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Specialisation Customs and International Supply Chain Taxation

Admission requirements

On this page, you will find important details of the application process (such as deadlines, admission requirements, required documents and application assessment) for the master's programme in International and European Tax Law - Specialisation Customs and International Supply Chain Taxation for the academic year 2025-2026.

Important deadlines for this study programme

The master’s programme in International and European Tax Law – specialisation Customs and International Supply Chain Taxation starts in September.
The deadlines below are applicable for applicants who want to start their studies in September 2025.

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Date What you need to know about this date
1 October 2024 Studielink is open for applications for the academic year 2025-2026
1 May 2025, 23:59 CET Deadline for completing the entire application process for non-EU/EEA applicants (these applicants require a visa or residence permit)
1 June 2025, 23:59 CET Deadline for completing the entire application process for applicants from the EU/EEA or Switzerland

Are you a non-EU citizen requiring a visa/residence permit for study?
 

Please note that Maastricht University can only formally apply for your visa/residence permit if you have met all admission and enrolment requirements.

This means you have to have completed all admission and enrolment tasks in the MyApplication portal (except the ‘visa/residence permit’-task and the ‘send certified copy of diploma’-task) before we can send your application to the IND (Dutch Immigration and Naturalization Service).

We have to send the application to the IND before 1 July if you are starting your studies in September. Please note: a few pre-master and master programmes offer a start in February. If you’re study programme offers a start in February and you want to start your studies in February, we have to send the application to the IND before 1 December. You can find out if your study programme offers a start in February on the admission requirements web page of that programme (pre-master’s, master’s).

Therefore, we strongly recommend that you reconsider applying for this study programme if you are not sure that you will meet the following requirements before 1 July/1 December (if applicable in your situation): 

  • Having remedied all subject and/or language deficiencies (if applicable)
  • Having qualified for admission to your study programme, including being selected (if applicable to your study programme) AND
  • Having paid the tuition fee for your study programme

General requirements: previous education

The admission requirements for academic year 2025/26 for the master’s programme International and European Tax Law - specialisation Customs and International Supply Chain Taxation depend on your previous education. Please check below which requirements apply to you.

Students from Maastricht University

You qualify for admission to the master’s programme in International and European Tax Law if you have a UM bachelor’s degree in:

  • Fiscaal Recht
  • European Law School, provided that you have successfully completed the courses “Concepts of Income and Business Taxation” (TAX3009) and “International and European Tax and Customs Law” (TAX3013).

You may also qualify for admission:

  • If you have successfully completed the pre-master Law at UM, provided that the additional substantive requirements for admission to the master’s programme in International and European Tax Law have been met.
  • If you have successfully completed the pre-master Fiscaal Recht at UM, provided that the additional substantive requirements for admission to the master’s programme in International and European Tax Law have been met.

Students from a different educational institution

The Board of Admissions may establish that you qualify for admission if one of the following situations applies to you:

  • If you have a Bachelor’s degree in Tax Law or Fiscal Economics by a Dutch or non-Dutch university.*
  • If you have another academic Dutch or non-Dutch bachelor’s degree (for example, in economics, business administration or accounting), and have successfully passed a sufficient number of courses or exams in tax law, including income and corporate taxation, at a recognised institution of higher education.*
  • If you have another academic Dutch or non-Dutch bachelor’s degree (for example, in economics, business administration or accounting), and have successfully passed a sufficient number of courses or exams in tax law, including income and corporate taxation, at a recognised institution of tax professionals as part of your membership with the relevant institution.* 
  • If you successfully completed a pre-master Fiscaal Recht at another Dutch university. 
  • If you have successfully passed the entrance examination for the master’s Fiscaal Recht (note: as of the academic year 2024-2025 the entrance examination is no longer provided; if the entrance examination was successfully passed in the spring of 2024, this qualifies you for admission for the academic year 2024-2025 and 2025-2026).   

