3D-printer

In een zaak die speelde bij rechtbank Noord-Holland was sprake van een kunstenares die beeldjes vervaardigde van zwangere vrouwen of alleen van hun buik. Bij de vervaardiging ervan gebruikte zij een 3D-printer. Daarbij bewerkte zij de scans met digitale software, overeenkomstig de wensen van de klant. De beeldjes werden van verschillende materialen vervaardigd, zoals van koper en staal. Na de print werden de beeldjes door de kunstenares afgewerkt.

Kunst of niet?

Voor de rechtbank speelde de vraag of er al dan niet sprake was van kunst. De inspecteur stelde van niet, onder andere omdat de beeldjes niet helemaal van de hand van de kunstenares waren en een commercieel karakter hadden.

Voorwaarden laag btw-tarief

De rechtbank stelde vast dat uit de wetsgeschiedenis volgt dat standbeelden en beeldhouwwerken onder het lage btw-tarief vallen als het gaat om:

• een origineel standbeeld of beeldhouwwerk
• dat geheel van de hand van de kunstenaar is, én 
• geen commercieel karakter heeft. 

Volgens de rechtbank voldeden de beeldjes aan deze eisen.

Geen massaproductie

Dat er sprake was van originele beeldjes stond buiten kijf. Uit eerdere rechtspraak was duidelijk dat de tweede voorwaarde, dat het kunstwerk geheel van de hand van de kunstenaar moet zijn, betekende dat er geen sprake mag zijn van massaproductie. Het gebruik van een 3D-printer staat hieraan volgens de rechtbank niet in de weg, omdat er bij iedere soort kunst nu eenmaal gebruik wordt gemaakt van werktuigen. 

Ook geen commercieel karakter

Ook aan de derde voorwaarde werd voldaan, omdat er geen sprake was van een commercieel karakter. Hiervan is namelijk sprake als een product naar maatschappelijke opvattingen uiterlijke gelijkenis vertoont met industriële of ambachtelijke producten waarvoor het algemene btw-tarief geldt. Ook dit was hier niet aan de orde. De rechtbank stelde de kunstenares dan ook in het gelijk.

Eight weeks 

In principle, the Tax and Customs Administration has eight weeks to process your VAT refund claim. If this takes longer, you are entitled to compensation for tax interest provided that the VAT refund relates to a previous year and 1 April has already passed. 

Example 
The Tax and Customs Administration receives your request for a VAT refund for the fourth quarter of 2025 on 20 January 2026. If you have not yet received a refund decision from the Tax and Customs Administration by 1 April 2026, you are entitled to compensation for tax interest from 1 April 2026. 

Calculation of tax interest 

The period over which tax interest is calculated begins on 1 April or eight weeks after receipt of your claim (if this is later than 1 April). The period runs until fourteen days after the date of the refund decision. 

Continuation of example 
If the Tax and Customs Administration issues a refund decision dated 15 June 2026, it must reimburse 5% tax interest for the period from 1 April 2026 up to and including 29 June 2026. 

Timely appeal against the rejection of a VAT refund claim 

Has the Tax and Customs Administration wrongly rejected your VAT refund claim? If so, you must lodge an objection in good time, i.e. within six weeks of the date of the rejection notice. If the Tax and Customs Administration subsequently grants the VAT refund, you are also entitled to reimbursement of tax interest. 

Please note! In response to enquiries on this matter, the Tax and Customs Administration has stated that there is no entitlement to reimbursement of tax interest if the original application for a VAT refund was submitted too late and/or if the appeal against the rejection notice was lodged too late. 

Right of access to tax records 

It is laid down in law that taxpayers have the right to inspect their own tax files held by the Tax and Customs Administration. In the letter, the State Secretary sets out how the implementation of this right of access to tax files will take shape in the coming years, what the intended timetable is and what exceptions will be made to the right of access.  

