#13: Taxes and the upcoming elections

Tax evasion and tax fraud are two different things even though the media tries to make you believe otherwise. Tax fraud is deliberately not filing a complete tax return due to which the public treasury is harmed. Classic tax fraud usually is committed in a non-transparent way, so the authorities have a hard time to discover it. Tax evasion however is no more than avoiding to have to pay (certain) taxes. Even though the difference between the two is quite clear, the two get generalized because tax evasion has become an unpopular phenomenon. The Dutch authorities in their ‘fight against fraud’ make grateful use of this situation, especially with the upcoming elections in March 2017.

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#06: The Dutch hunt for professional facilitators

In the Netherlands not only the (alleged) offender of a crime can be prosecuted. The professional who advised on certain matters relating to the object of a criminal investigation can become a suspect as well. The notary who advised on a legal document which is possibly false can be prosecuted. The tax advisor who advised his client on how to evade taxes can be complicit to tax fraud. Any professional that is involved with alleged criminal offences of his client can thus be faced with a criminal investigation on his involvement. The legal ‘weapons’ of Dutch law enforcement have increased over the last years and the so called ‘facilitators’ of financial fraud are the targets of these weapons. In the fall of 2015 the prosecutor’s office announced in the media that they will open their ‘fight against fraud’ by aiming to punish accountants and notaries who assist mala fide entrepreneurs. In this hunt for professional facilitators, suspects may not only be faced with administrative penalties or criminal prosecution, but also with disciplinary complaints. Which legal ‘weapons’ does Dutch law provide for?READ MORE