
Latest blog articles
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The shared management of EU funds: new perspectives and challenges
Questions surrounding how the EU budget is spent or audited have been, and will always be, of interest to EU citizens. Formally, the responsibility for the implementation of the budget rests with the Commission, but it is well known that the Member States have a crucial role to play, especially in...
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Nutri-Score as a Nudging Technique to Enhance Healthier Food Choices
The Nutri-Score has been officially endorsed in France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Spain and in other European countries they have been voluntarily used by large, private retail corporate groups. Given its underlying aim of helping curbing obesity and nutritious calory intake...
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Vaccine trade wars and composite procedures: gibt es noch richter in Berlin?
On 4 March 2021, Italy decided to block a shipment of the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine that was destined for Australia. This remarkable move, notably made in response to AstraZeneca’s delay in providing the agreed doses of vaccines by the set deadlines, is the first of its kind since the...
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The Netherlands ignores advice from the European Commission on foreign pension transfers
Last November, the European Commission (EC) sent the Netherlands an advice stating that the Netherlands should amend its tax rules. The Dutch tax rules prevent that pension accrued in the Netherlands can be transferred when you move abroad. The so-called cross-border value transfer of pensions...
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SMECC: the future of effective child abuse prevention?
SMECC stands for School, Minimum standard, Education, Child-friendly policy and care-Continuum. Imagine SMECC as a flat drawing of a house. The regulatory backstop is the minimum standard in family litigation for competent parenthood – far on the horizon, however, a necessary fundament of human...
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Could the abolition of dividend tax lead to paradise?
The coalition agreement of Rutte-III proposed to abolish the dividend tax, but not completely... It states that this Tax will be maintained in situations of abuse, in order to prevent tax evasion. (Dutch only)
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The importance of a flexible AOW commencement date
Last week, the Dutch and Belgian ombudsmen called on their governments to take action in the context of pensions problems for unemployed cross-border workers, aged 65, and living in Belgium. In response to this call, a possible solution by Expertise Centre ITEM is elaborated in this blog.
This blog...
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Does the asylum seeker tell us a true story?
Asylum seekers usually do not cross borders with a bag of documents. They have lost their personal belongings or have been confiscated by smugglers. Oral statements are therefore the only proof of origin. (Dutch only)
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My Way to Make Money with Yagmur Masmas of aGreenStory
As bills don’t pay themselves an income is required, some obtain it by working for a wage, others by starting up their own business and some are so talented that they can make an income out of their hobby. In this column ‘My Way to Make Money’ we interview a student or a university employee about...