The default: quarterly
Four filings a year, each due the last day of the following month — the calendar stands in Dutch VAT deadlines. For businesses that pay VAT on balance, quarterly filing keeps the money in the business longest.
When monthly wins
Exporters and intra-EU sellers invoice largely at 0% while paying 21% on their costs: a structural refund position. Monthly filing turns four refunds a year into twelve — the same money, months earlier. Importers on Article 23 with a refund balance see the same effect.
The trade-off
Twelve filings ask for an administration that closes monthly. For a business with clean, automated bookkeeping the extra work is minutes; the refund acceleration pays for it many times over.
Switching
The switch runs on a written request to the tax authority; monthly filing then starts at the next period. The tax authority itself assigns monthly filing in some cases — structurally late payers, for example — which is a different conversation, covered under penalties and interest.