The NOW 2.0

Employment Law, Contract Law, Corporate Law

20 May 2020

Stelt u zich eens voor: u werkt al jaren met dezelfde zelfstandige. Hij stuurt facturen, factureert btw en heeft een eigen kvk-nummer. Toch krijgt u in 2026 ineens vragen van de Belastingdienst over de aard van uw samenwerking. Hoe heeft het zo ver kunnen komen?

The decision has been made. Minister Koolmees announced today (20 June 2020), with the ‘second emergency package for jobs and the economy’, that the NOW scheme will be extended by 3 months, for the months of June, July and August 2020. From 6 July 2020, companies with at least a 20% decline in revenue can apply to the UWV for a contribution towards wage costs for June, July and August 2020. Compared to the current scheme, the NOW 2.0 has changed on a few important points:

Dismissal penalty:
Instead of the dismissal penalty of 150% of the salary, there will now be a correction of only 100%. In practice, this means the employer receives no subsidy for the salary for June, July and August 2020 of the employee(s) for whom dismissal was applied for in that period. Companies that run into trouble must be given the room to reorganise already during the second NOW period, according to Minister Koolmees. If the employer wants to dismiss more than 20 people within a region, mandatory consultation with the trade unions is still required.

Reference month for wage costs:
Instead of January 2020, March 2020 is now taken as the reference month for wage costs. For many sectors, this works out more favourably because the winter months are traditionally quieter and wage costs in January 2020 are usually lower than in March 2020. Also, if you took on additional staff after January 2020, the higher wage bill of March 2020 will therefore be taken into account for the subsidy.

A nice new wage-reference rule is that, for a NOW application already underway, the month of March 2020 is also taken as the starting point if the average wage bill in the months March through May is higher than in January 2020. So you may still receive more subsidy than expected.
Higher employer-costs factor:
The surcharge percentage for employer costs is increased from 30% to 40% under the NOW 2.0. This now also provides a contribution towards costs other than wage costs, such as fixed overheads.
Ban on dividends, bonuses and buying back own shares: Companies making use of the NOW 2.0 may not pay dividends to shareholders over 2020, nor pay bonuses to the board and management. In addition, the buying back of own shares over 2020 is also banned.
Retraining obligation:
Employers who submit a NOW 2.0 application are required to encourage their employees to undertake additional and retraining. Employers must make a declaration on this. This initiative is supported by the “NL leert door” (the Netherlands keeps learning) programme.

SME Fixed Costs Allowance:
SME entrepreneurs in, among others, hospitality, recreation, events, funfairs, venues and theatres receive – on top of the NOW – a tax-free allowance to pay their fixed material costs. This is done via the new SME Fixed Costs Allowance scheme. This allowance applies where there is a decline in revenue of at least 30% and can amount to a maximum of €20,000, depending on the size of the company and the level of fixed costs.

Other announcements
The subsidy application for NOW 1.0 can still be made until 5 June. It is also important to note that a subsidy application for NOW 1.0 is not an automatic application for NOW 2.0; that must be applied for separately. It has also since become known that, for both NOW 1.0 and NOW 2.0, an auditor’s statement is required for the final subsidy determination when the advance received is more than 100,000 euros, or when the total amount received is more than 125,000 euros. The subsidy determination can only be made from 7 September 2020 onward. Exactly what the auditor’s statement must look like will be announced before 1 August 2020. Incidentally, the much-criticised cumbersome nature of the scheme has been somewhat nuanced. Employers who paid a thirteenth month’s salary in January will not be disadvantaged by this in the final determination of the wage subsidy. The UWV disregards this payment.

NOW advice or application.
In the first round, we were able to help many companies with their NOW subsidy application as well as with advice on dismissal options. Thanks to this experience, we can now also assist you expertly to achieve the best result for your company. You can schedule a NOW advisory consultation with us directly if you are still unsure whether a new NOW application is the best choice, or if you are unsure whether you can meet the new conditions. Of course, you can also have the NOW application handled entirely by us if you are certain you can meet all the conditions. Click here for more information or call us directly on: 020-3450152.

Perhaps you are also considering other measures such as a reorganisation. We also have a great deal of experience with this and are happy to advise you on it. Interested? Then contact us by filling in this contact form or by calling us directly.

The corporate legal advisers at The Legal Company specialise in employment law, contract law, company law and privacy law.

Nothing changes as often as laws and regulations. We would like to point out that our blogs may no longer be in line with current laws and regulations and may therefore be outdated. If you have questions or a problem relating to this blog, or if you require legal assistance, please contact us.

De afgelopen jaren stonden in het teken van de Wet VBAR, het wetsvoorstel dat een einde moest maken aan onduidelijkheid over de zzp’er. Het kabinet heeft delen van dat voorstel inmiddels geschrapt. Op het eerste gezicht is dat goed nieuws: minder regels, minder administratieve last. Maar in de praktijk blijven dezelfde toetsen overeind.

“De inhoud van de samenwerking is leidend, niet wat er op papier staat.”

De Belastingdienst handhaaft sinds 1 januari 2025 weer actief op schijnzelfstandigheid. En recente uitspraken van de Hoge Raad bevestigen dat rechters strikt toetsen of er sprake is van ondergeschiktheid en gezagsverhouding.

Voor uw praktijk betekent dit drie dingen. Een: leg de samenwerking duidelijk vast, met aandacht voor de inhoud. Twee: voorkom dat een zzp’er feitelijk werkt als werknemer. Drie: wees voorbereid op een controle, en weet hoe u de relatie kunt herzien als dat moet.

Heeft u vragen over uw concrete situatie? Wij sparren dagelijks met opdrachtgevers over hun zzp-relaties. Vraag een offerte op of bekijk onze Legal Safe abonnementen.