Information for employers
As an employer, you may pay an employee who is eligible for the 30% ruling up to 30% of his or her gross salary free of tax. This is considered an allowance for extraterritorial expenses, which do not need to be specified. No record-keeping is required. The 30% ruling can only be applied to an employee when the employer has received written approval from the Dutch tax office. The taxable salary of an employee should always meet the minimum income level set for that particular year. See Income norm for the 30% ruling.
Applying for the 30% ruling status
The 30 percent ruling may only be applied for, by the employer, after a written confirmation that it can do so. To obtain the ruling, the employer and the employee have to make a joint filing.
Please note that the signing date on the employment contract should be set before the arrival date of the employee. The maximum validity of the 30 percent ruling is 5 years. This duration may be reduced if the employee has resided in the Netherlands in the past 25 years.
Need help applying for the 30% ruling? We are happy to prepare the 30% ruling filing for you and your employee. Contact us for more information.
Extraterritorial costs
An employee has a number of benefits from the 30% ruling:
- 30% of the gross salary can be paid out free of tax, provided that the employee pays tax over the annual set minimum salary amounts (see income requirements 30% ruling).
- The employee may choose to have his or her (box 3) asset taxation not applied for in the Netherlands (i.e. no wealth tax or box 3 tax).
- The fiscal partner of the employee has the same tax exemption in box 3 as the employee.
- As a 30% ruling holder, a Dutch driver's license can simply be obtained by presenting the home country driver's license.
A 30% ruling holder can be paid a number of extraterritorial costs without incurring tax on these benefits:
- Off-setting the cost of living in the Netherlands.
- Cost of living including meals, gas, water and electricity.
- Expenses related to visiting the Netherlands to prepare for a move, including for family members who may need to look for housing, a school or childcare.
- Expenses to convert official personal documents, such as residency permits, visas and a driver’s license.
- Expenses for medical examination and vaccinations for the stay in the Netherlands.
- Duplicate expenses to maintain a house in the home country.
- Hotel and restaurant costs.
- Expenses for moving and storage.
- Travel expenses to visit family, friends and reunions.
- Extra expenses for tax advice.
- Education expenses for the applicant and family members, related to the stay in the Netherlands.
- The costs of applying for or converting of a work permit or a highly skilled migrant permit.
- Commuting expenses.
- Telephone line rental costs.
- Costs of business meals.
Excluded expenses
These costs cannot be reimbursed free of tax:
- Secondment allowances
- Bonuses and comparable allowances
- Capital losses
- Financial expenses for buying property (such as mortgage expenses and a broker's fee)
- Offsetting the costs of a higher tax rate in the working country (tax equalization)
Tax-free reimbursements in addition to the 30% facility
In addition to the 30% facility, the school fees for an international school or for the international department of an ordinary school can be reimbursed by the employer, free of tax.
This is permitted if:
- the curriculum at the school (department) is based on a foreign system
- the school (department) is in principle only open to children of seconded employees
30% ruling and insurance contributions
The 30% ruling also applies to employee insurance contributions. If your employee is insured in the Netherlands under employee insurance schemes, you are not required to deduct employee insurance contributions from the amount covered by the 30% tax-free allowance.