Domestic VAT advice

There are VAT and real estate transfer tax implications associated with transfer, leasing, creation of rights in rem and all other ways of making property available. People tend to think that it is a question of VAT or real estate transfer tax, but in practice we also see that it can be a question of VAT and real estate transfer tax. We can help you optimise property transactions from a tax perspective. This will help you to reduce the likelihood of an assessment for VAT and/or real estate transfer tax. If you are familiar with VAT and real estate transfer tax aspects, you can also include them in the agreements you enter into. We are happy to examine your purchase agreements and notarial deeds in this respect.

Do you rent or let real estate? Is it advisable to have VAT-free leasing or to opt for VAT on leasing, and what financial implications does this have for you? How can you optimise your VAT deduction on costs and investments? And is it possible to reduce the cost of vacant properties? Answers to these questions are not always obvious. Our consultants have the knowledge and experience to advise you on these matters.

We have broad experience in assisting with fiscalities when setting up investment funds. Get in touch with us, not only for the tax position of the investment fund and the tax implications of property transactions, but also for your tax input for the prospectus. We can also help you to prepare your prospectus and have our accountants review the forecasts.

Healthcare and educational institutions sometimes pay VAT and sometimes they do not. To be sure that everything at your organisation is in good order, its VAT position must be examined and VAT must be incorporated into its business processes. We are happy to help you with this.

Most healthcare and educational institutions’ activities are VAT-exempt. This means that they do not pay VAT on amounts received and VAT on purchases is non-deductible and therefore included in expenses. That said, it is not always clear whether or not some activities are VAT exempt and whether or not VAT on purchases is deductible. Not only that, laws and regulations change regularly. We can examine your VAT position so you can respond to these changes and have control over your obligations vis-à-vis the tax authorities. This can be embedded in your business processes using a tax control framework.

Looking to get your tax position under control? You can include all your tax obligations in a tax control framework. We are pleased to set out your current VAT position based on a VAT scan and interviews with you. We then discuss your goals and requirements regarding tax control and formulate them together with you. We draw up a plan (TCF) to take steps towards achieving complete control of the organisation’s tax affairs.

Because various employees in your organisation may have to deal with VAT, training courses are the perfect way to improve knowledge about VAT at your organisation. We tailor our in-house training courses specifically to suit your needs, incorporating examples from your own practice.

VAT is an important source of revenue for the treasury in the Netherlands. Municipalities, provincial authorities, water authorities, ministries and all other decentralised government bodies contribute to this in two ways. Firstly, your organisation may be considered a VAT business, and you therefore have to pay VAT on the turnover generated. Secondly, your organisation pays VAT on purchases, and not all of this VAT is deductible. VAT plays an even bigger role for municipalities and provincial authorities because of the VAT Compensation Fund.

By far the majority of the public sector’s operations are statutory duties, but governments are also active in the marketplace. Examples of this include the transfer of land and leasing cultural venues. It is evident that market activities among these bodies are on the rise, especially at a decentralised government level, such as municipal and provincial authorities. And that has consequences for VAT.

For all activities, it has to be established whether you are performing these as a government body or as a VAT business. This qualifying factor determines whether or not you owe VAT to the tax authorities, and whether VAT on purchases is deductible, eligible for compensation (from the VAT Compensation Fund) or non-deductible and therefore leading to an increase in costs. The determination is recorded on a labelling list containing all of your activities with the correct VAT classification. This classification list is the foundation for your VAT administration. It goes without saying that it is important to periodically review your classifications for changes in your operations or amendments to laws and regulations. A tax control framework is the perfect place in which to incorporate this.

Municipalities are increasingly collaborating with other municipalities and private sector organisations. The VAT aspects of this have to be properly reviewed. Specifically, VAT increases costs in many cases, which in turn reduces the financial advantages of the collaboration. That is why we always recommend that a collaboration agreement is examined in terms of the tax implications. Feel free to contact us if you’d like to discuss this.