Since January 1, 2018, the withholding tax exemption has been extended. At the same time, a reporting obligation has been introduced for the application of the withholding exemption on dividend paid to a recipient who is not established in the Netherlands. In this blog I discuss the reporting obligation entered when applying the withholding tax exemption based on the following topics:  Declaration of dividend tax ,  Condition for dividend tax exemption ,  Misuse of dividend tax exemption ,  Artificial construction of dividend tax .

Dividend Tax Statement

Within 1 month after the dividend has been paid, the ‘Dividend Tax Declaration’ form drawn up by the Dutch Tax Authorities must state that an application is made of the withholding tax exemption. As a result of this reporting obligation, the Tax and Customs Administration can determine whether the withholding exemption has been correctly applied by the paying company or holding cooperative.

Please note: if no or late notification is made, a default penalty of up to € 5,278 can be imposed or, in the case of intent or gross negligence, even a penalty for offense. Criminal fines can amount to 100% of the tax payable. The question is whether this scheme is EU-proof, but initiating a procedure to find this out is also a costly matter.

The ‘Dividend Tax Declaration’ form must contain the following information:

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