An invitation from the FIOD may concern your own returns, but also a client’s or employer’s transactions. Your position determines which rights and obligations apply during the interview. Therefore ask beforehand whether you will be interviewed as a suspect or witness and what the investigation concerns. A criminal interview is not an ordinary tax audit. This guide helps preparation and recognition of decision points. If you may personally be involved, have a lawyer familiar with tax criminal law assess the invitation and concurrent tax proceedings.
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1. Establish your role and the nature of the invitation
The FIOD investigates tax, economic and financial criminal offences. The invitation may give an investigation number without describing every suspicion or item of evidence. Keep the letter, envelope and any telephone arrangements. Note whether the invitation is addressed to you personally or a legal person. The business being central does not mean a director, employee or adviser is personally outside the investigation. Request clarity about your own position.
A request to attend voluntarily must be distinguished from arrest or a court summons. If uncertain, ask on what basis your attendance is requested and coordinate any rescheduling. Do not let logistical questions turn unnoticed into a substantive statement. Even a telephone answer about who drafted an invoice may become relevant to the investigation and deserves the same care as a planned interview.
2. As a suspect: caution and right to remain silent
As a suspect, you do not have to answer questions about your involvement in a criminal offence. Before the interview, you must be told you are not obliged to answer: the caution. That notification belongs in the official record. The right to remain silent does not mean you can ignore every statutory obligation. Identity verification and other powers need separate assessment; have the distinction explained before making a general refusal.
Discuss with your lawyer whether, when and on which points a statement is responsible. The suspicion, available information and your own recollection matter. Answering merely to finish the interview quickly may complicate later explanations. Conversely, there is no general rule that one fixed strategy suits every file. Make a conscious choice and have it recorded when you decline to answer or want legal consultation first.
3. Arrange legal assistance before substantive discussion
As a suspect, you have a right to legal assistance; prior consultation and assistance during the interview serve separate purposes. Statutory rules govern making a lawyer available to an arrested suspect. For an invitation without arrest, you must make contact yourself in good time and coordinate attendance. Do not assume the adviser handling your returns can automatically also represent your personal criminal-law interests or has the appropriate expertise.
Funding of assistance depends on the situation and lawyer chosen. Ask beforehand without thereby delaying necessary initial consultation. Shared interests of a director, company and employees may produce conflicts. Therefore discuss who the client is and which information can be shared confidentially. Also have language problems, medical circumstances or limitations communicated. An interpreter may be needed to understand questions and your answers accurately enough.
4. As a witness: distinguish investigators from a judge
An ordinary invitation to give evidence as a witness to an investigative service is not the same as a summons before the criminal court or investigating judge. A judicial summons may entail duties to attend and answer. Therefore examine the sender, document and statutory basis. Witnesses do not automatically have all arrangements available to suspects. A lawyer can assess your position beforehand and discuss conditions for any attendance at the interview.
Before a judge, rights to decline to testify exist subject to conditions, for example because of certain family ties, professional secrecy or risk of your own criminal prosecution. Applicability must be assessed specifically. Do not assume every bookkeeper or tax adviser may refuse every answer because of their profession. If suspicion against you arises during an interview, a suspect’s rights must be taken into account. When that changes, request a break and consultation before continuing substantively.
5. Keep criminal law and taxation separate
A FIOD investigation does not automatically end all obligations to the inspector. Article 47 of the General State Taxes Act governs data and documents that may matter to your taxation. Assessment of such a request differs from whether you must give a statement during a criminal interview. Therefore record for each letter who requests information, for what purpose, on which basis and for which period. A general reference to silence rights may be insufficient for taxation.
Where proceedings overlap, disputes may arise over compelled information and its use for a penalty or criminal prosecution. The nature of the material and the way it is obtained are relevant. Have a lawyer assess the specific request and possible safeguards. Do not hide or destroy records or fill in missing documents afterwards as though they originally existed. Carefully retain requests and answers so that the source procedure for material remains visible later.
6. Give precise statements and check the record
If you give a statement, clarify what you saw yourself, what follows from documents and what someone else told you. Say when you no longer remember something. Request the complete document if shown only an isolated passage and identify missing context. A fictional example: an employee recognises their initials on a payment overview but does not know who checked the underlying invoices. Those two points need not carry equal certainty.
Article 29a of the Code of Criminal Procedure sets rules for recording a suspect’s interview. Check that your words and qualifications are represented correctly and make specific comments on incorrect passages. A summary can unintentionally present a suspicion as certainty. For example, request correction if “I think” has become “I know”. Sign a record only if you agree with it and discuss disputed points with your lawyer. Also ask how to obtain a copy.
7. Coordinate what follows without influencing statements
Prepare your own timeline for your lawyer with relevant work, people and documents. Keep original files and metadata and document which items were taken or supplied. Coordinate any business communications, but do not try to organise a joint witness statement. Colleagues may have different recollections and interests. Ask beforehand which practical arrangements are needed to keep records accessible when equipment or data carriers have been made available for investigation.
After the interview, follow-up questions, file access or Public Prosecution Service decisions may follow. Release or the end of an interview does not mean the case is closed. Simultaneously have ongoing objection or response deadlines in tax matters monitored. Discuss with your lawyer what information you can still supplement and through which route that is sensible. Focused preparation mainly clarifies your position; it gives no guarantee about prosecution or the ultimate outcome.
Frequently asked questions
As a suspect, do I have a right to remain silent with the FIOD?
Yes, you do not have to answer questions about your involvement. The caution must be given beforehand. Other statutory obligations require separate assessment.
As a witness, am I always obliged to attend?
Distinguish an ordinary invitation from investigators from a judicial summons. In particular, a judicial summons may create duties to attend and answer.
May I also leave all tax questions unanswered?
That does not follow from a FIOD investigation. Information duties for taxation and protection against self-incrimination require separate assessment for each request.
Sources
These sources relate to this page. For a specific case, check current rules and your own documents.
- Wetboek van Strafvordering — artikelen 27c, 28–29b, 213 en 219 Accessed: 2026-10-23
- Algemene wet inzake rijksbelastingen — artikel 47 Accessed: 2026-10-23
- FIOD — informatie over vrijheidsbeperkende dwangmiddelen Accessed: 2026-10-23
- Rechtspraak — getuige in een strafzaak Accessed: 2026-10-23
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Editorial team Tax law in the Netherlands
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