Fragmented 

At present, the Tax and Customs Administration does not yet have a centralised file system: the information in the tax file remains highly fragmented across dozens of unlinked systems. To facilitate the right of access to tax files, the Tax and Customs Administration will therefore need to implement a change in its working methods. The aim is to achieve a structured, externally oriented and accessible filing system, according to the State Secretary. The documents in the tax file will be made available digitally in stages over the coming years. 

‘Keuze digitaal’ programme 

Under the ‘Keuze digitaal’ programme currently being implemented within the Tax and Customs Administration, decisions, invitations, reminders and submitted documents will gradually become available on MijnBelastingdienst (Business) by 2030. This will later be expanded to include standard letters and automated messages, followed by information from individual files, for example regarding the processing of a tax return. 

 Timeline 

The letter also sets out a provisional timetable, which includes the planned introduction of the right of access to tax records:  

• Phase 1 covers access to formal correspondence, such as tax assessments, decisions, formal letters and submitted forms. The plan is to introduce this for VAT in 2026, for vehicle taxes, payroll taxes, corporation tax and gift and inheritance tax in the period 2027–2028, and for income tax in 2029. 
• Phase 2 provides access to the reasoning behind decisions, such as the grounds for an assessment and the progress of a case. This is planned for all the taxes listed in Phase 1 during the period 2029 to 2031 inclusive. 
• Phase 3 will provide access to a comprehensive and coherent case file. This is planned from 2032 onwards. 

Exception for excise duties and consumption taxes 

For Customs, the right of tax inspection would only apply to excise duties and consumption taxes. However, the State Secretary is excluding these levies from the right of tax inspection. The State Secretary points out that this does not mean that Customs is not committed to further improving the information position and legal protection of taxpayers.

Employment contract for an hourly rate below €38? 

The introduction of the legal presumption does not mean that every contractor working at an hourly rate below €38 is automatically employed by the company. It does, however, mean that the presumption of an employment relationship is accepted. The contractor may rely on this presumption, but the company has the option to demonstrate that no employment contract exists.

If the company fails to prove this, the contractor is entitled to all the protection afforded by employment law. This includes continued payment during holidays and sick leave, and protection against dismissal 

Not applicable to the UWV, the Tax and Customs Administration and the Labour Inspectorate 

The contractor may rely on the legal presumption, but it has effect only under civil law. This means that the UWV, the Tax and Customs Administration and the Labour Inspectorate will not assess this legal presumption. They will continue to carry out their own investigations based on the elements of work, pay and a relationship of authority. 

Immediate effect from 31 December 2026 

The legal presumption will come into force immediately on 31 December 2026. Do you have a contractor who is already carrying out work for you before 31 December 2026 at an hourly rate of less than €38? And will that contractor still be doing so from 31 December 2026 onwards? If so, from 31 December 2026 there will be a presumption that this contractor is employed by you. 

What is Solvit?

Solvit is a body established by the European Commission that mediates in disputes regarding the correct application of EU law. Solvit’s services are free of charge.

What kinds of problems?

The issues you can bring to Solvit are diverse. These include problems related to visas, child benefits, or pensions. For businesses, issues concerning trade and services, the recognition of professional qualifications, and VAT refunds are particularly relevant.

Please note!You cannot use Solvit if you have a problem with another business, if you have a problem as a consumer, or if you are seeking compensation. Solvit also cannot help if your case has been brought before a court.

Procedure

A complaint or problem can be submitted online. You must indicate the nature of the problem and which government agency you wish to report the issue to. You may also attach relevant documents, such as correspondence. After submission, the Solvit center in your own country will contact you to prepare your case and then forward it to the Solvit center in the country to which your complaint relates. The goal is to resolve a problem within ten weeks.

Examples

On the Solvit website, you’ll find numerous examples of cases that have been resolved with Solvit’s help. These include, for example, the failure to refund VAT or delays in doing so. Another case involves the refusal to issue a certificate of inheritance. Yet another example involves the refusal to allow a product onto the French market, even though it complied with European regulations.

