Fiscal partners
18.05.2021Fiscal partner
The concept of fiscal partnership is very important when calculating taxes, subsidies and other financial issues (where your fiscal revenues matter). In fact, a fiscal partner is someone with whom you share income and expenses from a tax point of view.
First of all, this applies to people who are married (official or civil), but it may also happen that the fiscal partners according to the tax rules will be any two people registered at the same address, if, in addition, at least one more condition coincides, which by existing regulations will make them tax partners. It is important to remember this in order not to find yourself in an unpleasant situation.
The latest changes in the concept of fiscal partnership were introduced in 2015-2016. In this article, we take a closer look at the current state of affairs. Therefore, if you want to file a return for an earlier period, for example, for 2014, you need to refer to the rules in force at that time. This is possible, since, according to the law, it is allowed to submit declarations for the past five years, that is, a report for 2016 can be submitted by the end of 2021.
Are you a fiscal partner?
Whether or not you have a fiscal partner is determined anew every year, which should not be forgotten if the situation has changed. Moreover, here the tax year is meant, and it is equal to the calendar year. So, who are considered the fiscal partners today:
We invite you to complete our questionnaire and find out if you are a fiscal partner
TAKE THE QUESTIONNAIRE “ARE YOU FISCAL PARTNERS?”
The exception is business relationships (zakelijke relatie), and specifically the rental of housing, for example, a room. This may be necessary to avoid a fiscal partnership between parents and adult children or even two random people registered at the same address (for example, a live-in nanny and a mother who is raising a child alone). To confirm the existence of a business relationship, you must, firstly, create a contract, and secondly, have confirmation of payment under this contract. It is best to make a bank transfer (you can write receipts, but this will cause unnecessary doubts).
The IND (Migration Office) and the Tax Office (Belastingdienst) have different understandings of partnerships, and this may be particularly relevant for those arriving on a partnership visa. Since the criteria are different and do not influence each other in any way, a person who comes with a partner residence permit is not yet a fiscal partner of the person to whom he actually came. In some cases, it may be beneficial not to be fiscal partners if, for example, one earns little or has a child. In this case, a rental contract is required. And this is not scary in terms of IND - for them you will not stop being partners, since they have their own criteria.
During a divorce, the tax office does not know that you have already filed for divorce - for them you are still married, so they will consider you partners until they receive notice of your divorce (and they will receive it, since it is recorded in gemeente). If you want to stop being fiscal partners earlier, you need to fix the date of filing for divorce. How? In this case, the filing must be made by a lawyer - that is, there must be an official document, and you will have to prove to the tax authorities that this date is the end of your fiscal partnership. In this case, an obligatory condition is an extract from joint housing.
For relatives (not spouses) and people who simply live together who are not or do not want to be fiscal partners, it is important to separately monitor the fact that they can suddenly become fiscal partners, simply upon reaching the younger of them (for example, a child who is still lives with one of the parents) for 27 years.
If two people are renting an apartment, and one of them has a child, a confirmation zakelijke relatie is required, that is, a separate contract for each or a sublease contract.
Note! It is better to submit all information to the tax office before she herself remembered about you and has already registered you as fiscal partners and, moreover, has already counted something for you. Because it is quite difficult to prove later that everything was wrong.
It is also important to know that there can be only one fiscal partner in each calendar year. If you lived with someone one, and then began to live with another, then you need to decide who will be your fiscal partner. Most often, the one with whom you have lived longer is chosen, but other options are also possible.
In order for the tax authorities to know that your fiscal partner has changed, it is important to follow up on your own. A situation may arise that you lived together for a long time, then at the beginning of the year you parted, and in May you had another partner who lived with you longer this year, but the first partner may be automatically considered a fiscal partner based on the fact that you were partners last year.
The concepts of fiscal partnership and partnership for subsidies (toeslag) are 90% the same, but there are exceptions. Therefore, you need to carefully read the conditions, as it may turn out that you are partners for income tax (that is, fiscal partners), but not for subsidies, or vice versa, without being fiscal partners, you are entitled to some kind of subsidies. (you can read more about it here)
If you have a non-standard option or are in doubt about something, it is better to contact a specialist, because the consequences can be financially unpleasant. And the process of restoring the correct state of affairs is quite complex and financially costly. So contact us and we will be happy to help resolve your case.
Questions and Answers on Fiscal Partnerships
1. We have been living together since May 2020, but got married in February 2021. From what date can we be considered fiscal partners for the tax authorities?
- In this case, you have the right to choose whether to be considered fiscal partners for the whole of 2021 or only part of it. Thus, even if you get married on December 31, you can be considered fiscal partners for the entire year for the tax authorities. If you do not want the whole year, but only a part, then the beginning of the fiscal partnership will be considered the moment when the first condition necessary for recognition of the fiscal partnership arose. In 2020, you were not fiscal partners.
2. I have not worked all of 2020, but my roommate is. We do not have a registered marriage or contract. Can I get a tax refund for a non-working partner?
- Unfortunately no. You need to be a fiscal partner to receive the non-working partner deduction.
3. We no longer live together, but we have not officially divorced. Are we still fiscal partners?
- Yes, if you are still officially scheduled, then for the tax office you are still fiscal partners.
4. We parted on January 12 and officially divorced on April 30. From what date will Belastingdienst stop considering it as my tax partner?
- There are two options here: 1. You will automatically cease to be considered fiscal partners from the date of the official divorce. 2.from the date you first filed for divorce. But for this you must provide the tax official information from a lawyer.
5. We bought a joint house on a mortgage, but he does not marry me, and at the moment I am not working. Can we be considered a fiscal partner for a return to a non-working partner?
- Yes, if you have a joint property where you currently reside together, the tax office considers you a fiscal partner.
6. I have been living in the Netherlands for 2 years, and my wife is in Ukraine, but she came to visit a couple of times. Is she a fiscal partner?
- No, if your spouse lives in another country and does not have a BSN-nummer, then you are not considered a fiscal partner in the Netherlands.
