September 17, 2026

Taxation of Trusts and Foundations in the Netherlands

September 17, 2026/ Ruchelman P.L.L.C.

Legal systems regarding taxation differ significantly between jurisdictions, and legal vehicles used to attain a specific goal often must be revised when a border is crossed. A clear illustration of this is the discretionary trust, which is a common estate planning tool in the U.S., but is often associated with tax avoidance schemes in the Netherlands. For that reason, assets, liabilities, and income of a discretionary trust are attributed to the contributor under the Afgezonderd Particulier Vermogen (“A.P.V.”) regime. An A.P.V. is defined as a segregated estate that is intended to serve a private interest that is more than incidental. In their article, Stan Stevens, a Partner at HVK Stevens Tax and Legal in Amsterdam, and Sandra Singh, a Director at the same firm, explain the rules and how they are applied in troublesome fact patterns, including unexpectedly harsh treatment if (i) a contributor of a trust moves to the Netherlands, (ii) a nonresident contributor arranges for the trust to have Dutch source income, (iii) a nonresident contributor owns Dutch situs assets at the time of death, or (iv) a Dutch expat individual dies within ten years from the date of expatriation.

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