Tax lawyer (Fiscaal Jurist)

About Shulaika Delsol, LL.M.

I am Shulaika Delsol, LL.M., a tax lawyer with more than 30 years of experience. I advise individuals, entrepreneurs and families whose affairs span Curaçao, Bonaire and the European Netherlands.

Education

Master's degree in law, specialising in tax law, University of Groningen (1994)
Post-academic qualification as a tax inspector from the Tax Academy of the Dutch Tax and Customs Administration in Utrecht, specialising in calculating business profits and investigating financial crimes, including training as a legislative drafter

Career

1994–1995 · Tax inspector, Dutch Tax and Customs Administration (Belastingdienst Ondernemingen), Groningen
1995–1996 · Policy Adviser, Directorate of Direct Taxes, International Tax Policy Department, Ministry of Finance, The Hague, where I trained as a legislative drafter and policy maker
1996–1998 · Policy Adviser, Directorate of Taxes of the Netherlands Antilles
1998–2001 · Tax lawyer, Citco Group Ltd., Curaçao
2001–2006 · Senior Manager Tax, Deloitte
Since 2006 · My own practice through Delsol Corporation N.V., a Curaçao company I founded in 2001 and wholly own, trading as Paassen Delsol Tax Lawyers and Delsol Law & Tax

View my full career on LinkedIn

Languages

Papiamentu (native), Dutch, Spanish and English. I advise and correspond in all four.

Memberships

International Fiscal Association (IFA)

I have worked inside government on both sides of the Kingdom: as a tax inspector, as a policy adviser at the Directorate of Direct Taxes, International Tax Policy Department, in The Hague, where I trained as a legislative drafter, and as a policy adviser to the Netherlands Antilles Tax Administration. I know how tax rules are written and how inspectors apply them. I use that knowledge every day when I structure a business, prepare a ruling request or challenge an assessment.

Clients usually come to me when their situation crosses borders within the Kingdom. It may be a move to the islands, property on Curaçao or Bonaire, a family business that needs restructuring, or wealth that should pass safely to the next generation. These countries share a legal tradition, but each has its own tax system. Advice that covers only one side often fails on the other, so I look at the whole picture.

How I work

I handle every matter personally. The person you speak to first is the person who does the work.
I keep my caseload limited, so each client gets real attention and timely answers.
I test every structure against substance, anti-abuse and reporting rules before it is put in place.
I write my advice in plain language and state the risks openly.

What I advise on

Tax structuring and business restructuring
Estate planning, asset protection and private foundations
Contracts and corporate matters
Tax rulings, objections and appeals
Aruba and Sint Maarten on request

My role

I am a non-bar-registered lawyer (jurist), not an advocaat. In tax matters, representation by an advocaat is not mandatory anywhere in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. I represent clients myself in objection procedures before the Tax Inspector and in appeal proceedings before the tax courts. I also advise, draft contracts and documents, and negotiate with tax authorities. In civil proceedings where an advocaat is mandatory, I work alongside one.

I work with clients in Curaçao, Bonaire and the Netherlands by phone, video call and email, wherever you are. If we meet in person, we choose a place that suits you: your office, a café or a restaurant.

Let's talk

Email info@shulaikadelsol.com. You can write to me in Papiamentu, Dutch, Spanish or English.

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