Belastingdienst Caribisch Nederland has various duties. Its main duties are:
- Levying and collecting national taxes
- Supervising compliance with fiscal laws and regulations
- Collecting certain island levies
Executive body
Belastingdienst Caribisch Nederland (B/CN) is an executive body. B/CN is part of the Dutch Tax Administration and executes the tax acts in force for the islands of Bonaire, Saba, and Saint Eustatius.
The fact that B/CN is an executive body means that it does not adopt laws itself and cannot amend the rules. Laws and regulations are drawn up by the Netherlands Ministry of Finance and adopted by the Government and the House of Representatives and the Senate of the Netherlands.
Levying and collecting national taxes
Most people are familiar with income tax, but as set out on this website, B/CN is involved in many other types of taxes. Belastingdienst Caribisch Nederland is responsible for executing the following taxes:
- General expenditure tax
- Property tax
- Payroll taxes
- Income tax
- Gambling tax
- Revenue tax
- Transfer tax
- Excise duties
As a citizen, you will also face other levies. However, these are taxes that must be levied by the local government, such as land tax or motor vehicle tax. Some of these local taxes must be paid to B/CN through a bank.
Return and assessment
The taxpayer must pro-actively file a return and provide simultaneous payment for General Expenditure Tax, Payroll Tax, Gambling Tax, Revenue Tax, and Transfer Tax. If you fail to do so (on time), B/CN will determine the assessment itself (a so-called ex officio assessment).
An income tax return is provided which the taxpayer must complete and submit. B/CN will adopt the assessment based on this information. As a result, you may receive a refund or will need to pay additional taxes. Alternatively, the payroll levies may be a final levy, in which case you will not receive or will need to pay any additional amounts.
Supervision
As set out above, you must file returns and potentially pay most taxes yourself. This often settles matters. Belastingdienst Caribisch Nederland checks the filed returns regularly. This process is called supervision.
This supervision can take place in a variety of ways, such as:
- by means of an audit;
- by means of a survey;
- through telephone contact.
Levy and collection
You must pay all your taxes through the bank. If you fail to do so, the collection process will start. This procedure starts with summons, but you may receive a visit from a bailiff. These actions involve costs, and these costs will be added to you tax debt. If you believe that you will experience payment difficulties, please contact us so we can discuss a payment plan, for example.