Updates & News

v4.4.0

• ·Legislative timeline on the 36748 dossier page brought up to date — the June and July steps only existed in the news feed and were missing from the dossier page itself: second report (May 29), government response (June 12), State Secretary letter (June 19), committee decision (June 23), plenary debate (June 30), published expert-hearing reports (July 2-3) and the vote (July 7)
• ·Four motions added with document letter, sponsor and outcome: the Schalk motion (M, withdraw the bill) was rejected on July 7 with the per-party split; the Kroon (J), Van den Oetelaar (K) and Van Rooijen (L) motions were held. The bill itself was not put to a vote — that follows only after the novelle
• ·Correction: the route described in the June 19 letter is further development into a vermogensWINSTbelasting (tax on realized gains), not a vermogensaanwasbelasting. Timeline and news texts amended
• ·All 20 source links checked for reachability; the dead link to the Eerste Kamer agenda of May 19 (404) was removed and eleven primary Eerste Kamer sources added — the June 30 plenary records, the motions overview with results, the July 7 voting record, committee short minutes and the parliamentary documents of May 29, June 12 and June 19

v4.3.0

• ·Eerste Kamer plenary debate (June 30) added as featured event: four motions submitted, final vote postponed until the announced novelle(s) are treated, CDA with 'fundamental objections' — requested softening measures: loss offset, exception for start-up entrepreneurs, route toward a capital-gains tax
• ·Timeline extended with the second written round: second (further) report May 29 and government response to the second report June 12
• ·State Secretary letter of June 19 added — improving the act and the route toward a capital-gains tax — plus the committee decision (June 23) to fold it into the plenary treatment
• ·Look-ahead added: vote on motions scheduled for July 7; cabinet takes budgetary decisions in August and brings a novelle on Prinsjesdag 2026; intended entry into force remains January 1, 2028

Motion to withdraw the Box 3 bill rejected, three motions held

The Senate rejected the Schalk et al. motion (36748, M) stating 'no objection to withdrawing the bill'. Against: GroenLinks-PvdA, Volt, ChristenUnie, CDA, D66, SP, PvdD, VVD, Fractie-Visseren-Hamakers and OPNL. In favour: SGP, FVD, PVV, JA21, BBB and 50PLUS among others. The Kroon (J), Van den Oetelaar (K) and Van Rooijen (L) motions were held. The bill itself was not put to a vote — that follows only after the novelle is treated.

Eerste Kamer plenary debate on Box 3 — four motions, final vote postponed

The Senate debated bill 36748 in plenary. Four motions were submitted: Kroon (BBB) on investing in a law based on a capital-gains tax (J); Van den Oetelaar (FVD) on that tax's long-term revenue (K); Van Rooijen (50PLUS) on a one-off dividend-tax reduction (L); Schalk (SGP) stating no objection to withdrawing the bill (M). Coalition party CDA voiced fundamental objections to taxing unrealized share gains ('paying tax on money that isn't there'). The final vote is postponed until the novelle has been treated. Intended entry into force remains January 1, 2028.

Finance Committee folds government letter into plenary treatment

The Finance Committee decides to include the state secretary's June 19 letter — on improving the act and the route toward a capital-gains tax — in the June 30 plenary treatment.

State Secretary letter: improve the act + route toward a capital-gains tax

State Secretary Eerenberg sends a letter (EK document I) on improvements to the Wet werkelijk rendement box 3 and the route toward further development into a vermogenswinstbelasting — levied on realized profit instead of annual accrual. The cabinet will give insight before the summer recess on what is feasible; budgetary decisions follow in August and a novelle on Prinsjesdag 2026.

Government response to the second report (EK)

The cabinet sends the nota naar aanleiding van het tweede verslag (EK document H) with attachment to the Senate — the written response to the questions from the second written round.

Second (further) Eerste Kamer report on Box 3

The Finance Committee issues its second report (EK document G) after the May 19 expert hearing and the May 26 written round — with follow-up questions to the government before plenary debate can begin.

Report · Experts to the Senate on Box 3

Full editorial report of the May 19 hearing: positions per speaker, the academic/stakeholder fault line, and four scenarios for further treatment with probability estimates and triggers.

