Entrepreneurs lost everything due to the benefits affair but get nothing in return: 'Purposely destroyed'

The benefits affair affected not only parents and children, but also companies. The Interest Group for Duped Entrepreneurs Allowances is drawing attention to this from the government. The interest group wants recognition for the suffering that has been caused and help for affected entrepreneurs.

Anne Boer

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May 5, 2026, 16:00•Last update: 19:46

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An overview of the events in four chapters:

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Since 2020, the government has been compensating victims of the benefits affair. Thousands of parents have been wrongly accused of fraud. Nearly 70,000 people reported as victims. The government has so far recognized nearly 44,000 parents as victims, including around 117,000 children.

The government has admitted that the tax authorities improperly recovered surcharges en masse between 2005 and 2019. This concerns childcare allowance, housing allowance, health benefits and/or the child-related budget.

Parents often had to repay large amounts quickly. Against the rules, the tax authorities did not offer personal payment arrangements. This caused major financial problems with dramatic consequences.

On a blacklist

According to Paula Builder of the Interest Group Duped Entrepreneurs Benefits, many entrepreneurs are victims of the same method. Various government agencies also blacklisted entrepreneurs and wrongly called them fraudsters.

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As a result, entrepreneurs lost their business and income and got into large debts. Relationships were under pressure or fizzled. The stress caused them to have health problems. The consequences did not only affect entrepreneurs and their families, Builder emphasizes. Family members, employees and suppliers also suffered damage.

“The damage is significant financially and psychologically. I really hear heartbreaking stories from victims. Like that of a Moroccan husband and wife who owned a beauty salon and a courier company. The couple lost their business and each other because of all the stress. Many families are still unable to build a new life after all these years.”

“The recovery operations do not take into account the damage suffered by entrepreneurs,” says Bouwer. “They are unable to request their business files and receive no legal assistance. It's a horror. The government acts like we don't exist.”

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In November, the House of Representatives found through a motion that the benefits affair has consequences for many entrepreneurs and also that the state does not sufficiently recognize entrepreneurs in their suffering.

The House calls on the cabinet to find out the size of this group. The House also wants to know what problems this group has and how the cabinet is tackling them.

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“This is also an unprecedented scandal,” predicts Bouwer. “Entrepreneurs were deliberately destroyed.”

Thursday, May 7, is therefore an important day for the affected entrepreneurs. They can tell their story directly to the responsible administrators. These are State Secretaries Sandra Palmen (Recovery of Allowances) and Eelco Eerenberg (Finance).

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Entrepreneur Jennieke Dorgelo from Kampen lost her healthcare company due to suspicion of fraud

As a parent, Jennieke Dorgelo (39) from Kampen was personally recognized as a victim of the benefits affair. For that, she has received 38,000 euros in compensation so far. Jennieke is now fighting for compensation for the decline of her healthcare company.

“I've been in this misery for twenty years. First as a mother who had to pay childcare surcharges and then as an entrepreneur. I've been in and out of hell 36 times. It is a process of continuous grievance. It's like losing a loved one over and over again.”

Jennieke has lost a lot. Her relationship has ended and her children have been moved out of the home. She lost her home and was even homeless for a while. Her company went bankrupt. “I also lost my self-esteem. You're so ashamed. I cried and screamed a bit.”

After all these years, things are getting better now. She has a nice home again. The kids are doing well. She hopes to be able to start her own business again one day. “As victims, we mainly find support from each other. Victims understand what you have to go through. And we're learning from each other.”

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The affected entrepreneurs are asking the government for attention and research. Among other things, they want to know how the selection was done, why there was no help and why the additional damage to parents who owned a company was not recognized?

According to Builder, a lot is already known and there is a lot of black and white documents, thanks to investigations into the benefits scandal. She herself collected additional information through conversations with dozens of victims, requested various documents based on the Open Government Act (Woo) and conducted a survey among affected entrepreneurs.

“Based on origin, location, gender and type of company, a targeted hunt was made for entrepreneurs,” says Bouwer. “It starts with a check mark after the name of entrepreneurs with a migration background or foreigners with a company. Subsequently, the industry in which they were active also plays a role in hunting.”

Hair salons and garages

Some branches would also have been more suspicious in the eyes of the tax authorities. Builder mentions garage companies, hair salons, restaurants and childcare institutions, among others. “The government stuck to a hard line for years. Allowances were unfairly harshly recovered, while the human consequences remained out of the picture.”

Jennieke Dorgelo has also wondered why the government was hunting her.

“I asked the municipality to view all relevant documentation. That's what we're waiting for now. Maybe it's such a simple thing that I had an Iranian husband and our children had an Iranian father. Once you have the wrong check mark after your name, you have no chance.”

It's so disruptive

Dorgelo realizes that it is a complicated story. “I can't blame everything that happened on the benefits affair. It all started with it. It was so disruptive, so heavy, that it has an impact to this day.”

What makes it difficult, according to Bouwer and Dorgelo, is that entrepreneurs can barely defend themselves.

“You're facing a giant. The tax authorities, the municipality and various organizations work together. When you talk to them, they point to each other. Victims receive no or insufficient information and no insight into settlements.”

Japanese camp

The fight against injustice also has a deeper meaning for Paula Bouwer.

“My mother, grandmother and an uncle were in a Japanese camp during the Second World War. My grandfather died at the age of 42 in a camp for forced labourers. These people have also been greatly wronged by the Netherlands. We must prevent this from being in the history books as yet another scandal in thirty years. The injustice must now be removed. That's why the conversation on May 7 is so important.”

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