Starting business

If you are thinking of starting business in The Netherlands many legal and fiscal aspects will have to be taken into account. Decisions taken when starting a business often have long-term consequences – either positively or negatively. International business structures need careful tax planning in order to design the most tax efficient structure. Therefore it is important to acquire professional advice. You can contact us for advice.

Our advisors can advise you how to start a business in the Netherlands and can support you with:

• assisting with incorporation and registering with the Chamber of Commerce;
• submitting the necessary forms to the Tax Office and other authorities;
• drafting a business plan and organising the accounts;
• deciding which business type you want to use, for example sole trader, partnership or limited liability company, which each have their own legal characteristics and tax facilities.

Corporate tax rates

The business investment climate is very favourable in The Netherlands. The corporate tax income rate for example is only 20 to 25%. Research & development projects profit from the innovation box, with a corporate tax rate down to 5%. The Netherlands has got one of the largest tax treaty networks, thus avoiding double taxation with many countries. The Dutch participation exemption causes dividends from qualifying shareholdings to be enjoyed tax free and the fiscal unity regime makes it possible to freely offset profits and losses among group members. Maybe yet more important is the beneficial fiscal climate towards international companies.

Corporate tax facilities

The corporate tax facilities together make international business structures very tax efficient. On top of all this there is the 30% tax ruling for expatriates recruited from abroad, which makes 30% of their income tax free along with other advantages.