The outgoing administration has been allowed to delight us all with its plans. In this blog, we have compiled the most relevant changes.
For your private taxes, the following changes:
Changes to prenuptial agreements effective Jan. 1, 2018:
Under circumstances, entering into, or amending, prenuptial agreements may result in a taxable gift to your spouse. Therefore, it may be advisable to make some adjustments before January 1, 2018, should you intend to do so.
The disclosure rule expires:
If you have not yet confessed to the secret bank account of your former great uncle or aunt from Switzerland, you would be wise to do so before January 1, 2018. This is because then you will not receive a penalty for the most recent years. Detecting this bank account after Jan. 1, 2018 does result in a fine, which can be substantial!
There is some tinkering with tax credits & tax percentages.
Thus, the general tax credit goes up by 11 euros, and the elderly tax credit goes up by 126 euros. With that, you net 137 euros more, provided you are at the perfect level. Are you a single parent? Then your discount will be reduced by 15 euros. The top income tax rate decreases by 0.05% (incomes above 67,072), the middle rate increases by 0.05%. The lowest rate remains the same at 36.55%
ZVW rate drops slightly:
for the employee, it drops to 5.4% (was 5.5%). The employer contribution rate also decreases by 0.1% to 6.65%.
In terms of purchasing power, you will notice fairly little of this. Especially since, as of 2018, toothpaste is no longer a drug, and is therefore taxed at 21% instead of 6%.
The following changes for your company’s taxes:
VPB rate of 20% moves up from 200,00 to 250,000.
Does your profit fall above 250,000? So then you save 5% of 50,000 = 2,500 euros annually.
The VAT scheme for agricultural organizations expires January 1, 2018:
It is possible for agricultural businesses not to opt out of VAT. They then do not have to pay VAT on their services/supplies, but then they are also not allowed to deduct VAT in advance. As of Jan. 1, 2018, this arrangement will expire, and everyone will be required to participate in VAT. So please wait a while before servicing your premises / fleet of vehicles, etc., if possible. In fact, there is often quite a lot of VAT on those.
The Energy Investment Allowance (EIA) drops by 0.5% to 57% additional deduction.
Very marginal, but for a sizable investment it can still save.
ENORMOUS changes in international tax law:
Totally irrelevant, but certainly interesting for tax fanatics! A loophole allowed large international companies to double-deduct a loss on a claim. That possibility is now further closed. A new double-business test will also make it more difficult to move money around between international branches.
So on the business front, things do change. Do any of these measures affect you? Then take action on time!
Congratulations! You have gone through all the relevant changes. What an accomplishment!
Has your appetite for tax news not been satisfied? Then take a look at the big boys’ notes:
Tax plan EY | Tax plan PWC | Tax plan Deloitte | Tax plan KPMG