Only for employees
Reorganization at the Belastingdienst
Is your role changing through a reorganization, are you being transferred, or is there a departure proposal on the table?
This page explains your position under Dutch employment law, which applies to everyone working in the Netherlands, including highly skilled migrants and international staff. The Belastingdienst (the Dutch Tax Administration) is part of central government and falls under the Ministry of Finance. There is no major round of dismissals announced at present; the picture is shaped more by an ageing workforce and outflow, by the renewal of IT and by the earlier split into the Belastingdienst, Customs and the Benefits Service. Even so, such a reshaping can affect your own role, through a reorganization of your unit, a change of function or a transfer. And one thing is often underestimated: since the Act normalising the legal status of civil servants (Wnra), you are no longer a classic civil servant with a unilateral appointment, but an employee with an employment contract.
Does this apply to you?
- Your unit is being reorganized or restructured
- Your role is changing through automation or new IT
- You are being transferred or declared redundant
- You are entering a Work-to-Work (Van Werk Naar Werk) track
- There is a departure arrangement or settlement agreement
Why employees come to ReorgLegal
ReorgLegal specializes in reorganizations and works exclusively for employees, never for employers. We assess your proposal and stand beside you.
Do not wait too long. Reorganizations often come with short response deadlines. Have a proposal assessed before you agree to it.
The situation at the Belastingdienst
At the Belastingdienst it is less about shrinking and more about change: the organization is renewing itself, while a large group of staff will retire in the coming years.
Renewal rather than a round of dismissals
The Belastingdienst is modernizing outdated IT and reshaping the work, with manual checks partly taken over by systems. At the same time it is recruiting heavily, because many experienced staff are leaving. No large forced round of dismissals has been announced. Figures going round about thousands of jobs often go back to older plans, so treat them with caution.
Your role can still change
Even without broad shrinkage, a reshaping can affect you personally. Your unit may be reorganized or merged, your role may change through automation, or you may be asked to move to another place within central government. The question is then what exactly happens to you and which arrangements apply.
This page is from July 2026; plans within central government may change after that.
In brief
- The Belastingdienst falls under the Ministry of Finance
- Your employer is the State of the Netherlands
- Since 2020 you have an employment contract (Wnra)
- No major round of dismissals, but ageing and reshaping
- The CAO Rijk applies, with Work-to-Work on reorganization
- Customs and the Benefits Service are separate units since 2020
Your legal position since the Wnra
The biggest change for you happened before any reorganization: since 1 January 2020 your legal status has been normalised. That determines how a dismissal or departure now works.
From appointment to employment contract
Before 2020 you were a civil servant with a unilateral appointment and a separate dismissal procedure. Since the Act normalising the legal status of civil servants you have an ordinary employment contract and largely the same employment law as in the private sector applies. You are still a civil servant, but a dismissal on economic grounds now runs through the UWV and other grounds through the subdistrict court.
What that means in a reorganization
If your role is eliminated, the ordinary rules apply: your employer must substantiate the need, justify the selection through the reflection principle, and first examine reassignment. On termination on the employer's initiative there is in principle a right to the statutory transition payment, unless a statutory exception applies. That is a different position than under the old civil-service law, and that is precisely why it is worth knowing what applies to you now.
Do you want to know what normalisation means for you? Have it assessed.
Since normalisation
- You have an employment contract, no longer an appointment
- Economic dismissal runs through the UWV
- Other grounds run through the subdistrict court
- You may be entitled to the statutory transition payment
- A departure can be arranged in a settlement agreement
CAO Rijk and Work-to-Work
What shapes your position is that you do not work for one company but for central government. That brings its own collective agreement and a mobility policy that can reach further than the Belastingdienst alone.
The CAO Rijk
Your terms of employment are set out in the CAO Rijk, which applies to all central-government civil servants and is concluded between the minister and the unions. You do not negotiate that agreement per unit, but it does help determine what applies to you in a reorganization, from support to arrangements on departure.
Work-to-Work in central government
Central government also has a Work-to-Work policy. If your role disappears, the aim may be to guide you to other work, where roles outside the Belastingdienst within the central-government sector can also come into view. How far that support reaches depends on the applicable collective agreement, the government schemes and the specific reorganization; it is not automatically the same as the statutory reassignment obligation. So have it checked which roles you qualify for in your case.
Not sure what the Work-to-Work track offers you? Have it clarified.
Find this out
- Whether your role is eliminated or only changes
- What the Work-to-Work track means for you
- Within which part of central government you can be reassigned
- What support and what time frame you are given
- Whether a departure arrangement or transition payment is at issue
How a reorganization at the Belastingdienst unfolds
In central government too, a dismissal on economic grounds goes through fixed steps. Each step you can have tested.
