Dutch Tax Budget 2027 – summary for multinationals

Amendment to the tax treatment of priced-in currency results
It is proposed to limit currency results on hedging instruments that are brought within the scope of the participation exemption upon request to the non-priced-in currency results. The priced-in currency result would thereby fall within the taxable sphere. At the same time, it is clarified that the participation exemption applies to hedging instruments solely upon the taxpayer's request. It will also be laid down in law that the participation exemption takes effect at the latest of the following moments: the date of the legal act, the receipt of the request by the inspector, or the date stated in the request. Furthermore, it is proposed that a taxpayer may request that the participation exemption no longer be applied to a hedging instrument from a certain moment onwards.

The proposed measure applies to financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2027. In addition, the proposal contains transitional law for existing hedging instruments. The current rules remain applicable to benefits attributable to the period up to the date of entry into force. Furthermore, deferred effect applies until 31 December 2027 for hedging instruments entered into before 15 September 2026 for which the participation exemption already applied, or for which an application had been submitted in good time.

Abolition of the non-business-purpose presumption in the merger and demerger facility
The law provides that demergers may take place on a tax-neutral basis under certain conditions. To prevent abuse, the demerger facility does not apply where it is predominantly aimed at avoiding or deferring taxation. Subject to proof to the contrary, this is deemed to be the case if the demerger does not take place on the basis of business considerations. If an entity involved is disposed of to a non-affiliated entity within three years of the reorganisation, this constitutes an evidentiary presumption of a non-business purpose.

Earlier this year, the Dutch Supreme Court ruled that this non-business-purpose presumption is contrary to the Merger Directive. For that reason, it is proposed to abolish this presumption. Because the business merger facility contains a comparable non-business-purpose presumption and is likewise based on the Merger Directive, it is proposed to abolish the presumption there as well.

Energy investment allowance
The government proposes to increase the deduction percentage of the energy investment allowance from 40% to 45.5% of the investment amount. This makes it more attractive for businesses to invest in sustainability.

Extension of the flat-rate scheme for the innovation box
Corporate income tax contains a flat-rate scheme aimed at making the innovation box more accessible to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It is proposed to increase the maximum flat-rate amount that can fall within the innovation box from €25,000 to €100,000. This amount applies per year and per taxpayer.

Dividend withholding tax refund scheme
Following a 2024 ruling by the Dutch Supreme Court, a statutory refund scheme is being introduced for natural persons resident in the Netherlands and entities established in the Netherlands that, through foreign investment institutions, are entitled to dividends originating from companies established in the Netherlands. Under EU law, such dividends may not be taxed more heavily than dividends originating from the Netherlands that are distributed via a fiscal investment institution (fiscale beleggingsinstelling, fbi) to its Dutch underlying investors. After all, the latter dividends are subject to a remittance reduction when the dividend is redistributed by the fiscal investment institution. Under the proposal, the refund may be calculated by means of a formula or, under certain conditions, on the basis of an alternative calculation.

Safe harbour rules
The draft bill "Safe Harbour Rules — Minimum Tax Act 2024" contains various amendments to the Minimum Tax Act 2024. These amendments are relevant for groups whose consolidated annual revenue places them within the scope of the global minimum tax rules. The proposed Safe Harbour rules follow from the so called Side by Side package, on which agreement was reached within the OECD Inclusive Framework on 5 January 2026.

Proposed measures include:

• a simplified effective tax rate safe harbour rule, under which the top up tax in a tested jurisdiction may be set to nil if the simplified effective tax rate is at least equal to the minimum tax rate of 15% or there is a simplified loss;
• a qualifying equivalent minimum tax system (Side-by-Side) safe harbour rule;
• an ultimate parent entity safe harbour rule;
• a qualifying tax incentive regime safe harbour rule;
• extension of the temporary CbCR (country by country reporting) safe harbour rule;
• a technical adjustment for groups with a 52 or 53 week reporting year.

The draft bill grants retroactive effect to various provisions as of 31 December 2025 or 1 January 2026, depending on the specific rule. The application of retroactivity for the simplified effective tax rate safe harbour rule with respect to a particular jurisdiction may, however, depend on the implementation choice of another Pillar Two jurisdiction. For Dutch profits, the Netherlands is in principle the only state that has taxing rights under the domestic top up tax, and as such the simplified effective tax rate safe harbour rule would in any case apply retroactively in the context of Dutch profits.

For groups within the scope of the minimum tax, timely assessment of the applicability conditions is important, because the safe harbours can reduce administrative burdens.

The draft bill underwent a legislative consultation process earlier this year, in the summer, to gather stakeholder input. On the basis of that input, a number of (limited) changes were made to the proposed legislative text or the accompanying explanatory memorandum. The proposed changes do not yet include the administrative guidance from the OECD Inclusive Framework of 11 September 2026, relating to discriminatory top up rules and the domestic top up safe harbour rule for reporting periods that differ from the consolidated financial statement year.

Start-ups and scale-ups
A new tax-favoured share option facility for employees of start-ups and scale-ups is proposed. A start-up or scale-up is an enterprise that uses a scalable and repeatable business model resulting from innovation. A "scalable and repeatable business model" is the capacity of an enterprise to achieve rapid revenue growth by using technology that leads to lower marginal costs and economies of scale. Innovation concerns technical renewal or significant functional improvement relative to the industry. Whether an enterprise qualifies as a start-up or scale-up is determined by decision of the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland, RVO) upon the employer's request. The decision issued has, in principle, a validity period of eight years and may, upon request, be extended a maximum of three times for five years each. The government opts to introduce a separate definition of start-up and scale-up and not to follow the criteria suggested by the European Commission that uses boundaries in relation to turnover or employees.

In the case of a qualifying start-up or scale-up, the benefit realised by the employee on the sale of the shares or profit-sharing certificates acquired upon exercise of the options is taken into account as wages for only 65%. The following elements are relevant:

• If the employee so chooses, the levy may also take place upon exercise of the share option right or when the acquired shares become tradable.
• The reduction of the taxable base does not apply where there is a lucrative interest (lucratief belang) or a substantial interest (aanmerkelijk belang), nor does it apply upon disposal of the share option right itself.
• Furthermore, the option right may not be exercised for the first time earlier than two years after grant, unless there is an earlier sale or IPO of the withholding agent's enterprise.
• Share option rights granted on or after 17 April 2025 that have not yet been included in wage tax as at 31 December 2026 may qualify for the new scheme.
• If an employee who participates in a share option scheme leaves employment, this will not be regarded as a taxable moment. In that case too, taxation takes place at the moment the shares are disposed of. The employment benefit derived from the share option rights constitutes income from current employment, including the employment benefit arising from any increase in value after leaving employment.
• If the RVO decision expires and the (formerly) qualifying share option of a start-up or scale-up has not yet been realised, then upon eventual realisation the increase in the value of the option must be split into a qualifying part (65%) and a non-qualifying part (100%) for tax purposes.
• Anyone who leaves the Netherlands will, upon emigration, receive a protective assessment (conserverende aanslag) on the increase in value of the qualifying share options up to the moment of emigration. The government considers it appropriate to align as closely as possible with the deferral facility offered for share options in start-ups and scale-ups. Deferral of payment is therefore granted automatically for an indefinite period, and is terminated in whole or in part when liquid assets become available, or when another taxable moment occurs.