Practice areas: Employment Law
As every year, 2025 brings updates to Dutch employment law. Below is an overview of the most significant changes.
As of January 1, 2025, the so-called enforcement moratorium is lifted, allowing the Tax Administration to resume regular enforcement of false self-employment cases. The Tax Administration’s Explanation of the Assessment of Employment Relationships (in Dutch), published on November 1, 2024, clarifies that the assessment framework will be based on facts and circumstances of the specific cases. This framework stems from the criteria established in the Deliveroo ruling. In this case, the Dutch Supreme Court identified nine indicators that may point to the existence of an employment agreement. Please be referred to our previous blog for an elaboration on this ruling.
Enforcement of false self-employment will primarily target the client or employer. On 18 December 2024, the Tax Administration has indicated that, to ensure a ‘soft landing’ in 2025, no fines for omissions and neglect or fines for an offence will be imposed in 2025. However, corrective obligations and additional tax assessments may be imposed retroactively from 1 January 2025. For the period before this date, corrections can only be made in cases of malicious intent or if a previously issued directive was not (adequately) followed.
Additionally, the model agreeements approved and provided by the Tax Administration will be phased out as of 1 January 2025. Approved agreements that are currently being used, can still be used until their expiration, but new agreements are no longer issued. Since the existence of an employment agreement must be assessed based on all facts and circumstances of a particular case, these standardised agreements no longer provide certainty about employment status. We advise reviewing current agreements with freelancers to prevent potential enforcement actions by the Tax Administration.
In 2024, the 30% ruling — a tax scheme that allows expats to receive part of their salary tax-free — was revised. The maximum allowance of 30% over three years was adjusted to a decreasing percentage: up to 30% for the first 20 months, 20% for the next 20 months, and 10% for the final 20 months. However, this adjustment will be reversed in 2025.
The Dutch government has a different cost-saving measure in mind: the maximum tax-free allowance will decrease from 30% to 27%. This change will however not take effect until 2027.
Employers with 100 or more employees are required to report the CO₂ emissions from their employees’ commuting and business travel. Reports for the 2024 calendar year must be submitted to the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) by 1 July 2025.
Since 2020, the unemployment insurance contribution rate (WW-premium) has differed based on the type of employment contract. A higher rate applies to flexible contracts, while a lower rate applies to permanent contracts, encouraging employers to offer more permanent contracts.
As of 1 January 2025, the high premium rate will rise from 7.64% to 7.74%, and the low rate will increase from 2.64% to 2.74%. Employers must pay the higher rate for employees with a permanent contract who work over 30% more hours than agreed upon in a calendar year. However, contracts for employees working an average of 35 hours or more per week are exempt. As of 2025, this exception is expanded to contracts averaging 30 hours or more per week.
Minimum Wage Increase:
Salary Criteria for Highly Skilled Migrants:
Allowance for working from home and commuting
Officials’ Pay Cap Increase under the Standards for Remuneration Act (WNT)
Increased maximum severance payment
Work-related costs scheme
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