Optimising usual wage

Are you an employee in a company in the Netherlands in which you have a substantial interest? Then optimise your usual wage! What is the optimal salary for the director and major shareholder?

As a substantial interest holder and also as an employee in the company in which you have a substantial interest, you are considered to receive a wage that is in line with the level and duration of the work.

For the year 2019 the usual wage has been fixed at €45,000. This means that the Tax and Customs Authorities are of the opinion that a person who works in a company in which he has a substantial interest should earn at least €45,000.

Higher usual wage

If other employees in the company receive a higher wage than €45,000, your usual wage is fixed at the highest of the following amounts:

• 75% of the higher wage of the employee with the most comparable employment; or
• The wage of the highest earning employee or of the highest earning employee of an affiliated company.

Lower usual wage

If you can make it plausible that the usual wage must be lower, it is possible to depart from the above. For this you must make a comparison between your work and the work of an employee without a substantial interest in the most comparable position.

Wage or dividend?

Changes in the tax brackets for 2019 make it interesting to examine what the optimal salary is for the director and major shareholder. In order to calculate the optimal salary, we consider your age, the tax brackets in box 1 and the Healthcare Insurance Act contribution.

What is the minimum amount on the basis of which it is better for you to pay dividend than to pay a salary to yourself? Our consultants in the international practice will be pleased to help you with making a choice. You can contact them through the advice form or send an email to international@acconavm.nl.