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Tax authorities 'disclosed private data of a million tenants'

Up to a million people living in rented accommodation may have had their income details disclosed to their landlord without their consent.

The tax authorities passed on the information after the government announced a plan which would increase the rent of anyone who earns more than €43,000 a year by five per cent.

The national tenants’ association, the Woonbond, says the move is a breach of privacy and has advised tenants to complain directly to the Dutch Data Protection Authority (College Bescherming Persoonsgegevens/CBP) through its website mijnprivacy.nl.

Housing corporations can only impose the rental increase if they know what their tenants are earning.

In the last few weeks the national tax service is believed to have given details about the earnings of a million people directly to their landlords, without notifying the tenant.

Lawyers who investigated the government’s plan at the request of the Woonbond said the measure could be challenged in court on the grounds that the invasion of privacy was unnecessary and done without the tenants’ knowledge.

A spokesman for interior minister Liesbeth Spies insisted there had been no breach of the rules.

Landlords had not been given the exact details of how much their tenants earned, only whether they had a taxable income of more than €43,000, the spokesman said.

Source: NOS: 'Wet scheefhuren schendt privacy'

Photo by Edo

See also: Dutch Data Protection Agency website (in English)

Dutch national tenant's agency (Woonbond) website (in English)