Young football pro misses out on 30% tax regime

Expatriate workers who boast the kind of specific expertise that is scarce in the Netherlands have the option of applying for the 30% tax regime. Allowances are made when the applicant’s specific expertise is vetted for the level of education and the job-relevant experience of the expat in question and for the remunerative level prevailing in the Netherlands compared to that in the expat worker’s home country. 

The Bois-le-Duc Court of Appeal in its deliberations during proceedings revolving around the Tax and Customs Administration’s refusal to admit a young football pro to the 30% tax scheme identified “relevant experience” as the main fly in the ointment, arguing that it was only by training and playing at a level similar to that of the Dutch premier league that the requisite experience could be gained, and that the player in question lacked such relevant experience. The Supreme Court went on to confirm that the Court of Appeal’s ruling, lucid and well-substantiated as it had been, had not been indicative of an incorrect interpretation of the law.