The familiar – and often dreaded – blue envelopes from the Dutch tax authorities are to be replaced by digital mail.

Deputy Finance Minister Frans Weekers wants internet to become the new norm with letters being phased out to eventually become a thing of the past.

The finance ministry said on Monday that an amendment to current legislation, which demands all official decisions are set down on paper, could lead to a reduction of tens of millions of letters a year.

The tax authorities send out about 160 million letters a year. The deputy minister wants to submit an amendment to parliament before the end of this year to allow the tax authorities to send official documents via internet. A digital mailbox would allow private individuals and businesses to retrieve their tax documents.

An initial reduction of 50 million letters would save the ministry an estimated 95 million euros. The reduction would be a godsend to the tax authorities, which so far have been unable to come up with a plan which would lead to the 395-million-euro cuts demanded by the cabinet.

(gsh/imm)

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