It seems that the formation is talking about an accelerated phasing out of mortgage interest relief. Outgoing Finance Minister Hoekstra writes that this is expected to be necessary to qualify for billions in support from the EU corona recovery fund. As CDA leader, he also sits at the formation table.
The Netherlands can claim 5.96 billion euros from the so-called RRF (Recovery and Resilience Facility). That fund helps countries to recover from the corona crisis. Countries can call on it if they implement structural reforms and investments. At the time, the Netherlands itself hammered on this condition.
‘Equalize rent and purchase’
Hoekstra wrote yesterday in a letter to the House of Representatives that the Netherlands, as the only EU member state, has not yet submitted a plan. According to him, important choices have to be made and that cannot be left to a caretaker cabinet; the choices must be discussed at the formation table.
This concerns “more equalization of the tax treatment of the rental and owner-occupied sector, among other things through the accelerated phasing out of mortgage interest deduction”. He also mentions the accelerated phasing out of the self-employed deduction.
The phasing out of mortgage interest deduction is a sensitive issue for CDA and VVD. The maximum deductible rate for incomes in the highest bracket is already being gradually phased out.
According to Hoekstra, there is still plenty of time. “A plan can still be submitted in Brussels until around the summer of next year, without the risk that the Netherlands will miss out on money.”
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