Reply to: Just for sh!ts and giggles. Netherlands €550/day Utrecht

[ASB]

I'll still be liable for UK tax and NI won't I?

Depends on your individual circumstances but if you are UK domiciled you will be liable for UK tax on it in most circumstances. You will normally get credit for any dutch tax paid (so yes you normally simply end up paying the higher).

Also there can be some circumstances where DTAs don't help (don't know about the dutch one). as an example I personally had to pay a Portuguese tax on some income my company generated in Portugal (buggered if I know why I had to pay it not the company). I could not claim this against the companys CT. I couldn't claim relief on it against my personal income since that was not the same income (I probably could have done in the end but it was only a few hundred quid and the advice would probably have cost more so it wasn't worth it).

However the income has to be assessable under the UK regs. There are sometimes ways to avoid this, but you then need to ensure you are not UK resident when it is paid out - and also that where you happen to be resident when it is paid out will not be interested in it.

The NI rules are different. In theory you can elect to continue paying UK ni on the income, or Dutch.

[darmstadt]

Well, each to his own opinion. I liked Utrecht a lot. Not all of the 250,000 population town, but the Museumkwartier that I frequented, with its canals, resturants, and (especially) cafes.

Interestingly enough the knocking shops in Utrecht are on the canals

[expat]

Not Cap Gemini is it? I stay at the Carlton when I'm there in Utrecht.

I stay at the Karel V

[darmstadt]

Not Cap Gemini is it? I stay at the Carlton when I'm there in Utrecht.

[expat]

Yeah, I was wondering about that.

I've had an agent on the phone today going on about the great tax breaks in Holland.

I said that even if I go to work in Holland for a 6 month contract my main residence is still in the UK and my kids are at school here etc... I'll still be liable for UK tax and NI won't I? (Or the difference between UK and NL tax anyway.) He didn't seem to know, but I can't imagine HMRC allowing one to get away with it, any more than they would if one went to work in the Isle of Man for six months.

I don't see where this great Netherlands tax break comes in on short contracts, but maybe I've missed something?

I think the big point is that you've got a good tax break compared to the Dutch tax that you'd otherwise be paying. When it comes to 2 countries and a double taxation agreement, it can indeed be a waste of time to get a tax break in one of the countries because the other one will just take up the slack.

[expat]

Utrecht.....no

I mean there are better places than Utrecht

Good I suppose you could live in Amsterdam. But don't forget the Netherlands is flat, ....very flat and miles to the nearest hill.

Personally it would drive me up the wall.

Well, each to his own opinion. I liked Utrecht a lot. Not all of the 250,000 population town, but the Museumkwartier that I frequented, with its canals, resturants, and (especially) cafes. And to my surprise I liked the Netherlands overall: and I'm a Scot who finds the south of England and the North of France too flat (in fact the south of Scotland too now I come to think of it); NL should have been unbearable but it wasn't.

[dang65]

Beware of contracting in Holland.

Yeah, I was wondering about that.

I've had an agent on the phone today going on about the great tax breaks in Holland.

I said that even if I go to work in Holland for a 6 month contract my main residence is still in the UK and my kids are at school here etc... I'll still be liable for UK tax and NI won't I? (Or the difference between UK and NL tax anyway.) He didn't seem to know, but I can't imagine HMRC allowing one to get away with it, any more than they would if one went to work in the Isle of Man for six months.

I don't see where this great Netherlands tax break comes in on short contracts, but maybe I've missed something?

[AlfredJPruffock]

Beware of contracting in Holland.

[BlasterBates]

Utrecht.....no

I mean there are better places than Utrecht

Good I suppose you could live in Amsterdam. But don't forget the Netherlands is flat, ....very flat and miles to the nearest hill.

Personally it would drive me up the wall.

[cab]

From 550 I would want at least 400 /day net. Is that reasonable in NL ?

Hi Angela,

I am a contractor who lives (and sometimes works) in the Netherlands.

Your net pay will be based on the package used by the company you work through, and most Dutch Clients prefer their contractors to use Dutch Umbrella companies for payroll, and your Client, or Employment Business may have negotiated special rates with one, which can cost as little as 150 euro per month. However, ideally I generally negotiate that the Employment Business pays the payroll charges.

Most Umbrella Companies operate a system whereby they withold "holiday pay" monthly (Dutch clients expect that even contractors take holidays) which they pay to you when you take an holiday, or at the end of the contract period, so of course this will reduce your bottom line. However, depending on the system they use you should expect your take home pay to be between 8,000 - 10,000 Euro per month (assuming you are accepted for the 30% Tax ruling), and the accrued holiday pay is useful when the contract ends.

Whichever payroll method you use I would advise that you employ a different Tax consultant to do your end of year return for the Belastingdienst (Dutch Tax Office) both to verify your payroll, and to ensure that you have received all the correct Tax benefits. Generally I get a refund from the Belastingdienst following the submission of my return. I use a company called Taxpat based in Amsterdam for my annual returns.

Good luck whatever you decide.

[Angela_D]

From 550 I would want at least 400 /day net. Is that reasonable in NL ?

[Phoenix]

Never registered. To be honest:: I didn't even know it was expected. I was green.


Regarding the rate. Ball-park: what would you expect as take-home ?

How much are you expecting?

[expat]

Well Utrecht is easy to get to from Schiphol. Not a bind at all. Loads of trains straight from airport. IBIS hotels and the like are cheap at around 40/50 euros a night.

There are no trains straight from Schipol to Utrecht at normal times, only a very few long-distance trains at odd hours stop at both: normally you have to change at Duivendrecht.

You would be hard put to it to find a hotel regularly at 50 euros a night in Utrecht. For example the Ibis Bizetlaan is currently showing 75€ for the night of 7/8/06 on hotels.nl; that's out of town, in Utrecht the 2-star Ouwi is 79 and the Hotel Little Siam is a little less on hotels.co.uk (note that these 2 sites often have different availability although they're both driven by hotels.com).

Nevertheless it is not inconvenient (take 1st class back to Schipol on Friday is it's rush-hour) and I'd much rather stay in Utrecht myself. Don't miss the Argentinian steakhouse on the Oude Gracht.

[Angela_D]

Never registered. To be honest:: I didn't even know it was expected. I was green.


Regarding the rate. Ball-park: what would you expect as take-home ?

[Clog II The Avenger]

The 30% rule only applies on your first job on arrival in the Netherlands. If you were using your limited company before did you register a as a resident? Best to conveniently forget about you first stint.

For my 2p’s worth I would like to go back regardless of any tax disadvantage just to get away from Blighty.