From 1 January 2019, the tax deduction for listed buildings will be replaced by a grant scheme. We already mentioned this in our article Tax relief for listed buildings to become a grant. Minister Van Engelshoven of Education, Culture and Science has, in a letter outlined to Parliament the broad outlines of the new scheme for subsidising national monuments.
No ceiling
The new grant scheme has no upper limit. There is no maximum amount of costs for which the owner of a listed building can apply for a grant. Both maintenance and restoration costs are eligible for the grant. The Guidelines on Eligible Maintenance Costs form the basis for the award of grants.
In any case, every year €40 million available for the grant. This budget is earmarked entirely for private owners of listed buildings. World Heritage sites and professional organisations for the conservation of historic buildings (the POMs) are not eligible for the grant scheme.
If the number of applications for the grant in a given year is so high that the budget is exceeded, the grant percentage (the grant amounts to a maximum of 35% of the costs incurred) will be recalculated (and reduced).
If, on the other hand, there is under-spending, the unspent amount is added to the budget for the following year.
Only maintenance costs are eligible for subsidy. These are the costs of work that contributes to the preservation of the building’s heritage value. Examples include painting, carpentry and plumbing. Unlike the current tax deduction, costs for maintenance of non-listed parts are not subsidised. Examples of such costs include: maintenance of sanitary facilities, electrical installations and heating systems.
Request
The owner of the listed building may apply for the grant during the period from 1 March to 30 April of the calendar year following that in which the maintenance or restoration was carried out. The application is submitted online. The owner of the listed building must provide evidence of the costs incurred in the form of itemised invoices. If more than €70,000 has been spent, an inspection report must be submitted.
A decision on the application will be made within 13 weeks.
The application is therefore assessed retrospectively by the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (RCE). The owner of the listed building incurs all maintenance and restoration costs in a given year and submits the grant application in the following year.