If you think assisting expatriates on their way into the Netherlands is hard, then start preparing now for their departure. Patrick Rovers of Van Velzen CS explains.

Due to a decline in Dutch economic growth and a shrinking world economy, many companies are rethinking their current expatriate dependency and related employment strategies. Certain companies have already started reorganising their "high-cost" departments, which often results in cancelling assignments and hiring experienced locals who are now more widely available on the Dutch and European labour markets.

Surveys show that most expatriates based in the Netherlands are on two- to three-year assignments before they are transferred out again, back home or to another country, for whatever reason.

Before the actual departure however, the expatriate and the HR official should take care of some outstanding "legal" matters, such as informing the local Aliens Police department, the local municipality, the tax department, and the (Central) Employment Office. The essentials are as follows.

Returning the residence permit

Technically, the expatriate’s Dutch residence permit is and remains the property of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Therefore, expatriates are obliged to return the residence permit before they officially return home.

It’s recommended that expatriates return their residence permits to the local Aliens Police department in person and ask for a receipt. Or they could send it in by registered mail. Do remind them to keep the proof of transmission.

Before returning a residence permit, the HR manager should make a colour photocopy of the front and the back of the permit for future reference, and also file a photocopy of the receipt or proof of transmission. It is important that the HR manager keeps this information on file in case the expatriate returns for another assignment in the Netherlands or Aliens Police/IND (Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst) have any questions.

If the expat fails to return the residence permit in time, after a while the local Aliens Police department will notice this and make an entry in their nation-wide "investigation system" to avoid misuse.

Cancelling the work permit

Usually, the employer of the expatriate secured a Dutch work permit before the expatriate’s actual employment in the Netherlands commenced. The employer is required to inform the Employment Office (Centrum voor Werk en Inkomen) or the Central Employment Office (Afdeling tewerkstellingsvergunningen) as soon as a work permit has not been used for more than four weeks.

This is clearly stipulated on the back of the original work permit. The Labour Act regarding aliens (Wet arbeid vreemdelingen) clearly states that a work permit that is not used will be revoked.

All in all, it is imperative that HR is aware of this and, in a timely manner, reports the departure of the expatriate to the (Central) Employment Office in order to avoid administrative or legal complications.

De-registering from the municipality

Shortly after their arrival, expatriates registered as new residents with the local municipality (gemeente) in the Netherlands.

Before the actual departure, expatriates should contact the municipality’s Afdeling burgerzaken and find out about their current de-registration procedure and what steps are needed. In that way, expatriates' files in the municipality’s central computer can be correctly amended.

The expatriate should also make inquiries with the municipality’s tax department regarding payment of possible outstanding local taxes, such as ‘OZB’.

Contacting the tax office

It is recommended that HR assists expatriates when contacting the Dutch tax department (Belastingdienst). If an expatriate has been (or should have been) paying federal taxes in the Netherlands, he should settle a possible income tax claim before leaving the country. Before talking to the tax office, the company’s accountant or tax lawyer should be asked for some guidance in this matter.

This article is for informative purposes only, is general in nature, and is not intended to be a substitute for competent legal and professional advice. Dutch rules and regulations regarding aliens, taxes, work permits, visas and residence permits are continuously subject to change.

May 2003

Patrick Rovers is a consultant with Van Velzen CS the Netherlands BV, which specialises in work and residence related issues and in the establishment of new companies and other corporate matters.