Being an expat in the Netherlands
Discussion
I've never been to Gronigen, but have been in the Eastern part of the Netherlands for the last ten months.
Top tax rate is 51%, however as a foreigner you may be eligible for a substantial discount on this (the 35% rule). Make sure that you are or it's not worth being there.
English is spoken almost everywhere, so language is rarely an issue. Eating out is generally expensive, there are more speed cameras than in the UK and the police will stop people regularly for minor things.
Overall, life is very peaceful, not seen any hint of violence despite being out on the piss most weekends.
Accommodation costs vary from one area to another, I'd ask your potential employer to provide some information and assistance.
Top tax rate is 51%, however as a foreigner you may be eligible for a substantial discount on this (the 35% rule). Make sure that you are or it's not worth being there.
English is spoken almost everywhere, so language is rarely an issue. Eating out is generally expensive, there are more speed cameras than in the UK and the police will stop people regularly for minor things.
Overall, life is very peaceful, not seen any hint of violence despite being out on the piss most weekends.
Accommodation costs vary from one area to another, I'd ask your potential employer to provide some information and assistance.
DangerousMike said:
what's it like?
What is Groningen like?
etc. etc.
how does it compare to UK?
what is the tax like? how much to own cars? cost of living? quality of life? cost of accomodation?
thanks! (thinking about applying for a job there).
Groningen is (as you hint with your job) a nice student city. Some cheaper places to eat and drink also than the main habited area of the Netherlands between Amsterdam, Den Haag, Rotterdam and Utrecht (called the Randstad). Your pretty far away from Amsterdam - around 2 1/2 hours on the train maybe 2 hours by car.What is Groningen like?
etc. etc.
how does it compare to UK?
what is the tax like? how much to own cars? cost of living? quality of life? cost of accomodation?
thanks! (thinking about applying for a job there).
Income tax highest rate is 52% but as an expat your employer can apply for the 35% tax rule which will reduce your tax liability.
Cars to buy in NL compared to the UK are very expensive - just look at autotrader.co.uk and then autotrader.nl and compare costs. There is a "luxury tax" on the price of new cars here which over time reduces but used cars are still by comparison expensive.
Road tax goes on weight and environmentally friendliness.
Insurance is in my opinion cheap. My Lotus Elise costs me EUR190 in road tax and around EUR700 a year fully comp insurance. Petrol is a similar price to the UK.
Quality of life is above the UK for sure (in my opinion). I've lived here for a good few years now and wouldn't move back to the UK. My wife is Dutch so that helps the plan to stay here too I guess.
The other fairly big expense you will have is health insurance. It is obligatory to have health insurance here and whilst your Company may offer a subsidised scheme for decent cover including dental with low excess for consultations / treatments your going to be looking easily at EUR100-150 a month (depending on your age of course).
Depending on what happens in the up-coming election on Wednesday it is at the moment cheaper to buy than to rent, as you get a % back on your mortgage payments from the tax authority (like the old MIRAS scheme in the UK years ago), but depending on which party get into power this may stop (I don't think it will as it is a showstopper for most home owners here - but you never know).
It's a fairly burocratic place, but once you get used to the system and how to get things done, it is no more difficult than the UK.
Hope this is useful - anything else I'm happy to help.
Steven
And of course, there's the inevitable Dutch Spring Run:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I have 4 satnav files for you which cover coastal line, Afsluitdijk, Friesland, Drenthe and Groningen (and via the Autobahn back to Gelderland) if you wish to explore.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I have 4 satnav files for you which cover coastal line, Afsluitdijk, Friesland, Drenthe and Groningen (and via the Autobahn back to Gelderland) if you wish to explore.
euroboy said:
Ive been in NL for almost 4 years now - any questions on lifestyle/cars etc id be happy to answer if I can.
Ive never been to Groningen so cant cover that, and TBH not much help on the tax stuff either as I dont pay any of that
I have bought cars and houses here though so could potentially be of use.
p.s.
Its loads better than the UK!
