Dutch government makes changes to online VAT/OSS filing portal for non-Dutch entities

Non-Dutch entities may need to register for VAT or OSS purposes in the Netherlands without having a fixed place of establishment in the Netherlands or a formal registration with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce. Similar to many other EU Member States, the Dutch tax authorities have an online portal for submitting VAT or OSS returns which can be accessed by means of a username and password. The benefit of this system is that no special software or other IT certification was needed, thus allowing taxpayers to submit their VAT or OSS returns internally without any assistance needed from outside counsel. However, the downside is that it was no longer up to date in terms of IT security. Therefore, the existing online portal of the Dutch tax authorities can no longer be accessed as of 1 July 2024.

For this reason, the Dutch tax authorities have created a new online portal which can only be accessed by businesses which have “e-recognition” (e-herkenning). The Dutch government appointed a number of IT providers which provide e-recognition to taxpayers.

Previously, e-recognition was only available for (non-Dutch) entities which have a registration with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce. As of 1 March 2024, it is also possible for entities without a Chamber of Commerce registration to obtain e-recognition. This makes it an attractive option for non-registered foreign entities that would like to keep the online VAT and OSS reporting in-house.

Key takeaway

It is important that non-Dutch entities have a timely transition to the new online tax portal of the Dutch tax authorities. Therefore, we recommend taxpayers start promptly the process for obtaining e-recognition to have access to the new tax portal before 1 July 2024.

Link to document: See here