Also for advice

Solvit can also be contacted if you need advice on your EU rights. If necessary, you will be referred to services that can provide better assistance. Requests for advice are answered within a week.

What does this mean for you?

If you owe taxes, you will receive a notice from the Tax and Customs Administration. The new account number will be included in the notice regarding the taxes due.

Please note!The new account number does not affect the payment method. For example, online payments will still be possible.

The most commonly used new account number for the Tax and Customs Administration is NL04 RABO 0200112244. However, please note that different new account numbers are used for some taxes.

Note regarding recurring payments

If you pay the Tax and Customs Administration periodically via direct debit, you do not need to do anything. The payments will be automatically transferred to the new account number.

You only need to be careful if you have arranged a recurring payment differently, for example via a recurring transfer with your bank. In that case, you must ensure that the account number is updated yourself.

Using the old number is (still) fine

If you accidentally use the “old” account number for a payment to the Tax Authority, your payment will still be forwarded to the Tax Authority and processed there for the time being. The Tax Authority has made arrangements with ING regarding this, so that taxpayers are not penalized.

New income tax account number effective April 20, 2026

To pay a provisional or final income tax assessment, you can use the new account number starting April 20, 2026. 

Benefits

The Benefits Service is also switching to Rabobank and will therefore have a new account number starting May 1, 2026. From that date, you can make payments to the Benefits Service using the new account number NL04 RABO 0200112244. The Benefits Service will make its first payments from this number on Monday, June 22, 2026.

Please note! Here too, if you make a payment to the old account number, the payment will be forwarded to the Tax and Customs Administration’s new account number for the time being.

Tax and Customs Administration warns against phishing

Due to the change in account numbers, the Tax and Customs Administration strongly warns against phishing. Criminals regularly attempt to collect non-existent tax debts from taxpayers via email, text message, WhatsApp, or by phone. However, the Tax and Customs Administration never collects taxes in this manner. If you are unsure whether a message is genuine, follow the step-by-step guide on the Tax and Customs Administration’s website and verify the account number. 

Cash payments of €3,000 or more

For businesses that buy or sell goods, cash payments of €3,000 or more will no longer be permitted starting January 1, 2026. It does not matter whether the business is buying from or selling to another business or to a private individual. In all cases, cash payments of €3,000 or more are prohibited.

Please note! A private individual may accept a cash payment exceeding €3,000 from another private individual, for example, when selling on a marketplace.

The €3,000 limit is intended to make it more difficult to launder cash derived from illegal transactions and thereby also combat terrorism. The limit is also intended to ensure that payment transactions remain accessible.

Base fine amount: €10,000

The fine for violating the ban is set at a fixed base amount of €10,000. The Wwft Supervision Bureau, a division of the Tax and Customs Administration, oversees compliance with the ban.

Lower or higher fine

Special circumstances, such as financial capacity, may justify reducing the fine. On the other hand, repeated violations of the prohibition may justify increasing the fine. For example, a fine of €20,000 may be imposed if the prohibition is violated again within five years of a previous fine.

Please note! Criminal proceedings may also be initiated under the Economic Offenses Act.

Deduction of housing costs

It is particularly common among migrant workers for employers to provide accommodation and deduct an amount from the employee's wages for this. In the case of the minimum wage, this deduction may still be a maximum of 25% of that wage in 2025.

Phasing out and abolition

The government believes that the deduction can encourage a model of earning and dependence on the employee. This can lead to the exploitation of migrant workers. The government therefore wants to abolish the scheme.

The proposal is to reduce the deduction by 5% per year from 2026 and to completely abolish the possibility of deducting housing costs from the statutory minimum wage from 2030.

Year	Maximum deduction percentage
2025	25
2026	20
2027	15
2028	10
2029	5
2030	0

Tip! Employers will still be allowed to provide housing for their employees from 2030 onwards. However, it will no longer be possible to deduct part of the costs from the statutory minimum wage.

Internet consultation

The proposal has been submitted for internet consultation. Responses to the proposal can be submitted until June 6, 2025.