Self-employed person turns out to be an employee: what are the consequences?

Many organisations have recently reviewed their working relationships with self-employed persons and may even have terminated them due to the expected risks. In cases of false self-employment, the tax authorities may impose fines and/or additional tax assessments. But what are the consequences under employment law of working with false self-employed persons? And can a collaboration with a self-employed person change over time? A recent ruling by the District Court of North Holland provides important guidance.

The case
A person (“the worker”) worked as a self-employed person for a company via an intermediary platform from the end of 2022. The worker worked on the basis of a contract for services and sent invoices to the company. Gradually, the situation changed: he performed full-time work within the core activities of the company, no longer ran any commercial risk and had no other clients. In addition, the worker wore company clothing, had to submit his holiday requests in good time, participated in team meetings and followed instructions from managers.

In October 2024, the company offered the worker an employment contract, presumably to avoid the risk of reclassification as an employee. The worker did not accept the offer and continued to work on the basis of the contract for services. Shortly afterwards, in November 2024, the company decided to terminate the collaboration with immediate effect after a conflict arose about working with hazardous substances.

In court, the worker argued that there was an employment contract and that the dismissal was not legally valid. The worker claimed, among other things, continued payment of wages, pension and employment law protection (such as protection against dismissal).

The court’s ruling
The court ruled that:

• The collaboration had initially been correctly established as a self-employed relationship.
• From October 2024 onwards, there was in fact an employment contract. The rejection of the offer to become an employee did not alter this.
• The immediate termination of the working relationship was not legally valid. This was because an employment contract had been established and there was no valid reason for summary dismissal.
• The worker was entitled to continued payment of wages, holiday pay and participation in the company’s pension scheme.

Important: which salary applies?
The court ruled that the worker was entitled to the salary of a comparable employee within the organisation. The previous (and higher) self-employed rate did not play a role in determining the salary. Self-employed persons generally charge a higher hourly rate because they are not entitled to continued payment of wages in the event of illness or holiday and must make their own arrangements. Therefore, it was not reasonable to take the self-employed rate as a starting point, according to the court.

What does this mean in practice?
This ruling confirms a number of important points to consider:

1. Practice is decisive, not the contract.
   Even if someone is a self-employed person on paper, an employment contract may still arise. This is the case even if there was a genuine self-employed relationship at the start, but the collaboration changed into an employment contract over time.
2. Rejection of an employment contract does not protect the company. If the nature of the relationship changes into an employment contract, the work can no longer be performed on a self-employed basis. Even if a self-employed person explicitly refuses an employment contract, the court may still determine that there exists an employment contract.
3. When reclassifying to an employment contract, the salary of a comparable employee in the company applies, not the self-employed rate that previously applied.

Conclusion
It is crucial to regularly review self-employed relationships, as they can change over time. If the collaboration has changed over time, companies run the risk that, from a legal point of view, there is an employment contract. In that case, different rules apply, such as protection in the event of dismissal and continued payment of wages in the event of illness. Since this year (2025), companies also run the risk of the tax authorities imposing fines and additional charges in cases of false self-employment.