Belastingsamenwerking gemeenten en hoogheemraadschap Utrech

What Belastingsamenwerking gemeenten en hoogheemraadschap Utrech does

BghU (Belastingsamenwerking gemeenten en hoogheemraadschap Utrecht) is a Dutch public-law cooperation (samenwerkingsverband) established to jointly administer local taxes and determine WOZ (property) valuations on behalf of its member municipalities and a water board. Its participants are 9 municipalities — Bunnik, De Bilt, Houten, Lopik, Nieuwegein, Stichtse Vecht, Utrecht, Utrechtse Heuvelrug, and Zeist — together with Hoogheemraadschap De Stichtse Rijnlanden (HDSR). BghU handles municipal taxes (OZB, waste levy, sewerage levy, dog tax, tourist tax, parking tax, precario, reclame, market fees, and various other levies) as well as water board taxes (watersysteemheffing, zuiveringsheffing, verontreinigingsheffing). Annually the organization administers approximately 725,000 tax assessments across 375,000 properties and collects roughly €795 million in tax revenue.

The operational platform centers on the Mijn BghU digital self-service portal, accessible at belastingen.bghu.nl. Citizens authenticate via the national DigiD system while businesses use eHerkenning at reliability level EH3; the portal also integrates with MijnOverheid, the central Dutch government mailbox, for document delivery. Service modules include municipal and water board tax administration, WOZ valuation, digital filing (for tourist tax and pollution levies), payment processing (iDEAL, bank transfer, automatic direct debit with up to 10 installments), change notifications (moves, property sales, deaths, dog registration), and exemption/relief (kwijtschelding) applications. The public website (bghu.nl) is built and hosted by Idas Internet & ICT, and debt enforcement on unpaid assessments is handled in cooperation with the Landelijke Associatie van Gerechtsdeurwaarders (LAVG). Supplementary channels include telephone support (088-06-40-200) and a physical counter at the Utrecht headquarters at Stadsplateau 1.

BghU is not a commercial entity and generates no revenue in the conventional sense; it operates as a cost-shared public administration whose budget is funded by its members. Compliance posture includes full GDPR/AVG adherence with a designated Data Protection Officer (S. Pauw), accessibility compliance work under the Besluit digitale toegankelijke overheid (currently self-assessed at rating D pending external audit), and a 3-star quality rating from the Waarderingskamer for WOZ processes (February 2026). From January 2026 the organization reduced telephone and counter service hours to 09:00-13:00 on weekdays, signaling a continued channel shift toward digital self-service.

Name

Belastingsamenwerking gemeenten en hoogheemraadschap Utrech

Legal name

Belastingsamenwerking gemeenten en hoogheemraadschap Utrecht

Website

https://bghu.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

BghU is a Dutch public-law tax cooperation that administers and collects local taxes and WOZ property valuations on behalf of 9 Utrecht-region municipalities and Hoogheemraadschap De Stichtse Rijnlanden, handling 725,000 assessments and €795 million in annual collections through the Mijn BghU digital portal.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal Tax Administration

NAICS

Offices of Real Estate Appraisers (531320)

akta.pro primary industry

Municipal Tax & Revenue Administration (Local) (BPAIACAD)

Keywords

• Municipal tax administration
• Local tax collection
• Property tax assessment
• Water board taxation
• WOZ property valuation

Headquarters

HQ city

Utrecht

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Core offering

BghU performs the joint assessment, determination, and collection of local taxes and WOZ property valuations on behalf of 9 Utrecht-region municipalities (Bunnik, De Bilt, Houten, Lopik, Nieuwegein, Stichtse Vecht, Utrecht, Utrechtse Heuvelrug, Zeist) and Hoogheemraadschap De Stichtse Rijnlanden (HDSR) water board. The organization administers municipal taxes (OZB, waste/sewer levies, dog/tourist/parking taxes), water board taxes (watersysteemheffing, zuiveringsheffing/verontreinigingsheffing), and annual WOZ valuations, supported by the unified Mijn BghU digital portal.

