Dutch parliament considers first step towards asking king to pay income tax

By Charlotte Van Campenhout

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch lawmakers will vote on Tuesday on a first step towards requiring King Willem-Alexander and his family to pay income tax, a plan that would require an amendment to the constitution.

"A blue envelope for blue blood," Sandra Beckerman, a lawmaker from the left-wing Socialistische Partij, said during a debate on the issue on Thursday evening, referring to the blue envelope in which tax letters arrive in Dutch mailboxes.

The initial motion, expected to be put to the vote on Tuesday, requires a simple majority to pass. It asks the government to propose a constitutional change, which would then ultimately need backing from two-thirds of both houses of parliament.

Such a proposal appeared to have sufficient support in the House of Representatives, but the level of support in the Senate is less clear.

The biggest Senate fraction, the Farmer-Citizen Movement (BBB), was leaning towards backing the motion during the debate on Thursday evening but stopped short of supporting it.

Far-right Dutch politician Geert Wilders, whose nationalist party won a parliamentary election in November but lacks a majority, favours the tax change, which was opposed by outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte during his 13-year term.

Rutte reiterated during the debate his view that a constitutional amendment was "too complicated".

Members of parliament in favour of taxing the royal family hope that a new coalition government, which has yet to be formed, might lead to a change.

The royal family receives tax-free money from taxpayers on top of their private income, some of which is taxed.

In 2024, the king, his wife Queen Maxima, his daughter and future heir Princess Amalia, and his mother, the former Queen Beatrix, together received 11.6 million euros ($12.61 million).

Princess Amalia, who is 20 and studying at the University of Amsterdam, said she would reimburse her share (1.8 million euros) as long as she was a student.

The family lost popularity for travelling during the COVID pandemic, with 55% of the population now supporting the monarchy, down from 70% right before it broke out, a poll by public broadcaster NOS showed last year.

The same poll showed only 46% of respondents have confidence in the king.

In 1992, Britain's then-Queen Elizabeth acted on criticism about royal wealth by offering to pay income tax for the first time.

($1 = 0.9199 euros)

(Reporting by Charlotte Van Campenhout, Bart Meijer; editing by Philippa Fletcher)