TOPIC: Political Update
DATE: 3 July 2018
Dear All,
On July 2, our political outreach chair – on behalf of the UENL - attended a meeting at the Ministry of Finance regarding the proposed changes to the 30% ruling. By invitation only, this was the first of several meetings that will be held this week in discussion of this proposal.
For UENL, this meeting was an opportunity to express our concerns over the proposal – namely, the lack of transitional regulation. Here we strongly emphasized, yet again, the negative impact that this proposal will generate on the Dutch business community and – alongside this – used the UENL personal stories to share the real impact of this proposal on expats throughout the country.
In addition to UENL presence, attendees at the meeting were corporate stakeholders, unions, and expat associations. All attendees unanimously agreed that, while the Government has the authority to make changes for the future, a transactional policy should be enacted just as it was in 2012 when the term limit was adjusted from 10 to 8 years.
In addition, during this meeting, UENL learned that the questions raised on 31 May by the MPs (and directed to the State Secretary) are expected to be answered before summer recess. UENL will be sure to share more as soon as we know it.
Finally, last week we submitted an open letter to Menno Snel. This letter was written by Jessica Piotrowski (Communication Chair) and Engelbert Felberthann (Co-Founder, Corporate Chair) , with input and signature by the entire UENL council. The letter was shared at the meeting as another means to ensure that our message is clearly heard and to demonstrate that we have done our utmost to explore and engage every diplomatic opportunity. The original letter is written in Dutch, but we have made an English translation available as well.
There are more steps ahead in our journey. We will continue to keep you updated on our progress. In the meanwhile, please continue to share your stories with us. And, of course, please contact any members of the UENL council should you have any questions.