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Netherlands ​

Amsterdam is my favorite city I've lived in thus far. I love how every city in NL is easily reachable by train and how cycling infrastructure is so well developed.

Loved visiting Maastricht. It was unlike any other city in NL with its architecture.

Paying tax in NL ​

You pay 21% VAT every 3 months on Belastingdienst. Then you pay once a year income tax. Put in your revenue, answer some questions and it tells you how much you owe in tax on your income.

Similar system is in most other EU countries at least.

Notes ​

  • NS.nl season tickets are must have if you plan to travel more than a few times on the train in the month.
    • Dal Voordeel (40 % discount on weekends + 40 % discount off peak) is great general discount.
    • Dal Vrij (unlimited weekend + unlimited off peak hours) is great if you travel very often (i.e. work in one city and live in another).
  • Heath insurance is mandatory. I used Unive and cz.nl cheapest plans they had. There might be even cheaper ones available.
  • UWV (unemployment) benefits. werk.nl. uwv.nl. Need to work certain number of hours in a year to be qualified for the benefits. Submit income statement first of every month on uwv.nl. Need to show applications to 5 jobs every 4 weeks (Uw sollicitatieactiviteiten doorgeven). Can always arrange meeting or message for help on werk.nl website.
  • NL has no capital gains tax.
  • Mortgage is interest deductible in NL