News

Act on Deregulation of Assessment of working relations

Currently, the Act on Deregulation of Assessment of working relations (in Dutch: Wet DBA) is in place to (help) clarify the working relationship between principals and contractors. Unfortunately, in practice, the Act has not brought the clarity that was intended beforehand. For the time being, therefore, the Tax and Customs Administration only enforces in the case of so-called malefactors or if instructions from the Tax and Customs Administration are not followed through. The fact that the Act will eventually (have to) be replaced has been certain for quite some time. The only question is how?

Towards the end of last year, Minister of social affairs and employment informed the Senate and House of Representatives in a progress letter about the plans regarding working as a with contractor(s). It must become more distinct when someone is in service as an employee and when someone is working as an independent contractor. To this end, the concept of working under supervision and authority will be specified in the law, partly based on existing case law. Besides the traditional ‘working under the authority and supervision of’, the term may also include work that is ‘organisationally embedded’ in the enterprise of the person with whom the working relationship is entered into. Independent entrepreneurship is also a factor of relevance in qualifying a working relationship. In addition, a legal presumption of an employment contract, linked to an hourly rate limit (to be determined), is expected to be introduced. The plans will be worked out further into a bill in the coming period, with the intention that the new legislation will come into force in 2025. Naturally, we will be happy to keep you updated of developments on this subject..