A considerable group of owners of older diesels has since received the dreaded letter from the Tax Authorities. It states that from January 1, 2020, the tax authorities will apply a surcharge of 15% on the already applicable MRB. For example, those who have a diesel car without a soot filter (note: ex factory) will be next.
There are more conditions attached to the particulate matter surcharge. When a diesel car emits more than 5 milligrams of particulate matter per kilometer, the 15% rosette also applies. Furthermore, the surcharge applies to diesel vehicles for which the date of first authorization is before 1 September 2009 and for which the particulate matter emissions have not been laid down. The Tax and Customs Administration and the RDW are currently looking at how a correction can be made for diesel engines with a soot filter and a DET from before 1 September 2009, an observant reader told us. But who does not escape the fine dust tax pays. For example, for an average car that runs on diesel and weighs between 1350 and 1450 kilos, that means a particulate matter surcharge of 225 euros per year.
Order diesel, calculated on milligrams per kWh
Some diesel cars, such as heavy-duty diesel vans, have a fine dust emission in milligrams per kilowatt hour (kWh). There is also a standard for this. The owner of a diesel car that emits more than 10 milligrams per kWh of particulate matter will probably also pay a particulate matter surcharge from 1 January 2020. These tax measures have since been approved by the Senate.
Camping vehicles
Furthermore, older camping vehicles that run on diesel are also taxed if they are considered polluting. When a special rate is used for the camper, the tax authorities will take this into account when calculating the particulate matter surcharge. So at a quarter rate, a quarter of the particulate matter surcharge is levied, at a half rate, half of the particulate matter surcharge is applied. With these allowance (s), the government wants to discourage the possession and use of polluting diesel cars. Particulate matter emissions are considered to be harmful to the environment and health. In addition, diesel cars with a particulate filter have a much lower soot emission.
Long known
The measure had been announced for a long time. We already informed you in 2015 about the fact that Autobrief II referred to extra tax for old diesels. The intentions are therefore being further implemented four years later. Actually, the allowance should have been introduced this year, but the Tax Authorities had not yet got IT-technical matters in order, so a one-year delay was opted for.
Modern cars also emit fine dust
Of course the older diesels are less clean than a Euro 6 diesel with a particulate filter, but that does not mean that cars with modern engines do not emit particulate matter. The motor vehicles with direct petrol injection certainly do that. But across the board, old diesels (CO2, nitrogen, particulate matter) are more polluting than modern diesels and petrol vehicles. However, a soot tax goes way too far, especially when it is taken into account that the actual reduction of NoX for many old diesel vehicles could have been solved by having (subsidized / compulsory) soot filters installed on diesels that are technically suitable for this. The owners could then have worked quietly towards the search for a replacement vehicle in the long term. And it also served the sustainability ideal. Because: there is no need to produce a new car, insofar as it would be a feasible option given the current financial position of the population earning one and a half times the average earnings. There would certainly be room for such an investment from the government, certainly because the motor vehicle tax to be collected for 2020 will rise to a record high, and this is by no means only spent on infrastructure and mobility.
Old diesel clearing has been used for a long time
Let's go back to 2015. That was the year of the announcement of the measure. On January 1, 2015, 720.414 diesels were driving around, between January 1, 1980 (as of January 1, 2020 these cars are tax-free, which is why the date 1-1-1980 has been adopted) and January 1, 2010 (chosen because after September 1, 2009 the clean one Euro 5 standard became current) their date of first authorization. There are now only 400.000. The clearing has already started due to the measure, and that has had a significant impact on the retirement of the old diesel. We also calculated that the share of the extra taxed diesel passenger cars amounts to only 6.5% of the total number of kilometers driven by 1-1-2019 of all Dutch passenger cars.
