Relocating due to a new employment can be costly, especially when you move from abroad. For this purpose the employer can reimburse the employee tax free for the moving costs. The reimbursement is limited and can only be done when certain criteria are met.
The criteria for the relocation reimbursement are that within two years of the start of the employment the employee moves from a residence further away than 25 km from the working place and due to this change the distance to the work reduces at least with 60%.
When the aforementioned conditions are met, the employer can reimburse the employee for a maximum amount of EUR 7.750. On top of these costs the employer can reimburse the employee for the transport of the household goods. Employees under the 30% ruling can qualify for this reimbursement as well.
The above mentioned is only possible when the relocation is done due to the new employment. The tax office can challenge the business argument, that is done at the level of the employer.
Foreign employees, not being employed under the 30% ruling, who return to their home country when the contract has ended, can receive a remigration reimbursement for the relocation costs back to the home country, tax free.
This is the remigration reimbursement of relocation costs. The tax office accepts that the employee arriving from abroad can use the relocation reimbursement, but can also have the remigration costs reimbursed when the job is done and the employee returns to his home country. For the remigration reimbursement there are two conditions: The remigration reimbursement needs to have been mentioned in the agreement for working in the Netherlands (uitzendovereenkomst) and the concerning employee remains an employee of the company group.
The remigration reimbursement contains the transport costs of the employee and his family to the country of origin. The transport costs in the country of origin to the final destination. The freight costs, insurance costs, packaging costs. Storage costs in the country of origin for a maximum period of 14 days. The remigration relocation reimbursement does not apply to the transport of the vehicle. Employees under the 30% ruling cannot qualify for this reimbursement.
