Freelancing in the Netherlands
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| User | Thread poster: Kelly McGuire Freelancing in the Netherlands |
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Kelly McGuire
Netherlands
Chinese to English
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Hello everyone,
I was wondering if someone knew what the tax rules for working as a freelance translator in the Netherlands are, particularly for a person who wants to do part-time freelance translator alongside a regular 'day job' (I currently work 40 hours per week).
Do I need to apply for a VAT number? I don't plan to launch into a full-time career in translation just yet, though that is a possible career move in future. For the moment, I'm just interested in gaining professional experience and supplementing my existing income with the odd translation assignment.
I'm also interested in knowing how I would need to report any income made from freelance translation when I fill out the annual PAYE forms. I started working in the Netherlands less than a year ago so I'm afraid there's still a lot I don't know about the Dutch tax system. All I know is that the government is very interested in keeping 40% of my hard-earned salary. 
Any advice or information you may have would be very much appreciated.
 
| | | | Jan Willem van Dormolen
Netherlands
English to Dutch
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Yes, I think you need a VAT number, and you need to register with the "Kamer van Koophandel" (Chamber of Commerce) too, IIRC.
Whether you actually have to charge VAT, is uncertain. It depends on your tax inspection region. Some tax inspectors will rule that you should apply VAT, others that translation is a creative activity which as such does not require VAT.
On your tax form, you will have to fill this in as 'Overige inkomsten' (other income), unless you really set yourself up as a company (this is called ZZP - 'Zelfstandige Zonder Personeel' - Independant Without Employees), in which case you will have to make a complete year account, and you fill in your income as 'Winst uit bedrijf' (Profit from company). This has several advantages and disadvantages.
| | | | Kelly McGuire
Netherlands
Chinese to English
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| | Bedankt voor de informatie | Jul 2 |
Thanks Jan. I think that has answered most of my questions. Once I am registered with the Kamer van Koophandel, do I need to apply elsewhere for the VAT number?
I know a few people who have set up their own companies and/or have worked as freelancers so I will also ask their advice. One of my acquaintances has confirmed that all freelancers need a VAT number, regardless of whether they actually apply VAT charges.
| | | | Tuliparola 
Netherlands
 Member (2003)
Dutch to German
| | Kamer van Koophandel - why that? | Jul 2 |
Jan Willem van Dormolen wrote:
you need to register with the "Kamer van Koophandel" (Chamber of Commerce) too, IIRC.
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Jan Willem van Dormolen wrote:
Some tax inspectors will rule that you should apply VAT, others that translation is a creative activity which as such does not require VAT. |
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Regards
Steffi
| | | | Jan Willem van Dormolen
Netherlands
English to Dutch
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Kamer van Koophandel: some say it's necessary (I was told so by the tax office when I started business 11 years ago), some say it's not. It's true that KvK never did seem to do anything that was of any use to me.
VAT: I once had a conversation with two colleagues. We were spread over the country, thus we were in three different tax districts. According to my inspector, I had to apply VAT to all translations. According to the inspector of my first colleague, he never had to apply VAT for any translations. According to the inspector of the last of us, he had to apply VAT to technical, but not to literary translations. Go figure. Whence my advice: go to your local tax office and ask.
| | | | Carola Stone
Netherlands
English to German
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| | KvK entry not required for VAT no. | Jul 7 |
Hi Kelly,
I found myself in a similar position to yourself 2 years ago. Welcome to the club of veteran buitenlanders )). You get the medal after approximately 12 months or when you have successfully filled in your first tax form, whichever is first. joke.
The KvK entry is not strictly necessary (at least the last time I checked in 2007). KvK Zuid Limburg is thinking about making it manadatory, however, we are currently still classed as a so-called free profession, together with artists etc. I joined anyway. see below why.
Your BTW (i.e. VAT) nummer you can get from the Belastingdienst.nl if you set up a freelance business. Setting up a zzp business does not necessarily mean to be classed as an "onderneemer". Only if you can prove that you spend 1225 hours a year occupied with your business (chargeable as well as unchargeable hours - at which point some become rather creative )) , you can class yourself as such and then use various tax benefits (starters aftrek etc...) Given your current working hours, however, no tax inspector will believe you that one. They do make home visits at times to check if things are kosher on that front, looking into computer files how often and how long you worked on them, demanding administration, agendas etc to be kept and so forth. (So we were told anyway by the KvK. )
When you get to an onderneemer level, consult a tax expert at least for the first year to show you the ropes. You can for example claim back business expenses for things you bought up to 5 years before you set up business. Things like Laptops which you bring into your business.
How good is your Dutch by now  )??, A reasonable command of the language is absolutely necessary to make any sense out of the Belastingdienst webpage. The English version is pretty restricted. The fun starts when you have to call them because something went wrong ....
