The formal u: u bent, u heeft, kunt u

u is the polite way to say you in Dutch, used with strangers, officials, and people you want to show respect or distance to: Kunt u mij helpen? (Can you help me?) It is a singular pronoun and takes a singular verb, and — unlike jij — that verb keeps its -t everywhere, even in a question.

As a rule, the verb after u takes the same -t form as the hij/zij (he/she) form: u werkt, u woont, u komt, u gaat. Two very common verbs have two accepted forms each, so both are correct.

• Regular verbs: stem + -t, like the hij-form. u werkt (you work), u betaalt (you pay), u begrijpt (you understand).
• zijn (to be): the standard form is u bent. The older u is still turns up but is now widely felt to be dated, so stick with u bent.
• hebben (to have): u heeft or u hebt — both are standard. u heeft sounds slightly more formal.
• kunnen (can): u kunt or u kan — both occur; u kunt is preferred in writing in the Netherlands.

The full present tense of these irregular verbs is set out in zijn and hebben.

When you turn a statement into a question and the verb moves in front of the subject, jij loses its -t (jij werkt → werk jij?). u does not: the verb keeps its -t.

• U komt → Komt u vanavond? (Are you coming tonight?)
• U bent → Bent u de nieuwe buurman? (Are you the new neighbour?)
• U heeft → Heeft u even tijd? (Do you have a moment?)
• Compare jij, which drops the -t: Werk jij hier? (Do you work here?) but Werkt u hier?

• With people you do not know, older people, officials, and in service or work settings: a doctor, a clerk at the gemeente (town hall), a customer.
• Roughly: if you would call the person meneer or mevrouw (Mr / Ms) rather than by first name, use u.
• With friends, family, peers, classmates, and children, Dutch uses the informal je or jij instead.
• The matching possessive is uw (your): uw naam, uw paspoort. It follows the same pattern as jou / jouw — see jou or jouw.

Two errors are common. First, dropping the -t in a question by analogy with jij: Kom u? and Woon u hier? are wrong — it is Komt u? and Woont u hier? Second, treating u as plural and using the -en form: u zijn and u hebben are wrong. u is grammatically singular, so it is u bent (not u is, which is dated) and u heeft / u hebt.