I'm with you apart from that last bit. There's a lot I like about being here. It's nice, very nice.Ive never been to Groningen so cant cover that, and TBH not much help on the tax stuff either as I dont pay any of that
I have bought cars and houses here though so could potentially be of use.
p.s.
Its loads better than the UK!
There's a lot I don't enjoy about living here, mostly that it's jsut too bloody nice.
halfpenny43 said:
Groningen is (as you hint with your job) a nice student city. Some cheaper places to eat and drink also than the main habited area of the Netherlands between Amsterdam, Den Haag, Rotterdam and Utrecht (called the Randstad). Your pretty far away from Amsterdam - around 2 1/2 hours on the train maybe 2 hours by car.
Income tax highest rate is 52% but as an expat your employer can apply for the 35% tax rule which will reduce your tax liability.
Cars to buy in NL compared to the UK are very expensive - just look at autotrader.co.uk and then autotrader.nl and compare costs. There is a "luxury tax" on the price of new cars here which over time reduces but used cars are still by comparison expensive.
Road tax goes on weight and environmentally friendliness.
Insurance is in my opinion cheap. My Lotus Elise costs me EUR190 in road tax and around EUR700 a year fully comp insurance. Petrol is a similar price to the UK.
Quality of life is above the UK for sure (in my opinion). I've lived here for a good few years now and wouldn't move back to the UK. My wife is Dutch so that helps the plan to stay here too I guess.
The other fairly big expense you will have is health insurance. It is obligatory to have health insurance here and whilst your Company may offer a subsidised scheme for decent cover including dental with low excess for consultations / treatments your going to be looking easily at EUR100-150 a month (depending on your age of course).
Depending on what happens in the up-coming election on Wednesday it is at the moment cheaper to buy than to rent, as you get a % back on your mortgage payments from the tax authority (like the old MIRAS scheme in the UK years ago), but depending on which party get into power this may stop (I don't think it will as it is a showstopper for most home owners here - but you never know).
It's a fairly burocratic place, but once you get used to the system and how to get things done, it is no more difficult than the UK.
Hope this is useful - anything else I'm happy to help.
Steven
BumpIncome tax highest rate is 52% but as an expat your employer can apply for the 35% tax rule which will reduce your tax liability.
Cars to buy in NL compared to the UK are very expensive - just look at autotrader.co.uk and then autotrader.nl and compare costs. There is a "luxury tax" on the price of new cars here which over time reduces but used cars are still by comparison expensive.
Road tax goes on weight and environmentally friendliness.
Insurance is in my opinion cheap. My Lotus Elise costs me EUR190 in road tax and around EUR700 a year fully comp insurance. Petrol is a similar price to the UK.
Quality of life is above the UK for sure (in my opinion). I've lived here for a good few years now and wouldn't move back to the UK. My wife is Dutch so that helps the plan to stay here too I guess.
The other fairly big expense you will have is health insurance. It is obligatory to have health insurance here and whilst your Company may offer a subsidised scheme for decent cover including dental with low excess for consultations / treatments your going to be looking easily at EUR100-150 a month (depending on your age of course).
Depending on what happens in the up-coming election on Wednesday it is at the moment cheaper to buy than to rent, as you get a % back on your mortgage payments from the tax authority (like the old MIRAS scheme in the UK years ago), but depending on which party get into power this may stop (I don't think it will as it is a showstopper for most home owners here - but you never know).
It's a fairly burocratic place, but once you get used to the system and how to get things done, it is no more difficult than the UK.
Hope this is useful - anything else I'm happy to help.
Steven
Is 35% tax rule still applicable?
TIA
HvdWeerden said:
It increases in steps ! The more you earn the more you pay
33,10 % is calculated over the first € 18.945
It still exists- otherwise I wouldn't be here.33,10 % is calculated over the first € 18.945
It works like this- the first 35% of your income is disregarded for tax for 10 yrs.
The remaining 65% of your income is taxed as per the table above.
Another 'tax' to consider is health insurance which costs about 300 euros for a couple. No idea for a single person.
VAT is now 21%, petrol is around euro 1.80 ltr, diesel 1.50. It's not cheap to live here- however France, Belgium, Germany and the UK aren't far away. I tend to bulk buy expensive items there or wait for the sales here.
