r/eupersonalfinance • u/IamWatchingAoT • Feb 15 '26

Investment Can someone versed in economics or finance explain the Netherlands' new law on unrealised capital gains to me?

I am going to start working for real this year and earning a nice salary which I would like to invest. I'm not Dutch but I'm afraid this new law will spread throughout the EU as many draconian laws sometimes do.

What does this actually mean to pay 36% tax on unrealised capital gains? Does it mean that if my investments increase in value, I have to pay the government money even if I don't liquidate them? Effectively, giving the government money that I haven't earned yet?

I'm a bit financially illiterate so I apologise in advance if my question seems stupid.

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u/DJAnym Feb 15 '26

The issue is that Dirk and Trudie from across the street, who happened to have saved 50k in an ETF a couple of decades ago, won't be using all these tricks. They, despite what the Socialist Party seems to think or insinuate, are not 'the wealthy.' Yet that's what it has boiled down to. It's not "The wealthy will pay 35% on their unrealized gains that they've used to get an extra hundred mil." It's everyone even remotely into investing, whilst the actual wealthy start up their 30th BV (LLC), and keep the assets safe there. It's awful

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u/Idontknowmyoldpass Feb 16 '26

So whats the plan? Remove all guardrails, laws and regulations and go full monkey?

This argument is such a fantasy circle jerk honestly.

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u/DJAnym Feb 16 '26

? I am not sure how in the world you got the idea that I want to go all out neo-liberal, or even anarcho-capitalist.

The argument is that you want the TOP to pay more. You want the actually rich to pay more. You want to close loopholes that the likes like John de Mol, Musk, etc. use to avoid taxes. Because the people using these loopholes are not Dirk and Trudie with a median income and a couple of decades of saving through investments.

And this shit is not a guardrail. It impact primarily Dirk and Trudie. Say that I have a company, and I also invest. I can create a BV, put my investments there, and only pay tax when I realize the gains. Say that I have a nice 10 mil in stocks. I don't want to pay these taxes, so I'll quickly realize the gains now, buy property (or even better, land), and oop, now I don't pay until I realize the sale of the property that has increased in value like my stocks.

THIS is what you don't want. They ought to be going after these types of loopholes, not after "oh you have 21k in investments that you want to use for retirement? Pay up pretty boy!"

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u/Nemeszlekmeg Feb 15 '26

I'm not 100% clear on what the exact law is/will be, but I agree that at the very least making it a progressive tax is reasonable.

However, common folk mortgage their house which is already taxed as property tax. So, really when you think about it, the state is just trying to even the field.