On 12 February 2026 the Actual Return Act Box 3 was passed by the House of Representatives. The Act is intended to enter into force on the 1 January 2028 and provides for a system under which Box 3 tax is levied on both realised and unrealised gains on assets (with deduction of certain costs). This differs in several essential aspects from the current legal system, under which Box 3 assets are taxed on the basis of a deemed yield or, as result of rulings from the Supreme Court, the actual yield if lower.
The taxation of unrealised gains in particular attracted significant criticism in the media from investors and interest groups. Partly as a result, it had already been announced that the system intended to enter in force in 2028 would be temporary with the ambition to introduce a system from 2030 onwards in which only realised gains would be taxed (“capital gains tax”).
However, on 25 February 2026, Minister Heinen announced that, in his view, the bill in its current form could not be submitted to the Senate for ratification, as he believed there was a real chance it would not pass. The consequences of this announcement were not entirely clear at that time. One possibility was that the current legal system would remain in place until a capital gains tax can be implemented.
It is now known that the government nonetheless intends to maintain the intended implementation date of 1 January 2028, with several amendments to address the main objections raised against the bill. One example is permitting the carry-back of losses from 2029 to 2028. Another is an improved definition of a “startup”. It has also been confirmed that the system due to be introduced on 1 January 2028 will be converted into a capital gains tax as soon as possible.
These changes still need to be adopted by the House of Representatives and approved by the Senate before they become final. This raises the question whether the intended implementation date of 1 January 2028 is feasible.
