The Dutch tax office made separate tax rulings with 539 companies in 2016, down from 642 such deals in the previous year, junior finance minister Eric Wiebes has told parliament in answer to MPs’ questions.

The tax office has made 4,413 advance rulings about tax obligations over the past seven years and the 2016 total is the lowest since 2010, the minister said.

The tax rulings have been very controversial for years. Many companies, mostly multinationals, are given discounts on their taxes which make the Netherlands a more attractive location than many other European countries. Opponents term them a means of tax avoidance.

Wiebes has also agreed to exchange information about such rulings with other EU and OECD member states, the Financieele Dagblad said. Finance ministry officials earlier said that making the rulings public would arouse angry reactions from many countries.