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On October 12, 2017 the European Court of Justice (“CJEU”) ruled in favor of Meijburg & Co’s warranty and recall case (C-661/15), meaning that the period for price adjustments has been extended from one year to three years. Furthermore, recalls necessary to avoid risks of failure must be treated equally as defective goods. This will lead to more opportunities for a customs duties refund in the case of recalls and warranties.

The 30% ruling is a fixed allowance paid to compensate for the costs of a temporary stay outside the country of origin (extraterritorial expenses). Since January 1, 2012 only employees who resided more than 150 kilometers from the Dutch border during at least two-thirds of the 24 months preceding the commencement of their employment or secondment in the Netherlands are eligible for the 30% ruling.

On December 8, 2017, the EU and Japan announced the successful conclusion of the negotiations regarding the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). The EPA is to date the biggest bilateral trade agreement negotiated by the EU. The finalizing of the legal text is an important step forward to putting the agreement in place.

On February 22, 2018, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) rendered judgment in two interesting corporate income tax cases for which the Dutch Supreme Court had requested preliminary rulings (see our previous memorandum). 

On May 11, 2018, the Dutch Deputy Minister of Finance published a new Transfer Pricing Decree, dated April 22, 2018 (no. 2018-6865). This decree replaces the Transfer Pricing Decree of November 14, 2013 (no. IFZ 2013/184M). 

On Friday, June 29, 2018, the Cabinet approved the Labor Market Improved Equilibrium Act (‘Wet arbeidsmarkt in balans’; WAB). Under this Act, sector-specific unemployment contributions will be replaced as of 2020 by contributions differentiated according to the type of employment contract. 

On Friday June 22, 2018, the Supreme Court rendered judgment as to whether a severance package should be regarded as an early retirement scheme ('regeling voor vervroegde uittreding', hereinafter: RVU). An RVU is a scheme whose sole or almost sole purpose is to provide for one or more benefits to bridge the period between the end of employment and retirement or an earlier pension date. 

On July 12, 2018 UK Prime Minister Theresa May has published the long awaited Brexit White Paper. It is a comprehensive and ambitious plan which aims on the one hand to preserve a frictionless trade between the UK and EU and to resolve the Irish border issue, but also to achieve a UK independent trade policy, where the UK is able to conclude its own free trade agreements with third countries such as the USA. Read more

On October 3, 2018, the Opinion issued by the Advocate General (‘AG’) to the Court of Justice of the European Union (‘CJEU’) in the Morgan Stanley & Co International plc (‘Morgan Stanley’) case (case no. C-165/17) was published. This case concerns the VAT recovery of costs incurred by a fixed establishment that are also used for the activities of a foreign head office. 

On September 25, 2018 the government launched an internet consultation, giving interested parties the opportunity to raise issues that are important to them relating to i) Dutch tax treaty policy and ii) the designation of low-taxed states with a view to – first of all – the application of the measure on Controlled Foreign Companies (‘CFC’s’) proposed on Budget Day. 

We will briefly address these two aspects of the consultation