BDO the Netherlands

Due to its excellent business environment and its competitive tax system, the Netherlands is a leading destination for companies seeking a base for durable growth in Europe. Many internationally operating companies already have a presence in the Netherlands due to its stable political conditions, excellent logistics infrastructure and business relations with other countries, specialised industries and high-tech value creation.

Doing business and investing in the Netherlands involves a large number of strategic decisions as well as administrative tasks. Due to BDO NL’s experience, our well-established network with authorities and our in-depth specialist knowledge, BDO NL is well placed to professionally assess the needs of investors and to provide services in all key areas. In order to best serve UK clients’ needs and address NL-UK specific business issues, BDO NL has established the Country Desk UK.

BDO’s Country Desk UK supports both Dutch companies operating in the United Kingdom and British companies operating in the Netherlands. The Country Desk UK coordinates all services and functions of BDO NL through an experienced and multilingual team that has the knowledge and resources to conduct engagements of all sizes. Based on our experience and know-how, we are able to provide high quality services in legal, tax, audit as well as other, advisory services.

Services

The Country Desk UK has a multi-disciplinary team that possesses a solid understanding of the British market and the tax system in the UK. The services we provide focus on aspects such as tax affairs, legislation and regulations, and on practical business-related matters. The Country Desk also works closely together with the British colleagues that specialise in all the relevant British legislation and regulations.

Brexit office

The Country Desk UK follows developments surrounding Brexit on a daily basis. To this end, BDO established a ‘Brexit office’ to gather, analyse and track information about this topic. There are also dedicated materials available that focus on developments surrounding Brexit.

Download the Brexit Guide - BDO

The UK left the EU late 2020 and therefore is no longer part of the EU single market and customs union. The EU and the UK also reached agreement on a Trade and Cooperation Agreement. This status has significant consequences for businesses amongst others in the area of cross border trade, movement of people and data.

For an international organisation it is crucial to analyse the impact of Brexit and the Trade and Cooperation Agreement. It is therefore important to consider whether sufficient measures have been taken for all relevant areas of your business that may be disrupted: supply chain, finance, tax, compliance, governance, IT, HR, legal, business operations. Specific areas of focus may include:

• Analysis of the impact of the costs of customs formalities on sales margins and cost base;
• Analysis of different set-up of the supply chain and cost reduction and cash flow management;
• Requesting and obtaining the necessary registrations (including VAT), permits and authorisations;
• Analysis of the impact of the Withdrawal Agreement and the Trade and Cooperation Agreement on (i) employees (visas & work permits, taxes and social security, e.g. cross-border workers or business travelers), (ii) contracts, e.g. reference to EU provisions, (iii) direct tax, e.g. impact of no longer being applicable of EU directives, etc.

How BDO can help

• Assess and clearly present the financial and operational impact of Brexit on your business;
• Provide legal, tax and customs expertise to deal with new regulatory requirements;
• Design a post Brexit strategy for your business to mitigate risks and leverage opportunities;
• Apply and obtain the necessary registrations and authorisations in the territories where your business operates.