Product overview

BghU (Belastingsamenwerking gemeenten en hoogheemraadschap Utrecht) is a tax cooperation partnership serving 9 municipalities (Bunnik, De Bilt, Houten, Lopik, Nieuwegein, Stichtse Vecht, Utrecht, Utrechtse Heuvelrug, Zeist) and Hoogheemraadschap De Stichtse Rijnlanden (HDSR) water board. The organization operates as a unified platform with multiple service modules: the core Mijn BghU digital portal serves as the primary interface through which citizens and businesses access municipal tax services (OZB, waste levy, sewerage, dog tax, tourist tax, parking tax, and various other levies), water board taxes (watersystem and purification levies), WOZ value assessments, and specialized services including digital filing, payment processing, exemption applications, and change notifications. The integrated platform handles approximately 375,000 properties, issues 725,000 annual tax assessments, and collects €795 million annually across the member jurisdictions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mijn BghU Digital Self-Service Portal The unified online portal (belastingen.bghu.nl) where residents log in via DigiD and businesses via eHerkenning (EH3) to view tax assessments, make payments via iDEAL/bank transfer/direct debit (up to 10 installments), submit objections and appeals, apply for exemptions, and report life changes such as moving, property sales, death, and dog registration/deregistration.
• Municipal Tax Administration (Gemeentelijke belastingen) Assessment, billing, and collection of local municipal taxes including Onroerende zaakbelasting (OZB), Afvalstoffenheffing (waste levy), Rioolheffing (sewerage levy), Hondenbelasting (dog tax), Toeristenbelasting (tourist tax), Parkeerbelasting (parking tax), Precariobelasting, Reclamebelasting, Marktgelden, and Leges on behalf of the 9 participating municipalities in the Utrecht region.
• Water Board Tax Administration (Waterschapsbelastingen) Collection of water management taxes including Watersysteemheffing (water system levy for building owners and residents) and Zuiveringsheffing/Verontreinigingsheffing (purification/pollution levies) on behalf of Hoogheemraadschap De Stichtse Rijnlanden (HDSR), covering southern Utrecht province and part of South Holland.
• WOZ Property Valuation (WOZ-waarde)

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Landelijke Associatie van Gerechtsdeurwaarders (LAVG)OthersBghU collaborates with LAVG for debt collection activities when taxpayers fail to pay their tax assessments on time. This partnership handles enforcement and collection of outstanding tax debts.
• Hoogheemraadschap De Stichtse Rijnlanden (HDSR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHDSR is one of BghU's founding partners - a water board (waterschap) for which BghU administers waterschapsbelastingen including watersysteemheffing, zuiveringsheffing, and verontreinigingsheffing. BghU collects these taxes on behalf of HDSR's service area covering southern Utrecht province and part of South Holland.
• DigiDcoreTechnology or IntegrationDigiD is the national Dutch digital identity system used by residents and sole proprietors to log in to the Mijn BghU digital portal for accessing their tax information and services.
• eHerkenningcoreTechnology or IntegrationeHerkenning is the Dutch trusted login system for businesses, requiring EH3 reliability level, used by entrepreneurs to access Mijn BghU for tax filings and business-related tax services.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Centric: Major Dutch government-IT vendor providing tax software, municipal back-office systems, and WOZ tooling to many Dutch municipalities and tax cooperations including organizations like BghU. A broad incumbent in the same value chain rather than a direct operator of tax services.
• PinkRoccade Local Government: Established Dutch vendor of local-government software including tax administration, WOZ, and citizen-portal modules. Provides the underlying technology stack used by many Dutch municipal tax cooperations, making it an enabling incumbent rather than a competing operator like BghU.

Direct peers

• GBLT (Gemeentelijke Belastingen Leiden): Direct peer operating a regional tax cooperation around Leiden, providing assessment and collection of municipal taxes, WOZ valuations, and water-board levies. Highly comparable service portfolio, customer segments (residents and businesses), and digital portal model to BghU.
• SVHW (Samenwerkingsverband Hollandse Delta): Dutch water-board-aligned tax cooperation collecting waterschapsbelastingen and serving municipalities in the Hollandse Delta region. Closely comparable to BghU's water-board tax administration remit and shared-services structure.
• BsGW (Belastingsamenwerking gemeenten en waterschappen West-Brabant): Direct Dutch peer: a samenwerkingsverband administering municipal and water-board taxes for a group of municipalities in West-Brabant. Structurally comparable to BghU with shared services model, WOZ valuation responsibility, and a multi-municipality membership base.
• Drechtsteden Belastingen: Tax cooperation serving the Drechtsteden municipalities in South Holland with municipal tax assessment, WOZ valuation, and collection services. Direct functional peer to BghU in structure and service offering.
• Belastingen Bollenstreek: Regional Dutch tax cooperation serving municipalities in the Bollenstreek area, providing municipal tax assessment, WOZ valuation and collection services. Comparable scale and operating model to BghU, with a similar citizen/business customer base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bghu

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Belastingsamenwerking gemeenten en hoogheemraadschap Utrech