Changes to Dutch employment law effective 1 January 2023

Effective 1 January 2023, a number of changes to Dutch employment law has been implemented. We have listed a number of the most significant changes below.

Increase of minimum wage
The minimum wage was increased effective 1 January. Due to inflation, an additional increase was effectuated. The minimum wage has increased by 10.15%, bringing the minimum wage for employees aged 21 and over to EUR 1,934.40 gross per month (in July 2022, the minimum wage was EUR 1,756.20 gross).

Increase of maximum transition payment
The maximum transition payment has also been increased. As per 1 January, the transition payment is capped at EUR 89,000 gross or one year's salary, whichever amount is higher.

Increase of tax free travel allowance
The maximum tax free travel allowance has also increased, from EUR 0.19 per kilometer driven to EUR 0.21 per kilometer effective 1 January 2023. This allowance is expected to be increased further to EUR 0.22 in 2024. This means that employers are allowed to reimburse a higher amount of travel allowance tax free. However, employers are not required to do so by law.

Increase of tax free working from home allowance
The working from home allowance that employers may provide to employees has increased by EUR 0.15, from EUR 2.00 per day to EUR 2.15 per day.

Increase of state pension
The age at which employees first receive government pension benefits was raised by three months as of 1 January 2023; from 66 years and seven months to 66 years and 10 months.

Implementation of EU whistleblower directive
On 10 December 2022, the House of Representatives passed the bill on the Protection of Whistleblowers Act, which implements the EU Whistleblower Directive. This bill amends the current House for Whistleblowers Act, under which employers with at least 50 employees are required to establish an internal reporting policy for the suspicion of wrongdoing (the so-called whistleblower policy). The proposed amendments include the elimination of the obligation for the individual to first report internally and a number of new requirements regarding the internal reporting procedure. After the Senate has also passed the bill, companies will have to adjust their whistleblower regulations accordingly in the coming year.

Work Where You Want Act
The legislative proposal 'Work Where You Want' was passed by the House of Representatives on 5 July 2022. This act amends the 'Flexible Working Act', and makes it more difficult for employers to reject a request from the employee to adjust his place of work. Under the new act, an employer must grant a request to change the place of work if, taking into account all the circumstances of the case, the employer finds that the employee’s interests outweigh his own in keeping with the standards of reasonableness and fairness. In this context, the desired place of work must be the employee's home address within the territory of the European Union or a suitable work location from which work is usually performed for the employer. The law is still before the Senate for approval. If the Senate passes the bill, the act will enter into force in 2023.

Naturally, we will keep you up to date on these and other relevant developments. If you have questions or would like to know more about a particular topic, please feel free to contact us.