Netherlands VAT Hike on Sports and Culture Rejected in 2025 Spring Memorandum

For months, a heated debate has been ongoing regarding the proposal to increase the applicable VAT rate for goods and services in the culture, media, and sports sector, from 9% to 21%. In the 2025 Spring Memorandum sent to the Lower House of Parliament, the Minister of Finance referred to this proposal, as well as many other vital tax matters.

Key Takeaways From 2025 Spring Memorandum

Although the 2025 Spring Memorandum includes and underlines several tax measures aiming to reform the government financing plan and expenditures, including personal income tax and payroll tax, gift and inheritance tax, reduction in energy tax for households, the Minister of Finance also addressed the proposal to increase the VAT rate on sports, culture, and media.

The Minister not only dismissed the possibility of increasing the VAT from 9% to 21%, but also highlighted that such a proposal will be permanently abolished. To cover the financial impact of this decision, the government will make limited adjustments to the way income tax brackets and tax credits are updated for inflation and price changes.

In other words, to compensate for this, the government will leave lower rates in effect, but taxable persons may experience a slightly slower increase in their income tax reliefs over time. By doing so, the government wants to balance the budget without imposing new taxes.

Conclusion

The 2025 Spring Memorandum represents an update on the government's budget for 2025 and the following years, making it a critical document that provides insight into the tax measures the government plans to implement in the foreseeable future. Therefore, the announcement that there will be no increase in the VAT rate for the sports, cultural, and media sector is significant.

However, the final budget for 2026 is part of the 2026 Tax Plan, which will be presented on Budget Day. Moreover, the Lower House of Parliament still needs to debate the proposed measures, and the voting on this decision will take place in the autumn.

Source: Ministry of Finance, KPMG