Menno Snel, the Junior Finance Minister, has recently provided the Lower House with answers to parliamentary questions on the topic of Section 13a of the Double Taxation (Avoidance) Decree of the Netherlands.
Double taxation
Over 90 double taxation conventions are currently in operation between the Netherlands and a variety of other countries, with the aim of ensuring that Dutch residents should not be taxed twice on their income or assets.
Lorry drivers
In keeping with the OECD Model Convention, the main rule for lorry drivers whose duties, as employees of non-Dutch based transport companies, take them to a variety of countries is that it is primarily their country of residence which has the right to levy taxes, except where it is within the transport company’s own country of establishment that the driver is put to work. Mr Snel appreciates that cross-border operations may be more taxing as well as more convoluted.
Mr Snel greatly prefers not to impose Section 13a on internationally operating lorry drivers, the general regime governing the assignment of taxation powers having been shown in practice to work out quite satisfactorily where it concerns these drivers.
Read more about this: Antwoorden Kamervragen over het voorkomen van dubbele belasting (dutch)
Dutch version: Voorkomen van dubbele belasting