The tax office earned €4bn in fines and penalties for non or late payment of taxes last year, justice minister Ivo Opstelten said on Thursday.

A further €270m flowed back into the government’s coffers as a result of investigations into social security and student grant fraud and €190m was confiscated from convicted criminals, Opstelten said.
In total, the government recouped €4.5bn from fraudulent claims and other criminal offences, Opstelten said in a briefing to MPs.
The cabinet is currently working on draft legislation which will lead to tougher penalties for convicted fraudsters. The maximum sentence for money laundering, for example, will go up from four to six years.