Dutch gov't scraps plans for own tax on packages from China; Awaiting EU import tax
The Dutch government has abandoned its plans for a national tax on packages from China, the Telegraaf reports based on a letter to parliament by State Secretary Eelco Eerenberg of Finance. The Netherlands has decided to await the European import tax, according to the newspaper.
Late last year, the caretaker Schoof I Cabinet announced at breakneck speed that the Netherlands would introduce a handling fee for packages from China. The fee would amount to €2 per order line, resulting in the average order becoming €6 more expensive.
Neighboring countries like Belgium, France, and Luxembourg announced similar taxes, and the caretaker Cabinet worried that this would result in a flood of Chinese packages coming through the Netherlands to those countries. Dutch customs services were already strained, and the government feared that this would overburden them completely.
Ultimately, only France ended up actually introducing a national parcel tax. The other countries decided to wait for the upcoming European tax. The Dutch government has now decided to do the same, according ot the newspaper.
The Council of State was also critical of the proposed tax. Eerenberg’s predecessor, State Secretary Eugène Heijen, had already postponed its implementation.
