30% ruling salary threshold met during training period

The District Court of Noord-Holland has ruled that an incoming employee met the salary threshold for the Dutch 30% ruling, even though her salary during an initial training period was below the statutory threshold.

The case concerned a helicopter pilot who moved to the Netherlands and entered into an employment agreement and a training agreement at the same time. During training, she received a lower salary. After completing the training, her salary would increase to a fixed amount exceeding the 30% ruling salary threshold.

The Dutch Tax Authorities rejected the application, arguing that the salary threshold was not met at the start of employment. The court disagreed.

At the start of employment, it was already clear that the employee would receive the higher structural salary after a short training period. The training was regarded as onboarding and successful completion was considered highly likely. The expected annual salary therefore exceeded the statutory threshold. The court concluded that the specific expertise requirement was met and granted the 30% ruling.

Action point: employers applying for the 30% ruling during a training or onboarding period should ensure that the employment documentation clearly records the future salary level, the timing of the increase and the conditions for completion of the training.

For more information about the 30% ruling and salary threshold requirements, please contact your Nassau specialist at info@nassau.tax.