Are you unsure whether you qualify for admission? Then we recommend that you apply via Studielink and complete your tasks in the MyApplication portal, so that the Board of Admissions can assess your application.

Important: the above provides an indication of your eligibility, no guarantee.

*The courses or exams that you took should have offered you the required fundamental (academic) knowledge in tax law to build upon during the master’s programme. This is generally the case if you have successfully passed courses or exams in tax law equivalent to at least 12 credits.

Note: these courses or exams must have included income and corporate taxation. 12 credits (ECTS) are equivalent to a study load of approximately 336 hours (lectures and self-study). A thesis, essay or internship does not count towards the required tax courses and credits, neither does practical (work) experience.

You can provide us with information and proof that you fulfil the mentioned conditions by filling in the ‘Tax law credits’-form provided in the task ‘Upload motivation letter and tax law credits form’ in the MyApplication portal.

Pre-master’s programme in Fiscaal Recht

Do you want to enter the master’s programme in International and European Tax Law, do you have a Dutch background and does your bachelor’s degree not qualify you for  admission? Then you can apply for the Dutch pre-master’s programme in Fiscaal Recht. This is a preparatory programme for students with a university of applied sciences (HBO) or research university bachelor's degree who want to pursue the master's programme in International and European Tax Law or Fiscaal Recht at the UM Faculty of Law but do not qualify for admission to these tax law programmes.  

Information regarding civiel effect and NOB

In the Netherlands, it is important to distinguish between civiel effect, that is, whether you should be able to gain admission to the bar in the Netherlands, and professional organisations like the Nederlandse Orde van Belastingadviseurs (NOB), that is, whether you should be able to join the Dutch Association of Tax Advisers or a similar organisation.

To become a member of the Nederlandse Orde van Belastingadviseurs (NOB), you must have obtained at least 52 credits for courses relating to tax law, out of which at least 30 credits must have been obtained during your master’s studies. In addition to this, you must have obtained at least 9 credits for business economics courses and 9 credits for private law courses. Our master’s programme in International and European Tax Law (all specialisations) is designed in a way that you will be able to fulfill these requirements if you have obtained a bachelor degree in Fiscaal Recht or Fiscal Economics at Maastricht University. Otherwise you might have to follow (part of) a compensatory programme, depending on your work experience and previous education. The NOB offers three compensatory programmes: customs, tax technology, and transfer pricing. You can also consult the website of the NOB for more information.

Is civiel effect and/or NOB membership important for you? If yes, please be advised that even if you qualify for direct admission to the master’s programme in International and European Tax Law, this does not mean that you qualify for civiel effect and/or NOB after graduating from the programme. Rather, whether you qualify for one or both of these depends on your previous education. You can find some combinations in the overview below (please note that this overview focuses on the programmes offered at Maastricht University):

  civiel effect (the graduate should be able to gain admission to the bar in the Netherlands) NOB (the graduate should be able to join the Dutch Association of Tax Advisers)
Bachelor’s degree Fiscaal Recht at UM + master’s degree IETL (all specialisations) yes yes
Bachelor’s degree Fiscal Economics at UM + master’s degree IETL (all specialisations) no*) yes
Bachelor’s degree European Law School at UM with at least 12 ECTS of tax law courses + master’s degree IETL (all specialisations) no*) no – compensatory programme required
Bachelor’s degree Rechtsgeleerdheid at UM with at least 12 ECTS of tax law courses + master’s degree IETL (all specialisations) yes no – compensatory programme required
Dutch pre-master Fiscaal Recht at UM + master’s degree IETL (all specialisations) no*) yes
Bachelor degree at UM (except for those mentioned above) with at least 12 ECTS of tax law courses + master’s degree IETL (all specialisations) no*) no**) – compensatory programme required

*) Unless the graduate possesses an (additional) bachelor’s degree in Rechtsgeleerdheid at UM.

