 2026, and we’ll enter you into the prize draw.

We’re giving away a total of 4 pairs of weekend tickets, each ticket worth €159. Want to know more? Then take a look at the campaign page.