How to Donate to Gaza from the Netherlands: iDEAL, ANBI Tax Rules and Verifying Where Your Money Goes | FundGaza
How to Donate to Gaza from the Netherlands: iDEAL, ANBI Tax Rules and Verifying Where Your Money Goes
October 17, 2026
If you live in the Netherlands and want to help people in Gaza, you probably have three questions before you send a single euro. Can I just pay with iDEAL, the way I pay for everything else? Will the Belastingdienst let me deduct it? And how do I know the money actually lands where it should?
This guide answers all three honestly — including the parts that are less convenient. Some routes give you a tax deduction but little visibility into the final step. Others give you on-chain visibility but no deduction at all. You can choose well once you see those trade-offs clearly.
The short answer: From the Netherlands you can give to Gaza through a Dutch ANBI-registered charity (iDEAL, tax-deductible above a threshold), through an international crowdfunding platform (card payment, usually not deductible), or directly in USDT on the TRON network to an initiative such as FundGaza (not deductible, but every transfer is publicly visible on Tronscan). Pick based on what matters most to you: the deduction, the speed, or the ability to trace the transfer yourself.
The three realistic routes from the Netherlands
Route 1: A Dutch ANBI charity, paid with iDEAL
This is the most familiar path for Dutch donors. You visit the charity's website, choose an amount, and pay with iDEAL from your own banking app. The charity then works through its partners on the ground.
What you get: a tax-deductible gift (more on the rules below), a Dutch legal entity you can hold to account, and annual reports. What you give up: you rarely see the individual transfer or purchase your euros became, and large organisations work through several layers before aid reaches a family.
A practical note on iDEAL itself: the scheme is moving to the European Wero platform. According to iDEAL's own announcement, checkout pages started showing a combined "iDEAL | Wero" logo in early 2026, and transactions move to Wero step by step after approval from De Nederlandsche Bank. For donors, nothing changes in practice yet — if you see the combined logo, it is the same bank payment you already know.
Route 2: International crowdfunding platforms
Platforms such as GoFundMe host personal fundraisers for families in Gaza. You usually pay by card, and the checkout shows the payment methods available in your country. These fundraisers are typically organised by individuals, not by a Dutch ANBI, so you should not expect a tax deduction.
The third route skips banks and platforms entirely. You send USDT (a dollar-pegged stablecoin) on the TRON network — also written TRC-20 — straight to a published wallet. This is how FundGaza accepts donations on its own site. The method is explained in depth in our guide on how to donate USDT crypto to Gaza; below we focus on what is specific to Dutch donors.
Is my donation to Gaza tax-deductible in the Netherlands?
This is where many Dutch donors get it wrong, so it is worth being precise. The rules below come from the Belastingdienst page on deducting gifts, checked in October 2026. Tax rules change; always check the current version for your tax year.
Only gifts to an ANBI (or a qualifying association) count. An ANBI is an institution the Belastingdienst has recognised as serving the public benefit. A gift to a person, a family, or an initiative without ANBI status is not deductible — no matter how worthy the cause.
Cash gifts are never deductible. The Belastingdienst says this explicitly. Pay by bank transfer or iDEAL so there is a record.
Ordinary gifts have a threshold and a cap. You can only deduct the part of your total gifts above a threshold of 1% of your drempelinkomen (threshold income), with a minimum of €60. The deductible amount is capped at 10% of that same income. In other words, a few small one-off gifts in a year often produce no deduction at all.
Periodic gifts work differently. If you commit to giving the same amount to the same ANBI every year for at least five years, laid down in a notarial deed or a written agreement with the institution, the threshold does not apply. Gifts made before the agreement is signed do not count as periodic.
What about foreign organisations? The ANBI requirement applies to them too: a charity based outside the Netherlands only counts if it holds Dutch ANBI status. Before you rely on a deduction, look the organisation up in the Belastingdienst's ANBI register rather than trusting a "tax-deductible" banner — that label may refer to another country's tax system.
Where FundGaza fits
Let us be direct: FundGaza is not an ANBI. Its own about page describes it as "a personal humanitarian initiative, not a licensed charity." A donation to FundGaza is therefore not deductible in the Netherlands. If the deduction is decisive for you, give through a Dutch ANBI — that is a perfectly good choice, and you can still follow FundGaza's work.
People who choose FundGaza anyway usually do so for a different reason: the person running it lives inside the Gaza Strip, and the incoming transfers are visible to anyone on a public blockchain.
How to donate USDT from the Netherlands, step by step
If you have never bought crypto, this is the part that feels intimidating. It need not be. Here is the process in plain terms.
Step 1: Choose a regulated exchange
Use a crypto platform authorised to serve customers in the EU under the MiCA rules. In the Netherlands, the AFM (Autoriteit Financiële Markten) supervises these firms, and you can check a platform in the AFM register before you sign up. Many Dutch-facing platforms let you fund your account with iDEAL or a SEPA transfer. You will have to verify your identity; that is normal and required by law.
Step 2: Buy USDT
Buy the amount you want to give, plus a small margin for the network and withdrawal fee. Fees differ per platform and change with network conditions, so read the fee shown on the withdrawal screen rather than assuming a fixed number.
Step 3: Withdraw on the TRON (TRC-20) network
This is the step that matters most. On the withdrawal screen:
Select USDT as the asset.