**) Unless the graduate possesses an (additional) bachelor’s degree of a research university involving a sufficient number in courses to reach, together with the master’s programme, the required number of credits for courses relating to tax law (including wage and income tax, corporation tax and international tax law) as well as 9 credits for business economics courses (including the interpretation of financial statements and business records) and 9 credits for private law courses (including property law, the law of obligations and business law).

Additional requirements

Language requirements for English-language master programmes

As English is the language of instruction in this study programme, it is essential that your English language skills are good enough for you to undertake intensive and challenging academic courses that are taught and examined in English.

There are several ways to proof your English proficiency:

  • You hold a bachelor’s or master’s degree in which English was the sole language of instruction.
  • During your bachelor’s or master’s degree, you successfully completed English-taught courses. The Board of Admissions will decide if the number of English-taught courses you completed is sufficient.
  • With language-test certificates (not older than 2 years):
    - Academic IELTS: minimum overall score 6.5 and writing 6.5, or minimum overall score 7
    - TOEFL iBT: minimum overall score 90 and writing 25, or minimum overall score 100
    - TOEIC listening and reading: 720; speaking and writing: 310
    - Cambridge Advanced C1: Grade C (scale 180-184); First: Grade A (scale 180-184)
    - TOEFL Paper-delivered Test: Reading: 20-30; Listening: 20-30; Writing: 20-30 (We recommend taking one of the other tests listed above, as speaking skills are not assessed in this TOEFL test)

Applicants who received their previous education in a non-EU/EEA country (handling fee)

Applicants applying for this study programme who received their previous education in a non-EU/EEA country will have to pay a handling fee. More information on this handling fee and how to arrange this payment can be found on the Handling fee page.

Documents required for application process

During the application process for this study programme, you will need to complete a number of tasks for which you will often have to upload documents. The list below gives you an insight into what documents you will (and might) need to prepare.

Required documents for all applicants to this study programme

  • A recent portrait picture*
    This picture must satisfy certain requirements. You can find these requirements in the task description 'Upload portrait picture' in the MyApplication portal.

  • A copy of your valid passport or your EU/EEA identity card** 
    Make a copy of the page with your personal details. Save this copy as ‘passport copy’ and not as ‘passport picture’. 

  • A copy of your most recent grades transcript and a copy of your diploma if you have obtained it.
    If you have not graduated yet, you can upload your official grades transcript from your bachelor's programme.

  • Letter of motivation
    All candidates must write a well-prepared and structured letter of motivation for this specific master’s programme. The letter should explain your motivation for choosing this specific master’s programme. It should also include an overview of what you intend to learn and how this programme fits into your future professional plans. The letter must be dated and addressed to the Board of Admissions of the Faculty of Law.

  • Tax law credits-form and any required additional information related to proving your tax law credits (such as a course syllabus or exam information).
    The form is available under the task ‘Upload motivation letter and tax law credits form’ in the MyApplication portal. 

  • Documents that demonstrate your proficiency in English
    Answer the questions concerning language requirements under ‘Language requirements for English-language master programmes’ on this webpage to find out if you need to provide additional documentation. The outcome of your answers will indicate which documents you can use to prove your proficiency.  

*For current UM students it is not necessary to upload a recent portrait picture in the MyApplication portal.

**For current UM students it is not necessary to upload this document in the MyApplication portal. Unless your passport is not valid on 1 September 2025; in that case you do have to upload a copy of your passport. You will be notified of this with a specific task in the MyApplication portal.

Please note: all documents must be in Dutch, English or German.

How do we assess your application?

When you want to apply or are applying to this study programme, it is useful to know how we assess your application. You can find more information about this in this section.

For this master's programme selection takes place on the basis of your quality and suitability. For this, your motivation and your academic experience,  in particular in the area of tax law, are important.

 Note: only complete applications will be assessed. We therefore recommend that you adhere to the deadlines provided in the table under ‘Important deadlines for this study programme’ on this page. We strive to assess your application and communicate the result to you within three to four weeks.