Tax Treaty Case Law around the Globe 2025

1. Introduction

The dispute concerned B.P. who is an ex-professional football player who received a bridging allowance financed through employer contributions made by his Dutch football club to “Stichting Contractspelersfonds Koninklijke Nederlandse Voetbalbond” after retiring from his career in the Netherlands. It was intended to provide financial security after retirement and was granted once the player’s international professional football career had ended.

The issue in this case concerned the allowance’s tax classification. The Belgian tax authorities (hereinafter: Administration) posited that it qualified as a pension under Art. 34 of the Belgian Income Tax Code 1992 (hereinafter: BITC) subject to progressive taxation. B.P. disagreed and stated that the allowance should be classified as an annuity and thereby taxed at a fixed rate of 30%. Questions arose further on the income’s qualification under the Belgium-Netherlands double tax treaty. Does the income fall within the scope of Arts. 17 or 18 and, if under the latter, which paragraph?

2. Facts of the case

B.P. is an ex-professional football player who played for a Dutch club in the Eredivisie, which is the highest football leagu...