Number of sole traders tumbled in December ahead of crackdown

The number of self-employed workers in the Netherlands took a sharp dive in December as the government pledged to crack down on so-called “phantom freelancers” from January 1. More than 21,000 sole traders deregistered with the Dutch chamber of commerce (KvK) in the last month of 2024 while 14,500 new businesses signed up, leading to a net fall of 6,776. The number of new starts was 13% lower than a year ago while 50% more freelancers cancelled their registration, according...