What the ruling is
The 30% ruling is a tax advantage for employees who are recruited from abroad to work in the Netherlands for a role needing specific expertise. Your employer can pay up to 30% of your salary as a tax free allowance for the extra costs of living abroad. You then pay tax on only 70% of the total.
A quick example
Say your total salary package is €80,000. With the ruling:
- Tax free allowance: €24,000 (30%)
- Taxable salary: €56,000
You pay income tax on €56,000 instead of €80,000. For someone in the higher bracket, that difference can be several thousand euros a year in take-home pay.
Who qualifies
The main conditions are:
- You were hired from outside the Netherlands, or sent over by your foreign employer.
- You had your home more than 150 kilometres from the Dutch border for at least 16 of the 24 months before your first day of work in the Netherlands.
- You have specific expertise that is scarce in the Dutch labour market. This is assumed if your salary is above a minimum amount set each year, with a lower threshold for people under 30 with a master's degree.
- You and your employer apply together within four months of starting work.
If you apply after four months, the ruling usually starts later, so the timing matters. Check the current salary thresholds on the Belastingdienst website, because they are updated each January.
How long it lasts
The ruling lasts up to five years. Time you spent in the Netherlands in the previous 25 years for a different employment can reduce it.
What changes in 2027
The Dutch government is lowering the tax free percentage. From 1 January 2027 the allowance is planned to be 27% for everyone, instead of 30%. Transition rules protect people who already have the ruling in some cases. Anyone who applies after the change will need to check the rules in force at that date, as the details are still being finalised in law.
Other benefits
Your employer can also reimburse school fees for international schools, and you may be able to choose to be treated as a partial non resident for box 2 and box 3 purposes. This can matter if you own investments. Speak to an adviser before you sign.
How to apply
- Ask your employer's payroll team, since they must co sign the application.
- Use the form on the Belastingdienst website.
- Send your contract, a copy of your passport and proof of your salary.
- Wait for the decision, which normally takes a few weeks.
Things to watch
- If your salary falls below the threshold at any point, the ruling can stop.
- Your net pay may feel different from what an advert promised, because employers often quote salary before the ruling.
- Check that your payslip is applying the ruling from the correct start date.
Use our Netherlands salary calculator to compare your take home with and without the ruling.
What the ruling is worth, and what 2027 changes
On a salary package of €80,000, 30% is €24,000 that is not taxed. In a bracket taxed at about 37.56%, that is around €9,000 less tax each year, and in the top bracket at 49.5% it is close to €11,900. These are rough figures, because tax credits and brackets change each year.
From 2027 the planned allowance is 27%. On the same €80,000 that is €21,600, which is €2,400 less tax free pay, so about €900 to €1,200 a year more in tax. Check whether transition rules cover you, because those depend on when your ruling started.
Timing matters too. Suppose you start work on 1 March. If you and your employer apply by 30 June, the ruling applies from your start date. If you apply in August, it generally starts only from 1 September, and you pay full tax on the months in between.
Questions people ask
What if I change employer? The ruling can transfer if the gap between jobs is under three months and you still meet the conditions. Your new employer must apply.
Does it work with a partner? Your partner has to qualify on their own. It is not shared.
Do I still get the general tax credits? Yes, as with other box 1 income, but the lower taxable base can reduce them.
Should I check my payslip? Yes. A wrong start date can mean tax paid that you can claim back. Ask payroll to correct the date.
Is the ruling guaranteed once my employer agrees? No. The tax office decides, and you must meet the conditions on expertise, salary and previous residence.
Can I claim back tax if the ruling started late? Only for months the ruling covers. If the start date was wrong because of an error in the application, ask the tax office to review it.