Eerste Kamer expert hearings concluded

Block 1 split among academics: Jacobs and Van den Dool defended the bill; Heithuis urged withdrawal; Essers called it 'a tragedy of missed opportunities'; NOB warned about implementation complexity. Block 2 uniformly critical: VNO-NCW prefers a capital-gains tax; Vastgoed Belang announced litigation; Van Lanschot Kempen flagged liquidity risk; Dutch Startup Association reported 40% of funded start-ups consider leaving. Next: second written round on May 26.

v4.2.0

• ·New editorial report at /political/36748/hearing-19-mei — longread with drop cap, dek, reading-time stamp, per-speaker blocks with pull-quote format, fault-line analysis and source list
• ·New scenarios page at /political/36748/scenarios — four scenarios (pass, novelle, delay, withdraw) with probability estimates, triggers, timing and impact + 'what to watch' milestone timeline
• ·Report article marked as featured event on the homepage — the masthead and the lead news card now link directly to the longread

v4.1.1

• ·Preview card replaced with a recap card: 'What the experts said' — positions per speaker, consensus assessment, and procedural follow-up (second written round May 26)
• ·Nine experts named with their positions: Jacobs and Van den Dool defending; Heithuis withdraw; Essers 'tragedy of missed opportunities'; NOB implementation complexity; VNO-NCW prefers capital-gains tax; Vastgoed Belang litigation; Van Lanschot Kempen liquidity risk; Dutch Startup Association 40% leave-propensity
• ·Two official Eerste Kamer committee-meeting pages (block 1 + block 2 of May 19) added as sources

v4.1.0

• ·Live dossier masthead added beneath the hero on the homepage: latest headline, date stamp, and version. FT-style 'live blog' strip, auto-populated from the central news registry
• ·Homepage 'Latest updates' section is now auto-driven from lib/news-events. No more hand-edits per release; newest 3 events fill the lead + 2 secondary cards
• ·Relative date labels on cards: Today · Tomorrow · Yesterday · X days/weeks/months ago — computed automatically per event

v4.0.5

• ·New preview card on the 36748 page: 'What's at stake this week'. Both blocks of the May 19 expert hearing (17:00 and 19:30) with announced speaker organisations and themes per block
• ·Timeline extended with the second written round (inbreng tweede verslag) on May 26, 2026 — one week after the expert hearing; only then can plenary debate begin
• ·Three new Eerste Kamer sources added: announcement of expert hearings (May 13), agenda for May 19, and incoming-letters index for dossier 36748

Eerste Kamer procedural meeting after NnavV

The Senate Finance Committee discusses next steps for bill 36748 now that the government's nota naar aanleiding van het verslag has been received. The meeting decides whether the Senate waits for the novelle or proceeds to substantive debate.

v4.0.4

• ·Corrected chain partner lead time from 18 months to 'one year and nine months' (~21 months), per rijksoverheid.nl and kst-36748. Added sources: Explanatory Memorandum, Government response to Senate report, and rijksoverheid box 3 reform main page

v4.0.3

• ·Added Senate Finance Committee procedural meeting (May 12): committee discusses next steps for bill 36748 now that the NnavV has been received
• ·Added Senate expert hearing (May 19): two 90-minute blocks with external experts — first independent expert input to the Senate since March 17

v4.0.0

• ·Full editorial redesign (FT/Economist feel): paper/ink palette, hairline rules, kicker eyebrows, magazine layout for landing
• ·New typography: Source Serif 4 for headlines, Inter for body, tabular figures for all numerics
• ·Recharts FT-style: ink-on-paper palette, dotted gridlines, serif axis labels, no shadows
• ·Calculator reworked as long-form: sticky parameters panel left, 'The Verdict' with numbered figures right

v3.0.2

• ·Timeline updated: Eerste Kamer Finance Committee submitted its report (verslag) on April 7 — one week past the deadline; institutional input from Baker Tilly and VCP highlighted
• ·Added Nota naar aanleiding van verslag (April 24): government answers on loss offset, real estate, start-ups, international coordination, and administrative impact

Government sends Nota naar aanleiding van het verslag (NnavV) to Eerste Kamer

State Secretary Eerenberg submits the cabinet's written response to the Senate Finance Committee's April 7 report. Topics covered: income determination and asset valuation, loss offset, special rules for real estate / start-ups / insurance products, international coordination with EU law, rationale for rejecting alternative systems, and administrative impact for the Belastingdienst and chain partners.