NoX and PM10 percentages: small numbers in old passenger diesel engines
The NoX emissions of all now extra taxed passenger car diesels in today's danger zone, then accounted for a 2% share in total road traffic, and the fine dust emissions of the same category amounted to 7% of total road traffic emissions. Please note: this concerns grams per kilometer, moreover, the calculation was made before the current MRB scheme was set up. If we look at the deforestation that has taken place since then, and the decreased average mileage covered by this category, the conclusion is justified that the old diesel has become relatively non-polluting and the influence on the NoX and particulate matter emissions is probably even smaller , while the fleet in the Netherlands in the last ten years mainly with clean one motor vehicles has been supplemented.
Old-timer diesel currently out of reach
With regard to the old-timers on diesel (40 years and older), various media have reported to the world that no particulate matter surcharge is levied for this, due to the fact that these old diesels are also exempt from MRB. However, the KNAC reported that there are indeed owners of old-timer diesels who have received a particulate matter attack. According to the Ministry of Finance, that would not be right. Whether additional measures will be taken for old-timer diesels has not been denied or confirmed. However, the recently resigned State Secretary Snel announced that "a number of measures to combat pollution from traffic will be reconsidered." The successor yet to be designated will probably feel the same way. Undoubtedly to be continued.
Image: Fiat Argenta Diesel, 1983 © Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
So far I found it quite embarrassing to see in the light of a car driving behind me that my 22-year-old Mercedes Sprinter broke out quite a bit of smoke.
Soon I will have to pay extra for this and an additional 15 percent of the fine dust surcharge on the already rather rude 800 euros per year. And, believe it or not, that's 800 euros a year
already a "special" rate because it is officially a camper. If you, as a private individual, have the courage to drive such a car as a normal delivery van, you may declare 1,5 modal monthly salary per year as road tax. Now the average camper owner drives an average of maybe 3 times a year as fast as possible
cross the border (about 600 km per year) to be able to recover abroad from our overregulated, complicated and, above all, fiscally raped country.
And that while my neighbors can drive 300 km in this country with their “normal” car for about 40.000 euros “holder tax”. I wish them that wholeheartedly, but we can
conclude that despite all the talk about “the polluter / user pays” our politicians are unable to use a fair and simple
road tax system. It also seems that more money can simply be marketed in this way, so the priority is us
all clear. It is also clear that this surcharge makes no sense when it comes to the environment. So I will actually have to drive more kms because my fixed costs will have increased and the return has therefore dropped.
This fine dust surcharge does have the effect that I now feel a lot less uncomfortable when I go in
look at the mirrors of my 840.000 km old Sprinter. A car where I deliberately drive so long because I believe that if you do longer with your stuff this is more sustainable than constantly buying new cars.
Now we also live in the country where the government is the champion of discouragement taxes. They are no longer used to obtain specific, desired behavior.
They are to fill the treasury. It is no longer “the polluter pays” but “the payer pollutes”.
That means that if you just pay it is not a problem. Annoying from such a policy is of course that the Netherlands is a kind
becomes an elite country in which one can continue to do everything if one has enough money. And parking of course. For 7 euros per hour.
I hereby make an urgent appeal to the smokers, car drivers, drinkers and even gambling addicts not to just stop smoking, drinking, mileage
drive and even gamble. That would be a drama for our hypocritical politicians who also do not want anything less to be smoked, drunk, driven or gambled.
If they did, there is a good chance that people in The Hague will soon come up with a different supplement, such as the nitrogen surcharge.
Oh dear, I hope I haven't given them an idea now.
Fine dust etc. A nice tool to generate extra money. And by the way also to remove the most efficient engine from the fleet. By replacing it with gasoline engines, co2 production will only increase. With about 10%.
IF we manage to reduce the CO2 value in the atmosphere worldwide, the farmers will harvest less. Heard from a grower who increased his CO2 value in the greenhouse to have a better harvest.
The Fiat Argenta shown is really from 1984 or later and will be a turbo diesel with 90 hp. However, no longer preserved, they were already rare "while alive" and actually obsolete (because largely a 132)
the particulate matter surcharge is levied on the basis of the rate of the holder's tax, so based on fuel and weight.
not the actual emissions.
an ordinary grabbing measure again, again ...
many diesels that have a green umwelt sticker in Germany also fall under the fine dust collection rule, Europe is dead.