Did you receive a tax refund from the Netherlands, and now you have to give it all back? Did a letter come to you calling for a refund of the money you received from the Belastingdienst? Or maybe the amount of the surcharge turned out to be much higher? Unfortunately, such situations do happen, so it is worth knowing what they are caused by and how to proceed.
Belastingdienst in the Netherlands calls for payment - why?
Do you know the feeling when you have received a tax refund or insurance subsidy from the Netherlands, then after several months or even years the Belastingdienst tax office calls for payment? You may not be the only one who feels irritated. This is especially true for a sizable group of non-residents working in the Netherlands. Why does this happen?
Aanslag's preliminary tax decision from the Netherlands
Let's start with the fact that you usually receive an interim decision (Aanslag) as a result of your tax return. This means that it is only a preliminary assessment, on which the office stipulates that it has the right to change the decision. In other words, most often the interim decision is an automatic decision based on the data you entered on your Dutch tax return.
So if you have claimed, for example, a child tax credit, the office will probably pay you the amount of the credit, but be prepared that in the near future the decision and the amount paid will be audited by a Belastigndienst official. The interim decision is, in a way, a convenience for the taxpayer - instead of waiting a long time for the due tax refund from the Netherlands, the office pays the due amount of the tax overpayment in advance.
In fact, the Dutch tax authority as much as 5 years to issue a final tax decision. One should be aware that the final settlement may differ significantly - unfortunately, also to our disadvantage.
Aangiftebrief 2022 - the blue envelope from Belastingdienst
Everything is fine if your tax return is correct. Then you have nothing to fear. Stairs arise when the official, after inspecting your return, determines that you are not entitled to tax benefits. This is when the return is corrected and a new final assessment is issued. This is also when you receive a letter from the office, where you are politely asked to return the undue amount of tax paid, plus interest.
As we mentioned above, this can happen up to 5 years after the interim assessment. What's more, the office, even after the final decision is issued, can change its content and issue a so-called Vermindering or Navordering Aanslag.
Call for payment from the Netherlands - for what reason?
An additional tax assessment will be sent if:
-new facts have emerged that were not yet known at the time of the previous tax assessment,
-you have not settled your tax return by the due date, and you were subject to such an obligation,
-your income or taxable amount was underestimated by the tax office - this occurs if your tax return is not filed,
-you have not stated your full income and assets, in which case you can be fined for filing an incomplete tax return,
-you have deducted an incorrect amount from your tax - various types of relief,
-the tax office made a mistake, as a result of which you paid too little tax.
Don't wait - pay
When you receive a summons from the office, you have two ways. Pay immediately to the Belastingdienst the amount due with interest to the designated bank account (don't forget the appropriate title of the transfer), or request a deferral of the payment deadline and appeal the decision if you disagree with it. The latter option is quite a bit more difficult and less often taken by foreigners working in the Netherlands. The best route, however, is to pay the amount due to the authority immediately and only draw up an appeal. Why? Because appeals take up to 5 months to process, and during this time interest can rise by up to several hundred euros.
Aangiftebrief 2022 - do I have the right to appeal?
It all depends on whether your tax return was properly prepared. If, for example, you have claimed a child tax credit without having a child, or without meeting the conditions for the credit, then an appeal makes absolutely no sense. However, in more than 50% of cases, it is worth reviewing the decision of the Belastingdienst and appealing it. The most common subject of a tax appeal is:
-a wrongly recognized period of insurance in the Netherlands, the so-called Periode Premieplicht,
-lack of consideration of the fiscal partnership allowance,
-incorrectly calculated arbeidskorting relief,
-incorrectly calculated combinatiekorting relief,
-lack of consideration of the 90% condition in the heffingskorting relief.
An appeal against a tax decision in the Netherlands can be effective if it is sent within 6 weeks of the date of the authority's decision, but even after this deadline there is a possibility of correction, citing the relevant tax regulations. Before taking such steps, you must prepare documents that confirm your rationale and provide the basis for an appeal.
Have you left the Netherlands? The office will "reach" you anyway
If you think that by permanently departing the Netherlands you will avoid the obligation to pay tax, you are mistaken. EU agreements between the Netherlands and other countries make it possible to launch an international collection procedure, which involves quite high costs and the risk of a payment order being drawn up and forwarded to your tax office. This is followed by seizure of your bank accounts, and if this is not effective, a foreign bailiff takes over the case. We're not scaring you, we're just stating the facts.
Who must file a tax return in the Netherlands?
It is also worth knowing who must file a tax return in the Netherlands. Such an obligation applies to virtually every person who has worked in the country and legally earned income.
You must file a return with the Dutch tax office in case:
-you receive an Aangiftebrief 2022 letter from the Belastingdienst - a summons to settle your Dutch tax return; it can be sent regardless of whether you are due a refund or whether a surcharge applies,
-your tax refund from the Netherlands is higher than 15 euros,
-you have to pay a surcharge on your income tax of more than 46 euros.
So, if you have worked in the Netherlands, there is a good chance that you will receive a settlement notice in the form of an Aangiftebrief letter, and you must submit the appropriate form to the tax office by the deadline. For 2022, this is July 1, 2023, if we do not have a registered address, or by May 1, if we are registered.
It's better to be sure of the filed return
When filing a tax return, you can't fill it out "on the spur of the moment." You need to be sure that you only use the settlements and allowances that you are actually entitled to - otherwise you may be in for an unpleasant surprise in the form of a summons from the Netherlands.
Most misunderstandings arise from a lack of knowledge and familiarity with the current regulations, so it is definitely better to pass the matter to tax advisors who will give you a guarantee of the correctness of the settlement, taking full responsibility for the content of the decision. Using the Aangifte application, you can be sure that your tax return from the Netherlands will be properly completed and will reach the office on time. Our user-friendly Dutch tax refund calculator 2024 is primed and ready, ideal for those looking to swiftly and effortlessly compute their refund. In just a few simple steps, input your details and discover the potential benefits awaiting you. Don’t delay – find out now just how straightforward it is to ascertain the tax refund you might receive.
