Self-Employment Act 2028: your bookkeeping becomes your proof of independence
After more than twenty years of debate about false self-employment in the Netherlands, there is finally a concrete bill that should give freelancers certainty up front. On 1 October 2026, Minister Thierry Aartsen (Work and Participation) opened a public consultation on the Self-Employment Act (Zelfstandigenwet). The aim: a ‘safe harbour’ for everyone who can show they genuinely run a business. The intended start date is 1 January 2028.
What stands out is where the bar is set. Many of the new criteria are not about your assignment, but about how you run your business: Chamber of Commerce (KvK) registration, VAT number, business bank account, your own invoices, payment terms, the number of clients and your insurance. In short, your bookkeeping will be how you show that you are a real entrepreneur.
At a glance
The Act introduces two tests: the self-employment test (you as an entrepreneur) and the working-relationship test (the specific assignment). Meet all criteria of both tests and work that way in practice, and there is no relationship of authority, so no employment contract: that is the safe harbour. The Act is not mandatory. If you don't meet the criteria, you are not automatically an employee; the current rules apply instead, without certainty up front. The intended start is 1 January 2028, with no transitional period.
This is still a proposal
Responses to the public consultation are open until 29 October 2026. After that come the advice of the Council of State and the review by both chambers of parliament, expected in 2027. Until then, the criteria and the start date may still change.
Test 1: the self-employment test — can you show you run a business?
This test looks at you as an entrepreneur, separate from any specific assignment. The draft lists three criteria. The second and third in particular call for preparation by many freelancers.
Self-employment test: the three criteria
| Criterion | What the draft requires |
|---|---|
| Business basics in order | KvK registration, a VAT identification number, a separate account for business transactions, responsibility for your own invoices (someone else may prepare them), using payment terms, and paying your own bills to others. The exact conditions will follow in secondary legislation. |
| At least three clients | Counted over the current and the previous calendar year. One large regular client is fine, as long as you also have other clients of some substance. An agency counts as one client, even if you work at different organisations through it. |
| Cover for business risks | A minimum yearly amount spent on, for example, disability insurance, pension savings (such as a Dutch annuity, lijfrente), business or professional liability insurance, or legal expenses cover. The amount is not yet known; the government is considering a fixed amount, regardless of turnover. Savings do not count, at least for now. |
Source: Rijksoverheid, Taxence and ZiPconomy on the consultation text of 1 October 2026.
Test 2: the working-relationship test — are you truly independent in this assignment?
You and your client agree and record this test per assignment. There are four criteria, and here too: what is on paper only counts if you actually work that way.
Working-relationship test: the four criteria
| Criterion | What it means |
|---|---|
| No employment contract intended | You both explicitly agree that there is no employment relationship. |
| Free in how | You decide how the work is done. The client may specify what the result should be. |
| Free in time and place | In principle, you decide when and where you work. Agreements remain possible if the work is tied to a place or time. |
| Own account and risk | You carry the gains and the losses: finishing faster earns you more, overruns cost you. |
That last point affects many freelancers. According to the explanatory notes, work paid purely by the hour without meaningful business risk is hard to reconcile with it. An agreed result for a price fixed in advance fits well. If you mainly invoice by the hour today, it is worth describing assignments as a result wherever possible.
Why 2028 is closer than it looks
If the Act takes effect on 1 January 2028, 2027 is the ‘previous calendar year’ in the client test. The clients you win next year help decide whether you are in the safe harbour from day one. Under the draft there is no transitional period: the rules apply immediately, to existing and new assignments alike. And since 1 January 2025, the Dutch Tax Administration has already been fully enforcing the rules on false self-employment again. According to research by the ministry, two thirds to three quarters of freelancers already meet the criteria or can do so with small changes. Put the other way round: roughly one in three or four freelancers will need to change something.
What does not change
The Act does not change who counts as an entrepreneur for tax purposes. Whether you are an entrepreneur for income tax (and, for example, qualify for the self-employed deduction, zelfstandigenaftrek) or for VAT remains a separate assessment. Passing the new tests does not automatically make you an entrepreneur for tax purposes, and vice versa. According to the minister, employee rights remain fully intact. And according to the ministry, it makes no difference whether you have a sole proprietorship or a BV; lawyers do not all agree on this yet.
Checklist: getting ready for the safe harbour
Separate business and private money with a dedicated business account. Keep your KvK registration and VAT details up to date. Invoice with fixed payment terms and track who pays late. Keep a yearly overview of your clients and turnover per client. List your insurance and pension arrangements and keep policies and annual statements. Where possible, describe assignments as a result for a price agreed in advance. And keep the quote, agreement and invoices together for each assignment.
How Dutch Tax House helps
Dutch Tax House sets up your bookkeeping so that proof of your independence is built in, not only when a client asks for it. Your records are compared with the criteria in the bill, so you see where you already comply and what still needs doing before 2028. Your business account is linked, invoices get payment terms and a yearly client overview is ready. Your cover is mapped out too: which insurance and pension arrangements do you already have, and what do they save you in tax? Annuity (lijfrente) premiums are deductible within your annual allowance. All of this in English, Dutch or Spanish. Running your business on a DAFT residence permit? Your KvK registration and business account are probably in place already; the client and cover criteria deserve attention.
The government is also exploring a voluntary statement by an outside expert, such as an accountant or tax adviser, to support that you meet the self-employment test. This article will be updated as soon as that statement, the minimum amount for cover or other changes are known. Ready for 2028 starts in 2027: request a call-back and Dutch Tax House will look at your situation with you and tell you honestly where you stand.
Sources
Tax information as it stood on 3 October 2026.
- Rijksoverheid — Zelfstandigenwet biedt meer duidelijkheid en erkenning voor zzp'ers (1 oktober 2026)
- Internetconsultatie — Zelfstandigenwet
- Taxence — Internetconsultatie nieuwe Zelfstandigenwet (1 oktober 2026)
- ZiPconomy — Twaalf dingen die je als zzp'er en opdrachtgever moet weten over de nieuwe Zelfstandigenwet (1 oktober 2026)
This article is intended as general information and doesn't replace personal advice. Tax rules and figures change regularly — get in touch for advice tailored to your situation.