Guides tagged "fire"
Should You Pay Off Your Dutch Mortgage Before FIRE?
In the Netherlands the payoff question isn't just mortgage rate versus market return — it's a Box 1 debt weighed against Box 3 cash, a shrinking interest deduction, and the eigenwoningforfait. Here's how the pieces actually fit.
6 min read
Currency Risk and Your FI Number as an Expat
A safe withdrawal rate assumes your portfolio and your spending share a currency — if part of your wealth is still in USD or GBP, an FX move can cut your Dutch spending power the same year the market falls.
5 min read
The DGA/BV Route to FI for Expat Entrepreneurs
Running your own BV instead of freelancing as ZZP changes the FI math: retained profit sits outside Box 3 while it stays in the company. Here's the lever, the deferred tax bill behind it, and the expat-specific exit risk.
5 min read
FI for Freelancers: The ZZP Path to Financial Independence
As a ZZP'er, no employer is building your pension for you — the entire retirement stash is on you. Here's how the self-employed deductions, the FOR's abolition, and income volatility change the FI plan.
6 min read
Lijfrente as a Box 3 Shelter for Expats
A lijfrente pulls money out of Box 1 now and out of Box 3's wealth tax while it sits — at the cost of locking it up until near AOW age. Here's the mechanism, the tradeoff, and who it actually suits.
5 min read
Long-Term Care Costs (WLZ) and Your FI Number
The Dutch long-term-care system means-tests its bill against your assets, not just your income — which hits a large Box 3 portfolio harder than a salary. Here's the mechanism most FI plans skip.
5 min read
Rental Property as a Second FI Vehicle in the Netherlands
Buy-to-let property isn't taxed like the home you live in — it lands in Box 3, not Box 1. Here's how that changes the math for anyone weighing it as a second pillar next to index funds.
5 min read
Your FI Plan After the 30%-Ruling Ends
The 30%-ruling doesn't taper off — it stops. Here's how to re-forecast your FI number, withdrawal rate, and Box 3 exposure before the cliff, not after.
5 min read
The 30%-Ruling as FI Arbitrage: Your One Low-Drag Window
The 30%-ruling isn't just a salary perk — for pre-2024 holders it can keep foreign assets outside Box 3 through 2026. Here's why that makes now the time to front-load, and what changes when it ends.
4 min read
Box 3 Makes Idle Cash Cost You: The Drag on a FIRE Stash
Box 3 tax on cash or investments is genuinely zero below the €59,357 single allowance — above it, cash and investments are taxed very differently. Here's the threshold, what a buffer actually costs once you clear it, and how to size one instead.
6 min read
Why the Standard FIRE Calculator Overstates Your Number in the Netherlands
The 25x/4% rule assumes a tax-free stash. In the Netherlands, Box 3 wealth tax takes a bite every year — here's the worked math for what your real FI number looks like.
6 min read