Netherlands offers one stop shop and tax relief to British firms and expat entrepreneurs

The Netherlands is ratcheting up its campaign to attract British businesses post Brexit.

A business-friendly climate, tax breaks and an English-speaking population are all being cited in an attempt by the Netherlands government to attract established British businesses and start-up entrepreneurs to its shores. With just under a year to go before Brexit becomes official, the government’s small army of lobbyists is hoping to persuade UK companies to choose Amsterdam or Rotterdam over the charms of Paris or Frankfurt.

According to the Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency, an organisation officially linked to the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Dutch government is wooing some 200 or so British companies as well as international businesses now avoiding London. The plot seems to be working well, with Dutch giant Unilever leaving its UK base and relocating its employees to the company’s main headquarters in Rotterdam. Although the company politely declined any Brexit inference in their decision, the move came just after the European Medicines Agency’s decision to choose Amsterdam over Milan once it leaves the British capital.

Common sense prevails amongst companies looking to relocate pre-Brexit when looking at the Netherlands’ ultra-modern infrastructure, efficient communications and digital providers as well as the fact that 90 per cent of the population speak English. The agency’s website statement somewhat sneakily says ‘we’re not an island’, adding the country is within easy transportation access to the rest of Europe’s consumers and business customers.

Equally attractive, especially for SMEs, are low business taxes and the 30 per cent tax reduction for expats with certain qualifications. Dutch lobbyists are pushing the ‘one-stop shop’ plan linked with tailor-made guidance for businesses looking for an alternative to the UK, with just a year to go before Britain is legally on its own.