Danish taxes are high, simple to understand and almost entirely digital. You do not post a form in April. You check a number in a portal, correct it once a year, and the state pays out or collects the difference. For a new resident the main questions are how much, when, and what happens in the first year.
This guide to income tax in Denmark uses the 2026 figures published by the Ministry of Taxation and Skattestyrelsen, the tax authority. It is not personal tax advice, and a professional should check complex cases.
How does income tax in Denmark work?
You become subject to full tax liability when you move to Denmark and live here, says Skattestyrelsen. That means Denmark taxes your worldwide income and you must report your assets abroad: accounts, securities, pensions, property and rental income. Skattestyrelsen also notes that buying a home alone does not make you fully liable if you do not live there.
Your salary goes through four layers, in this order:
- The labour market contribution (AM-bidrag). 8 per cent of gross pay, deducted before the income tax is calculated.
- Municipal tax (kommuneskat). 25.0 per cent on average in 2026 (25.049 per cent exactly, down from 25.1 per cent the year before). It differs by municipality, from about 23.39 per cent in Copenhagen to 26.30 per cent in the highest municipalities, according to the Ministry's list.
- State tax. Bottom-bracket tax (bundskat) of 12.01 per cent on income above the personal allowance of DKK 54,100.
- Extra brackets for high earners. Middle-bracket tax (mellemskat) of 7.5 per cent above DKK 641,200, top-bracket tax (topskat) of 7.5 per cent above DKK 777,900, and additional top-bracket tax (toptopskat) of 5 per cent above DKK 2,592,700. All thresholds are measured on personal income after the labour market contribution.
The Ministry's 2026 table also sets a tax ceiling (skatteloft) of 44.57 per cent on personal income, which caps the combined rate of some of these taxes. Members of the Church of Denmark also pay a church tax averaging 0.867 per cent.
One 2026 warning: be careful with articles and calculators written before 2026. What used to be called topskat is now called mellemskat for the first 7.5 per cent bracket, and a new topskat bracket sits above it. If a simulator still uses the old names and thresholds, it is describing the old system. The thresholds above come from Skattestyrelsen's page for 2026.
What is the tax card, and why does it matter?
The tax card (skattekort) tells your employer how much to withhold. It is digital and has a primary and a secondary part, and the primary card can be given to only one employer or provider. Without a tax card, the Lifeindenmark dictionary says, 55 per cent is withheld with no allowance. That is why Skattestyrelsen advises you to get one as soon as you expect an income.
You get it by filling in your preliminary income assessment (forskudsopgørelse) on TastSelv, the online tax portal, which you reach with MitID. Skattestyrelsen can also help you by phone with your tax card if you know your expected salary, other income and deductions. The route to get there is in CPR number in Denmark.
Not sure what to put in the "expected income" and "foreign assets" boxes? Moovy can explain each box of the preliminary assessment in plain English, and flag the lines where you should ask an adviser or the tax authority. You fill in and file everything yourself.
What is the yearly calendar for income tax in Denmark?
- November: the preliminary assessment for the next year is set. Check it and correct it.
- March: the annual assessment (årsopgørelse) appears on TastSelv. In 2026 it was available from 23 March.
- 1 May: the usual deadline to correct the annual assessment. For the 2025 income year the date was moved to 20 May.
- 1 July: the date by which you must complete a full return (selvangivelse) if you have foreign income, a personal business or a rented property, and the date by which you must pay a balance to avoid a surcharge.
- Refunds are paid automatically, from 24 April in 2026.
How is income tax in Denmark handled in your first year?
In the year you arrive, income is converted to an annual figure to calculate the tax, which is then reduced proportionally. All amounts must be in Danish kroner; the TastSelv calculator uses the annual average rate of the National Bank of Denmark. Report your foreign accounts, securities, pensions and property in the preliminary assessment and in the return, because they are part of your tax picture from the moment you are fully liable.
How does a tax treaty affect you?
Denmark has double taxation treaties with many countries. For a French resident, a new treaty signed in Paris on 4 February 2022 entered into force on 29 December 2023 and applies to income from 1 January 2024, after many years with no treaty between the two countries. Private pensions and public pensions follow different rules there. For other countries, check the text on skat.dk. The treaty with the Nordic countries dates from 1996. For anything involving pensions, dividends or property abroad, get your case checked by a professional.
Can you pay less tax as a new arrival?
Possibly, if you are a researcher or a very well-paid employee recruited from abroad: a flat rate of 27 per cent plus the labour market contribution applies for up to seven years. See the researcher tax scheme in Denmark. Property owners also pay two annual property taxes; see buying property in Denmark. If you start a business, your profit is taxed with your other income, as explained in starting a business in Denmark.
How is income tax in Denmark calculated, step by step?
Think of the calculation as a staircase. Start with your gross salary. Take 8 per cent off for the labour market contribution. What remains is your personal income. From that, the state allows a personal allowance of DKK 54,100 before bottom-bracket tax starts at 12.01 per cent, while the municipality applies its own rate to the taxable income. Only if your personal income after the contribution exceeds DKK 641,200 does the middle bracket begin.
Two details change the picture. First, the contribution is deducted before everything else, so the official thresholds for the brackets are read after it, not on your gross salary. Second, since 2026 the contribution applies from the year of your eighteenth birthday, which matters if you bring a young adult with you.
The result is that your effective rate depends on your municipality and on your income level far more than on your nationality. A salary in Copenhagen, with one of the lowest municipal rates, is taxed a little differently from the same salary in a municipality at the top of the list.
What if you earn income from abroad or from several sources?
A new resident often has more than a payslip: a rental flat at home, a pension, dividends, freelance work for a foreign client. All of it belongs in your preliminary assessment, and some of it requires the full return before 1 July. The tax authority's telephone line for help with the preliminary assessment is +45 72 22 28 92. If you hold a second job, your secondary card is used for it, and you give the primary card to only one employer.
Your foreign pensions and accounts are listed too, converted to Danish kroner. If you have double taxation, the treaty between Denmark and your home country decides who may tax which income, and a credit mechanism usually prevents you from paying twice. Because treaties differ and pensions are a special case, the sensible step is a short consultation with a cross-border adviser in your first year.
What mistakes do newcomers make?
- Thinking you remain taxed at home. From the moment you live in Denmark, you are taxed here on worldwide income.
- Forgetting foreign assets and income. They belong in the preliminary assessment.
- Using a pre-2026 simulator. The brackets have changed.
- Paying church tax by accident. Only members pay it, and a Lutheran baptism abroad can make you a member unless you decline on the arrival form.
- Ignoring November. The next year's withholding is based on what you wrote.
Before you decide anything that depends on these figures, have your own situation confirmed by a Danish tax adviser or accountant: rates, treaties and your first year all depend on details.
For the overall picture of what your life costs, read cost of living in Denmark.