Health-Holland

The MIA and Vamil schemes The Netherlands also provides tax relief programs for sustainable energy and environmentally friendly investments, including the MIA and Vamil schemes. Any Dutch entrepreneur paying income- or corporate tax can apply, and the two schemes can usually be combined. Under the MIA scheme, they can deduct up to 36% of an environmentally-friendly investment from their tax profit. However, the investment must be included on the Environment List. This list of approximately 270 investments is updated annually and is found on the MIA/Vamil website of the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (in Dutch only). In 2018, the minimum investment amount is 2,500 euros and the maximum is 25,000,000 euros. The Vamil scheme provides entrepreneurs with an advantage in liquidity and interest as they can decide when to write off 75% of their Environment List-related investment spending. For the remaining 25%, they can apply the regular investment rebate procedure. The schemes encourage companies investing in building/ operating a manufacturing plant to do so in an environmentally-friendly way. They are particularly beneficial to businesses in the shipping, agricultural and industrial sectors. EIA and SDE+ schemes Under the Energy Investment Allowance (EIA), the Dutch government provides a 54.5% deduction to companies that invest in energy- saving installations, or that make use of sustainable energy. The deduction, which is made on the amount invested sum and comes on top of the usual depreciation, is deducted from their taxable profits in the year in which the goods are purchased. The allowance is applicable to new fixed assets within three months of purchase and must be included on the Energy List. Any investment grant for that asset must be deducted from the costs, with the exception of operating subsidies. In 2018, the investment must be at least 2,500 euros and the deduction applies to investments up to 121,000,000 euros. Any energy advice and additional expenses to make an asset operational can also be included in the deduction. On average, the EIA gives a 13.5% tax advantage. Under the Sustainable Energy Production Scheme (SDE+), producers of sustainable electricity and heat or a combination of sustainable heat and electricity (CHP) or green gas, are compensated for the renewable energy generated. The scheme is aimed at companies, institutions and non-profit organisations whose projects are realised in the Netherlands; private producers of renewable energy are not eligible. Energy generated using biomass is controlled to ensure it adheres to the sustainability criteria. Renewable energy production may not be profitable because the cost to generate it can outstrip the market price. This unprofitable component is compensated under SDE+ for a set number of years, depending on the technology involved. Sustainability-oriented schemes The Netherlands provides tax relief programs for sustainable energy 68