We are well into the second week of 2021, and whilst the Dutch government may have made a number of changes to national law, do you know what 2021 has in store for the capital city? Here’s a quick rundown of what you can expect in Amsterdam this year. 

Amsterdam tax in 2021

Starting with the bad news, 2021 will see Amsterdam residents paying more in property taxes:

• Tax for homeowners has risen from 0,0356 percent to 0,0428 percent of the property’s current value.
• Tax for owners of business premises has risen from 0,13981 percent to 0,1796 percent of the property’s current value. 
• Tax for tenants of commercial properties has risen from 0,11032 percent to 0,1293 percent of the property’s current value. 

On top of the increased property tax rates, residents will pay higher waste tax. The tax covers the collection and removal of household waste and has increased from 276 euros to 326 euros for a single-person household, and from 368 euros to 435 euros per year for a multi-person household.

Tax and coronavirus 

A tax on events that was initially set to come into effect in January 2021 has been postponed until January 2022. The advertising tax for entrepreneurs has also been postponed by a year. 

Parking permits and rental licenses

The price of parking permits has increased by 1,02 percent in 2021 due to inflation, while the price for a permit for a second vehicle has risen from 1,5 to 2,5 times the cost of the first permit. 

Furthermore, if you wish to rent out your home to tourists or business travellers in 2021 (not that there are very many of those at the moment!) you’ll have to register in the national tourist rental registration from April 1, 2021. You’ll also have to apply for a permit for short-term rentals and notify the municipality in advance of any bookings. If you fail to register your property and inform the municipality of all bookings then you risk a fine of 8.700 euros. If you rent out a property illegally you will face a fine of 21.750 euros. 

Traffic rules and diesel cars

If you own and drive a diesel vehicle in one of the city’s environmental zones, you will be risking a fine. Anyone caught driving a diesel vehicle before March 1 will receive a warning. 

Recently, a number of issues have arisen in the historical city centre, with sinkholes and collapsed roads causing a number of issues as bridges and streets are no longer able to deal with the heavy traffic. The municipality is taking action in the hopes to alleviate some of the pressure on the older infrastructure, setting stricter traffic rules for vehicles weighing over 7,5 tonnes (check the municipality website for more details). 

Housing and building renovations

Anyone planning to renovate an existing home and split it into two smaller dwellings will have to adhere to new regulations set out by the municipality of Amsterdam. The house can only be split if it covers at least 100 square metres, and if the two smaller dwellings are an average of 40 square metres.

Homes that occupy the two ground floors of a property must cover at least 200 square metres for them to be split, with the two new dwellings covering at least 100 square metres. Failing to adhere to the new rules will result in a fine.  

Limited opportunity for events this year

Sadly, the ongoing coronavirus crisis means the municipality has been unable to plan ahead for any fun events or festivals in 2021. However, the city did confirm plans to trial small events (max. 500 attendees) throughout the year, but stated that any events planned for more than 2.000 attendees in the first six months of the year would have to be postponed until at least the autumn. On February 1, the municipality will take a decision on what can be done to celebrate King’s Day 2021 (which was celebrated in lockdown in 2020), National Remembrance Day (May 4) and Liberation Day (May 5).

Furthermore, the city has announced extensive plans for making Amsterdam a greener city, investing 26,5 million euros in projects across the city.