Select TRON / TRC-20 as the network. Not Ethereum, not BNB Chain. FundGaza's donate page warns plainly that sending on the wrong network means the funds are permanently lost.
Copy the wallet address directly from FundGaza's donate page — never from a message, comment or screenshot someone sent you.
Compare the first and last characters of the pasted address with the one on the site.
Consider sending a small test amount first, then the rest.
Your exchange may ask who owns the receiving wallet. EU travel-rule checks require platforms to collect this information for some crypto withdrawals; answer truthfully that it is a donation to a third-party wallet.
Step 4: Verify the transfer on Tronscan
Once the exchange marks the withdrawal as complete, it will show a transaction ID. Paste that ID into Tronscan, the public TRON block explorer, and check four things:
the status shows the transaction as confirmed;
the token is USDT (Tether), not a look-alike token with a similar name;
the receiving address matches the wallet published on FundGaza's own donate page;
the amount is what you intended to send.
You can also open FundGaza's wallet on Tronscan from the donate page and see your transfer arrive among the others. That is the core value of this route: you do not have to take anyone's word for the receiving end.
What on-chain verification proves — and what it does not
Honesty matters here, because some crypto fundraisers overstate it. A Tronscan record proves that a specific amount of USDT moved from one wallet to another at a specific time. It does not, on its own, prove what that money was later spent on, or that a particular family received a particular food basket.
For that second part you depend on the initiative's own reporting. FundGaza's about page says donations are documented with photos and receipts in a public transparency log. Read that log yourself, look at whether updates are specific (what was bought, roughly when, for which project), and judge it on its merits. A healthy habit with any organisation — ANBI or not — is to compare what they promise with what they actually publish.
What your donation can support
FundGaza currently runs two on-site projects. The Water Relief Project focuses on access to drinking water, and the Food Basket Project funds packed food baskets for families. Each campaign page explains its goal; check the latest updates there rather than relying on figures quoted elsewhere, because prices and conditions inside Gaza change quickly.
Red flags when giving to Gaza from abroad
Fraudsters follow the news, and Dutch donors are targeted like everyone else. Watch for these signs:
A wallet address sent by private message. Legitimate initiatives publish their address on their own site. A "new address" arriving by WhatsApp, Instagram DM or email is the classic swap scam.
Pressure and countdowns. "Only 2 hours left" is a sales technique, not a humanitarian one.
Claims of guaranteed tax deduction from a non-ANBI. If the organisation is not in the ANBI register, the deduction claim is wrong.
Requests for gift cards or payment to a personal Tikkie link from a stranger. Neither leaves you a meaningful trail.
No way to contact a real person. FundGaza offers direct WhatsApp contact on its about page; any initiative you support should offer something comparable.
Copy-cat sites. Check the domain carefully before you copy any address.
A note on zakat and sadaqah
Many Muslim donors in the Netherlands ask whether a gift through any of these routes can count as zakat. Sadaqah (voluntary charity) is open in form; zakat has specific conditions on recipients and on how it is distributed, and scholars differ on details such as giving through intermediaries. This guide does not issue a ruling. If you intend a payment as zakat, ask a scholar or a zakat body you trust, and tell the organisation clearly that the money is zakat so it can be handled accordingly.
Choosing the route that fits you
There is no single right answer. If the tax deduction matters most, choose a Dutch ANBI and pay with iDEAL. If you want to support a particular family's fundraiser, a crowdfunding platform is the natural fit. If you want to see the transfer with your own eyes on a public ledger and are comfortable with a few extra steps, USDT on TRON is the most transparent route at the moment of transfer.
Whatever you choose, give through a channel you have verified yourself. And if you have read this far and the direct route suits you, you can donate USDT verified on-chain — or start from the general page to donate to Gaza now.
Frequently asked questions
Can I donate to Gaza with iDEAL from the Netherlands?
Yes, through Dutch charities that offer iDEAL at checkout. FundGaza itself does not accept iDEAL; its own site takes USDT on the TRON (TRC-20) network. You can, however, use iDEAL to fund an account on a regulated crypto exchange and buy USDT there.
Is a donation to FundGaza tax-deductible in the Netherlands?
No. FundGaza describes itself as a personal humanitarian initiative, not a licensed charity, and it is not an ANBI. Dutch gift deduction only applies to gifts to an ANBI or a qualifying association.
How much of a gift to an ANBI can I deduct?
For ordinary gifts, only the total above a threshold of 1% of your threshold income (minimum €60) is deductible, capped at 10% of that income. Periodic gifts under a five-year written or notarial agreement have no threshold. Check the Belastingdienst for your tax year.
Which network should I use to send USDT to Gaza?
Use the network the recipient publishes. For FundGaza that is TRON (TRC-20). Sending on another network, such as Ethereum, can mean the funds are permanently lost.
Does a Tronscan record prove my money helped a family?
No, not on its own. It proves that USDT moved to the published wallet. What the money bought afterwards depends on the initiative's own reporting, such as photos and receipts in its transparency log.
Can I pay zakat through these routes?
Zakat has specific conditions on recipients and distribution, and scholars differ on giving through intermediaries. Ask a scholar or zakat body you trust, and tell the recipient clearly that the payment is zakat.
