There is a lot of interest in buying holiday homes today. Buying and selling a second home can have VAT implications. An overview.

Selling a holiday home without VAT

If you sell a holiday home without making arrangements with the buyer, no VAT will be charged. This is because the sale of a holiday home is usually exempt from VAT.

If you deducted the VAT yourself when you bought the holiday home, you are obliged to repay part of the amount deducted when you sell. This is because holiday homes have a review period of 10 years. This means that the use of the property must remain the same in the year of purchase or commissioning plus the following 9 years. Does the use change from VAT-taxed to exempt? Then you have to pay back the VAT. This also applies when you sell the property.

Selling a holiday home with VAT

If you sell your holiday home with VAT, you avoid having to refund VAT. The VAT is then transferred from the seller to the buyer and the amount deducted is not revised.
It is important that the seller and the buyer agree this together and that the sale meets certain conditions:

1. The buyer intends to use the holiday home for more than 90% VAT-taxed services.
2. This choice is recorded in the deed of delivery or a request has been submitted to the tax authorities.

The buyer can deduct the reverse charge VAT if he intends to rent out the holiday home 100%. A new review period of 10 years then starts. The buyer must also pay transfer tax, even if selling with VAT.

Selling a holiday home with VAT as of right

Are you selling a holiday home that you occupied no longer than 2 ago? Then VAT is due by operation of law. This means that the sale will take place with VAT anyway, even if the buyer and seller do not opt for VAT. This also affects the transfer tax. Since VAT is due by operation of law, the so-called ‘concurrence exemption’ applies. This means that an exemption from transfer tax applies. So the buyer has to pay VAT on the sale but possibly no transfer tax.

Transferring a business

It is also possible to sell a holiday home with current rental bookings. In this case ( called ‘transfer of an undertaking’ or ‘general of goods’), no turnover tax is due. This is because Dutch turnover tax assumes that the buyer takes the seller’s place. For the buyer, this does have disadvantages. All rights and obligations regarding the calculation of VAT pass to the buyer. Moreover, the buyer continues the seller’s review period. The obligations that may arise as a result are borne by the buyer.