Justification and advice
The Belastingdienst must make it plausible that your role is disappearing and put the intention to the works council. That right to advise derives from the Works Councils Act. If it concerns many roles at once, the rules on collective redundancy may come into view; they only require notification to the UWV and consultation with the unions once the statutory conditions and threshold are met.
Selection and the reflection principle
Your employer cannot decide at its own discretion who must go. Where roles are interchangeable, the reflection principle essentially determines the order, subject to the statutory exceptions. The unit on which the reflection is applied follows from the organizational structure of the service and the Dismissal Regulation; at a large organization with many units, that is a point of attention in itself.
Reassignment and Work-to-Work
Before dismissal is at issue, it must be examined whether there is a suitable role for you, if necessary after training and within a reasonable period. What matters is whether those other positions belong to the company or group for which your employer has a reassignment obligation under Article 7:669 of the Dutch Civil Code and the Dismissal Regulation. In central government the search for other work may reach further, through the Work-to-Work policy, depending on the applicable collective agreement and government schemes.
At each step there is something to do
- Ask whether your role really disappears or only changes
- Keep your employment contract, payslips and the proposal
- Have someone check how the reflection was applied
- Ask which roles fit within the Work-to-Work track
- Do not agree before your position has been assessed
What does this mean for you?
A reorganization at the Belastingdienst follows the statutory rules for economic dismissal, supplemented by the CAO Rijk and the Work-to-Work policy. On each of those points you have more of a say than it seems.
Your normalised legal position
Since the Wnra, largely ordinary employment law applies to you. A dismissal on economic grounds runs through the UWV and involves the same scrutiny as in the private sector, including substantiating the need and the reassignment obligation.
A selection that can be checked
Within interchangeable roles, the reflection principle essentially determines who becomes redundant, subject to the statutory exceptions. Which unit counts depends on how the Belastingdienst is structured and can determine whether it is you whose turn it is.
Your compensation
If your employment ends on the employer's initiative and reassignment is not possible, you are usually entitled to the statutory transition payment. If a government scheme or social plan offers an additional or different provision, that is generally on top of it, unless the law provides an exception.
The settlement agreement
If your departure is arranged by mutual consent, that is done in a settlement agreement. It records the end date, the compensation and the mutual discharge. In central government too, the wording helps determine whether your unemployment benefit is preserved, so have the document checked.
What you can do now
If a reorganization at the Belastingdienst affects your role, map out your position before you agree to a transfer or a departure. Knowing early where you stand gives you the most room.
- Find out whether your role is eliminated, changed or relocated
- Have your employment contract, payslips and the offer ready
- Have the reflection examined if redundancy threatens
- Ask what the Work-to-Work track concretely offers you
- With an offered role, weigh the travel distance and the content
- With many roles affected, see whether collective redundancy applies
- Have a settlement agreement checked before you sign
Is there a proposal, a transfer or a settlement agreement? Put it to us before you sign anything.
When should you involve us?
- The Belastingdienst offers you another role or a departure
- Your unit is being eliminated or merged
- You doubt whether an offered role is genuinely suitable
- You want to know whether the transition payment is correct
- Your response deadline is running and you want advice first
Frequently asked questions
These are questions Belastingdienst employees put to us in practice.
Do you have an offer for another role or a settlement agreement from the Belastingdienst? Have us review it.
Am I still a civil servant, or just an employee?
Both. You are still a civil servant within the meaning of the Civil Servants Act 2017, but since 2020 with an ordinary employment contract. Your legal status is normalised, so for a dismissal or departure largely the same employment law applies as in the private sector.
Will I be forcibly dismissed in a reorganization?
Not as a first route. In central government the aim is to guide you to other work through Work-to-Work. Forced dismissal is therefore not the first step, but it is not ruled out if reassignment fails. Have your situation assessed as soon as something changes.
What exactly does Work-to-Work involve?
It is a government-wide mobility policy that, if your role disappears, can guide you to other work, where roles elsewhere within the central-government sector can also come into view, with training and career support. How far it reaches depends on the applicable collective agreement and schemes. It is useful, but it does not replace your own legal protection, so have an offer assessed.
Can I conclude a settlement agreement with the Belastingdienst?
Yes. Since normalisation your departure can, as in the private sector, be arranged in a settlement agreement. Always have it checked, because its content helps determine what compensation you receive and whether your unemployment benefit is preserved.
Received a settlement agreement? Get a free review.
Upload your agreement and we will assess your situation, free and without obligation. On business days we respond within 1 hour. Your legal fees are usually covered by your employer.
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