Be warned: One trip wire they have ready for you at the Belastingdienst: Never klick the box for Intercommunitaire Leveringen if you have foreign customers (in my case Germany). You do NOT deliver any goods. The VAT form "Aangifte Omzetbelasting" is a little misleading on this point. Despite the fact that you deliver into Germany/China wherever, you have to enter them under Section 1 which has the header "Leveringen en/of diensten binnenland" which confuses (at least I found) Anything you do for foreign customers you have to enter under point 1e "Leveringen/diensten belast met 0% of niet bij u belast'.
Section 3 "Leveringen naar het buitenland' only refers to goods, but they do not say that.
And once you are in the system as such, they keep raising "ICL opgaaven" although you never have made any Intercommunitaire Leveringen in the first place, but entered your sales in the wrong box. You can rectify this by filling in an "Suppletie" form which has to be posted to them. This however takes time to register. Non-completion of the ICL form (how can you?) then results in a fine to the value of 113 Euros. What follows is a merry go round on the phone, a written letter explaining the whole thing again, asking them to withdraw the fine, which to be fair they did. They still raise the ICL's for me, but no fines because I enter the proceedings in box 1e now.
VAT: I do not declare VAT/BTW on my invoices outside NL, or rather I do with 0%, however, I do for Dutch clients (19%). You have to pay what you charged there back to the tax man usually on a quarterly level following your online "aangifte omzetbelasting" which is done online and pretty straight forward once you know which boxes to avoid, see above . (The veteran medal remains sadly to be an outstanding item though, but I am patient)
re: KvK: I found their various seminars for beginning freelancers fairly effective in order to not only gain some knowledge on how to set up, but also to get to grips with some of the Dutch business/tax terminology. Crash course Dutch business lingo so to say.
A KvK membership can also be of use if you want to check out potential customers or if you have a general question in connection with running your business etc. Certainly if you are new to the country and personal backup with business expertise is limited.
You also get listed in their business directory. (But do not expect customers to kick in your door because of that. You are sharing the turf with fully fledged, full time + overtime professionals of many years with diplomas, accreditations, association memberships and CAT libraries the size of planets thrown into the bargain.
Hope to have been of some help! Have fun finding your way.
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| Marion Rooijmans
Netherlands
English to Dutch
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Carola Stone wrote:
Be warned: One trip wire they have ready for you at the Belastingdienst: Never klick the box for Intercommunitaire Leveringen if you have foreign customers (in my case Germany). You do NOT deliver any goods. |
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I declare all translations to foreign customers as Intercommunautaire leveringen. Never had any problem with that...
| | | | Jan Willem van Dormolen
Netherlands
English to Dutch
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Marion Rooijmans wrote:
Carola Stone wrote:
Be warned: One trip wire they have ready for you at the Belastingdienst: Never klick the box for Intercommunitaire Leveringen if you have foreign customers (in my case Germany). You do NOT deliver any goods. |
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I declare all translations to foreign customers as Intercommunautaire leveringen. Never had any problem with that... |
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You've been lucky then, until you get an audit. Because translations are NOT 'leveringen', as they are not goods, but services. You better contact you local tax office and talk with them about this. I don't want to scare you, but this might get you into some trouble.
| | | | Marion Rooijmans
Netherlands
English to Dutch
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| | Frustrating and confusing | Jul 10 |
I just called the Belastingdienst. They told me that translations for foreign clients should not be filled in on your 'Aangifte omzetbelasting' at all! And accordig to their website, box 1e is intended only for goods and services taxed in the Netherlands, not for goods that are taxed in another country or services in another country.
| | | | Kelly McGuire
Netherlands
Chinese to English
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| | Lots of info to digest... | Jul 13 |
Thanks for all the useful information, especially Carola. I'll be investigating the tax rules and VAT issue a little further as it seems that the rules vary from province to province. To be honest, my knowledge of taxation and freelance business is lacking so I might even see if I can find someone who can advise me and make it all a little clearer.
I'm considering sending my CV to a few local translation agencies so I would like to know whether I will need a VAT number if I will just be working on outsourced assignments from Netherlands-based agencies. As I mentioned before, I am only interested in taking on translation work during my evenings and weekends (as a source of additional income) so I don't really anticipate a huge workload or income. Am I correct in assuming that any earnings should be reported in the yearly taxes as 'Overige inkomsten'?
I know that staff positions at translation agencies are few and far between so I'd imagine I'd have more luck taking on the occasional outsourced assignment. Have any of you worked as freelancers for translation agencies? Did you need to apply for a VAT number before sending in your CVs? Would agencies take on freelancers who have a 'day job'?
Sorry for asking so many questions but I like to do things properly and prefer to ask a hundred questions than make a costly error.
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The translation workplace 
