The four parties forming the new government of the Netherlands have signed an official coalition agreement – the Programme of Action for 2017-2021, which includes important changes in tax legislation. The innovations in the system of corporate and personal income taxation are aimed at increasing the competitiveness of the Netherlands and preventing money laundering.
The agreement assumes that the standard corporate tax rate will be gradually reduced from 25% to 21%, and a 20 percent rate of corporate income tax of up to 200,000 euros ($ 237,000) will be reduced to 16%. Another change is the partial cancellation of a 15 percent tax on dividends in order to increase the volume of foreign investment.
However, to counteract the creation of “mailbox companies”, the government plans to introduce a withholding tax on interest payments and royalties in jurisdictions with a low level of taxation. Confirming its commitment to the OECD recommendations on BEPS and promoting the equity participation financing, the coalition intends to limit deductions for interest payments. The authorities also support the creation of the blacklist of jurisdictions with improper taxation.