I live in Arnhem but the 35% is now 30% as that's what I'm getting (just checked my payslip) this amount is tax free and it makes a big difference.
Also I have been informed that when you move here you can import 1 car bpm (tax) free but I didn't know this otherwise I would not have sold my TT.
Gaz
Also I have been informed that when you move here you can import 1 car bpm (tax) free but I didn't know this otherwise I would not have sold my TT.
Gaz
Gaz Walton said:
I live in Arnhem but the 35% is now 30% as that's what I'm getting (just checked my payslip) this amount is tax free and it makes a big difference.
Also I have been informed that when you move here you can import 1 car bpm (tax) free but I didn't know this otherwise I would not have sold my TT.
Gaz
I believe that you can't import a RHD car, so fine if you've got a yank tank or similar, otherwise you're buggered.Also I have been informed that when you move here you can import 1 car bpm (tax) free but I didn't know this otherwise I would not have sold my TT.
Gaz
spikeyhead said:
Gaz Walton said:
I live in Arnhem but the 35% is now 30% as that's what I'm getting (just checked my payslip) this amount is tax free and it makes a big difference.
Also I have been informed that when you move here you can import 1 car bpm (tax) free but I didn't know this otherwise I would not have sold my TT.
Gaz
I believe that you can't import a RHD car, so fine if you've got a yank tank or similar, otherwise you're buggered.Also I have been informed that when you move here you can import 1 car bpm (tax) free but I didn't know this otherwise I would not have sold my TT.
Gaz
As part of your initial move to the Netherlands, if you have a car RHD or LHD that you have owned for at least 2 years (in your name) you can import the car and register it on Dutch plates and not have to pay BPM. My wife did this when we first moved over with her RHD Peugeot 206CC.
But you have to do this as part of your initial move - not 3 months later.
halfpenny43 said:
This is not correct.
As part of your initial move to the Netherlands, if you have a car RHD or LHD that you have owned for at least 2 years (in your name) you can import the car and register it on Dutch plates and not have to pay BPM. My wife did this when we first moved over with her RHD Peugeot 206CC.
But you have to do this as part of your initial move - not 3 months later.
Ah, that's where those who couldn't do it went wrong. Thanks for the info.As part of your initial move to the Netherlands, if you have a car RHD or LHD that you have owned for at least 2 years (in your name) you can import the car and register it on Dutch plates and not have to pay BPM. My wife did this when we first moved over with her RHD Peugeot 206CC.
But you have to do this as part of your initial move - not 3 months later.
Does the age of the car matter regarding the import tax? Ours is a 1995 Mondeo, owned getting on two years but not quite. Hopefully no fee is needed, seems a bit odd to have to pay import tax on a car worth so little.
By the way... greetings to the thread I'm getting very interested in it as we will be moving from Frankfurt to Amsterdam in a couple of weeks having been here 4 and a half years. Got to re-learn a lot of things and bringing the car into the country is one of the first.
By the way... greetings to the thread
I'm getting very interested in it as we will be moving from Frankfurt to Amsterdam in a couple of weeks having been here 4 and a half years. Got to re-learn a lot of things and bringing the car into the country is one of the first.Thanks for the tips Alex
I'm going to give these RDW dudes a call and see what's what. Importing as part of the household sounds sensible, the car is a '95 so actually more like 17 years old... sure they wouldn't want any tax for the old shed.
Due to the expense of road tax in NL I'm very seriously considering getting shot of it soon after having used it to move there and getting something small (read: "light") due to the weight related tax.
Just under two weeks until we go and it still feels like there is SO much to sort!
I'm going to give these RDW dudes a call and see what's what. Importing as part of the household sounds sensible, the car is a '95 so actually more like 17 years old... sure they wouldn't want any tax for the old shed.
Due to the expense of road tax in NL I'm very seriously considering getting shot of it soon after having used it to move there and getting something small (read: "light") due to the weight related tax.
Just under two weeks until we go and it still feels like there is SO much to sort!
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