Eerste Kamer Finance Committee releases report (one week past deadline)

The Senate Finance Committee (FIN) issues its verslag on bill 36748, one week after the original March 31 deadline. Committee status: awaiting government response. Institutional input filed since March 17 includes letters from Baker Tilly (March 22) and labor union VCP (March 26), alongside roughly fifteen citizen letters.

v3.0.1

• ·Added official Eerste Kamer transcript of oral consultation with State Secretary Eerenberg: novelle planned for Prinsjesdag, three-pillar response, life events research, June letter promised, timeline updated

v3.0

• ·Added Box 3 demographic data from March 17 briefing: 2.6M taxpayers, €651B total wealth breakdown, revenue concentration statistics
• ·New 'What changes for you' section: VIA pre-fill drop (85% → 64%), 7-year record-keeping obligation, toeslagen volatility risk, Step-Up mechanism
• ·Added explanation of the 'fiscal sieve' (keuzeregime) — why the current system is legally untenable
• ·New implementation section: CoolGen five red flags, 900 FTE staffing need, chain partner deadlines
• ·Added J-Curve revenue projection pattern from Ministry micro-simulations (projecting to 2060)
• ·New FAQ section: Step-Up reset, record-keeping rules, deposit/withdrawal filtering, toeslagen impact
• ·New FAQ section: Why the Netherlands chose the hybrid model, international comparison

v2.9

• ·Real estate deemed return corrected from 3.55% to 3.35% of WOZ value (confirmed by March 17 briefing: 10th percentile of market rental values)
• ·Added implementation details from March 17 briefing: 18-month chain partner lead time, CoolGen sunset deadline, 1-year carry-back discussion (est. €1B cost)

v2.8

• ·Box 3 vote results corrected based on eerstekamer.nl: DENK moved to against, Groep Markuszower added, party counts updated
• ·Senate status updated: March 17 technical briefing and oral consultation completed, expert symposium after May recess, March 31 report deadline

Technical briefing and oral consultation on Box 3 completed

The Eerste Kamer Finance Committee received a technical briefing from the Ministry of Finance and held an oral consultation with State Secretary Eerenberg on implementation strategies. The committee is preparing an expert symposium for after the May recess.

v2.7

• ·New Updates page: political developments timeline and site changelog in one place
• ·Updated Box 3 timeline: coalition agreement, social media protests, government adjustment letter, and missed Senate deadlines

Finance Committee discusses government adjustment letter

The Eerste Kamer Finance Committee discusses the state secretary's letter detailing planned adjustments to bill 36748. The committee continues preparing for the March 17 technical briefing and expert meetings.

Government sends adjustment letter to Eerste Kamer

The government sends an official letter to the Eerste Kamer outlining proposed adjustments to bill 36748 following Minister Heinen's February 25 intervention.

v2.6

• ·Full legislative archive: 25+ bill detail pages with timeline, status, and vote history

Minister Heinen: bill cannot proceed in current form

Finance Minister Heinen (VVD) wants to go 'back to the drawing board'. Main concerns: no loss carryforward, liquidity issues with real estate and startups. Amendments must remain revenue-neutral.

v2.5

• ·Senate status updated: Finance Committee has begun review of bill 36748, timeline and deadlines updated

v2.4

• ·Added Norway and Sweden to international tax comparison

v2.3

• ·Mortgage and toeslagen data now persists when switching between pages

v2.2

• ·Interactive projection charts for portfolio growth and cumulative tax burden

Public outrage over 36% unrealized gains tax

Widespread social media protests as citizens express anger over the proposed 36% tax on unrealized gains. Critics raise liquidity concerns, unequal loss relief, capital flight risk, and harm to family businesses.

v2.1

• ·Added site logo and favicon

v2.0

• ·6 return models: Linear, S&P 500 (2010–2024), S&P 500 (2000–2014), AEX (2010–2024), Bear market, and Monte Carlo
• ·Winst scenario now shows deferred tax and net if sold — fairer comparison with aanwas
• ·Expanded table with grouped columns for all three scenarios
• ·International comparison now uses the selected return model
• ·Monte Carlo simulation with re-roll button for randomized market scenarios

v1.2

• ·Distinguish between actual and taxable returns per scenario

v1.1

• ·Historical S&P 500 simulation (2010–2024) added
• ·Improved mobile layout

v1.0

• ·Initial release with projection, international comparison, and three tax scenarios

Tweede Kamer approves bill 36748 (93-57)

The House of Representatives passes the Box 3 reform bill with a reluctant majority of 93 in favor and 57 against. Described as voting 'met lange tanden' (with great reluctance).

New coalition signals shift to capital gains tax

The D66/VVD/CDA coalition agreement formally states the long-term aim is to replace the unrealized gains tax (aanwasbelasting) with a full capital gains tax system, where investors only pay tax on realized returns.