Law Changes 2021: Traffic and Transportation

The Dutch government will implement over 60 new rules, regulations, and law changes at the stroke of midnight on January 1. Below is a summary of the 2021 changes made in the category Traffic and Transportation:

Airline passengers aged 2 and older will pay a tax of 7.845 euros per ticket for each departure from a Dutch airport. That is up from the current rate of 7 euros.

The tax on passenger cars and motorcycles (BPM) will become more expensive for some people, including those buying some petrol and hybrid vehicles which give off a lower amount of carbon dioxide, while some car buyers obtaining more inefficient petrol vehicles could see their tax rate drop. Diesel purchasers will largely pay a higher fee. On average, there will be more financial reason to buy greener cars, and those with an eye on electric cars have another four years to buy one without paying BPM.

A discount on one tax tacked on to a car's price will be discounted for electric cars with solar panels installed and hydrogen fuel cell cars.

Those with plug-in electric cars will be able to benefit from an extension to the reduced rates for public charging points.

Anyone owning a vehicle built at least 50 years ago will no longer need to get the mandatory APK vehicle inspection. However, anyone running a taxi, public transportation car or hazardous material transport vehicle built before 1971 will still need to get the APK certification.

New tractors purchased on or after January 1 will be assigned a license plate. Current tractor owners have one year to register their vehicles and obtain a number plate. The decision was made after months of protests by farmers in the Netherlands where many took to Dutch highways in violation of traffic laws. Because most did not have license plates it was difficult for authorities to address the issue.

The Netherlands will adopt European Union rules for flying drones. That puts all drone flights into three risk categories, including many toy drones, and all drones with a camera. The comprehensive regulations include situations where a minimum age of 16 for drone pilots applies, and that a pilot generally needs to register with the RDW for a license when flying anything over 250 grams.