In a recent decision (ECLI:NL:RBNHO:2026:4689), the District Court of North Holland reaffirmed that the application of the Dutch Expat Scheme (formerly known as 30% ruling) cannot be reduced to a purely formal salary check at the exact moment of hire.
The employee in this case was an experienced helicopter pilot recruited from abroad.
When she joined her Dutch employer, she first had to complete a mandatory internal training programme before being allowed to operate a specific type of helicopter. During this training period, she received a salary of EUR 2,147.67 per month.
The employment contract already provided that, after successfully completing the training, her salary would increase to EUR 6,086.53 per month.
The Dutch tax authorities rejected the application for the Expat Scheme because the salary paid at the start of the employment was below the applicable salary threshold.
The court disagreed.
One of the conditions for the Expat Scheme is that the employee's taxable salary must exceed a minimum salary threshold.
Under existing case law, eligibility is generally assessed based on the facts that exist when the employment contract is concluded.
The Dutch tax authorities therefore focused on the applicable salary at the start of the employment relationship. Since that salary was below the threshold, the application was rejected.
The dispute before the court was whether only the temporary starting salary should be considered, or whether all contractual arrangements that already existed when the employment contract was signed should be taken into account.
An important aspect of this case is that it did not involve a future promotion, a discretionary bonus or a salary increase that might be agreed at a later date.. Instead, the court held that the assessment of the salary threshold must be based on the facts and expectations at the time the employment agreement is concluded, not only on the temporary starting salary. Both salary levels were already included in the same employment contract from day one. The lower salary applied during the mandatory training period, while the higher salary would automatically apply after successful completion of the training.
The court also attached importance to several specific facts:
the higher salary was already contractually agreed;
the training period was relatively short;
the employee already possessed extensive qualifications and experience;
successful completion of the training was considered highly predictable;
previous participants had consistently completed the same training successfully.
Because the higher salary was already part of the original employment contract and there was a very high degree of certainty that the employee would reach that salary level within a short period, the court concluded that the expected annual salary exceeded the salary threshold.
This decision confirms that the salary criterion under the Expat Scheme should not be interpreted as a snapshot in time, but as part of a broader assessment of the employment reality.
At the same time, this decision does not mean that every future salary increase can be taken into account when applying for the Expat Scheme. Tthe ruling is clearly fact-specific. The court placed significant weight on the exceptionally predictable nature of the training and the predefined salary progression.
This raises important practical questions:
When is a training period still a temporary phase, and when does it form part of a predictable career path?
To what extent can expected salary increases be taken into account?
How certain must future employment conditions be at the time of hiring?
This case illustrates that eligibility for the Expat Scheme is not always as straightforward as comparing a starting salary to the applicable salary threshold.
In practice, employment contracts, training arrangements and salary structures can contain nuances that materially affect the assessment. As this judgment demonstrates, the broader contractual context may sometimes be just as important as the salary paid on the first day of employment.
Whether you are starting a new job and your salary falls below the minimum threshold or if your application for the Expat Scheme is denied because your initial salary falls below the salary threshold, it may be worth reviewing the full structure of your employment contract.
Exterus closely monitors developments in the Expat Scheme and advises both employers and international employees on complex eligibility questions. If you would like to discuss your situation or have an existing assessment reviewed, our specialists would be happy to help.