Overview
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Region | Europe |
| ISO 3166-1 | NL / NLD |
| Registry | Kamer van Koophandel |
| Last updated | 2026-05-06 |
Identifiers
Collect two identifiers from each business customer in Netherlands and submit them as strings on the application body.| API field | Local name | Issuer |
|---|---|---|
businessInfo.taxId | BTW-identificatienummer (BTW-id) | Belastingdienst |
businessInfo.businessEntityId | KvK-nummer | Kamer van Koophandel |
Sector regulators
DNB · AFM · Belastingdienst
Legal structures
| Local name | Abbreviation | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Eenmanszaak | — | Sole proprietorship; single natural person trading under their own name or a trade name; no separate legal personality; owner bears unlimited personal liability. Equivalent to a US Sole Proprietorship. |
| Besloten Vennootschap | B.V. | Private limited company; separate legal personality; shares are non-publicly tradable; minimum issued capital of €0.01 since the Flex-BV reform (eff. 2012-10-01); the most common Dutch corporate vehicle for SMEs and subsidiaries. Equivalent to a US LLC. |
| Naamloze Vennootschap | N.V. | Public limited company; separate legal personality; freely transferable shares; minimum issued capital €45,000; the only Dutch form eligible for stock-exchange listing. Equivalent to a US C-Corp. |
| Societas Europaea | SE | European public limited company formed under EU Regulation 2157/2001; registered in the Netherlands by notarial deed and KvK inscription; functionally equivalent to an N.V. and eligible for cross-border redomiciliation within the EU. Equivalent to a US C-Corp. |
| Vennootschap Onder Firma | V.O.F. | General partnership; two or more partners trading under a common firm name; each partner jointly and severally liable for all partnership debts; no minimum capital. Equivalent to a US General Partnership. |
| Commanditaire Vennootschap | C.V. | Limited partnership; at least one managing (beherend) partner with unlimited liability and one or more silent (commanditaire) partners whose liability is capped at their contribution. Equivalent to a US Limited Partnership. |
| Maatschap | — | Civil professional partnership; two or more professionals (e.g. lawyers, accountants) practising together under a common name; each partner liable only for their own acts absent a joint-liability clause; no separate legal personality. Equivalent to a US General Partnership. |
| Coöperatie | — | Cooperative association; separate legal personality; at least two members who share in the cooperative’s activities for their mutual benefit; governed by statuten; common in agri-finance, housing, and professional sectors. Closest US equivalent: Cooperative. |
| Stichting | — | Foundation; separate legal personality; no members or shareholders; established for a specific societal, charitable, or idealistic purpose; governed by a board (bestuur); may conduct commercial activities if profits serve the foundation’s purpose. Closest US equivalent: Nonprofit Corporation / Foundation. |
| Vereniging | — | Association; separate legal personality (when full legal capacity is granted via notarial deed); members united for a common non-commercial goal; any profits must be applied to the association’s purpose. Closest US equivalent: Nonprofit Corporation. |
| Bijkantoor (Branch of Foreign Entity) | — | Registered branch of a foreign legal entity; no separate Dutch legal personality; the foreign parent remains fully liable; must register in the KvK Handelsregister under the Wet op de formeel buitenlandse vennootschappen where applicable. Closest US equivalent: Branch / Rep Office. |
How documents combine
For each evidence area, this table shows whether the listed documents are alternatives (any one of) or a bundle (all required). The artifact-by-artifact lookup follows below.| Evidence area | Documents needed |
|---|---|
| Legal Registration | Uittreksel Handelsregister |
| Constitutive Documents | Statuten |
| Tax Registration | BTW-identificatienummer bevestiging |
| Operating Permit | Any one of: Exploitatievergunning · Omgevingsvergunning |
| Ownership Records | Aandeelhoudersregister |
| Governance Records | Uittreksel Handelsregister |
| Signing Authority | Any one of: Bestuursbesluit · Volmacht |
| Address | Any one of: Huurovereenkomst · Nutsrekening · Bankafschrift |
Documents to collect
The physical documents you’ll collect from your customer, with the evidence area each one proves. One document can prove multiple areas — for example, Brazil’s Cartão CNPJ covers both tax and business-registration proof, so it appears once with both areas listed.| Document | Proves |
|---|---|
| Uittreksel Handelsregister | Legal Registration, Governance Records |
| Statuten (akte van oprichting + statuten) | Constitutive Documents |
| BTW-identificatienummer bevestiging (Belastingdienst) | Tax Registration |
| Exploitatievergunning | Operating Permit |
| Omgevingsvergunning (gemeente) | Operating Permit |
| Aandeelhoudersregister (B.V.) | Ownership Records |
| Board resolution (bestuursbesluit) | Signing Authority |
| Volmacht (notarised power of attorney) | Signing Authority |
| Huurovereenkomst | Address |
| Nutsrekening (≤90 dagen) | Address |
| Bankafschrift (≤90 dagen) | Address |
| Sector-Specific License | DNB vergunning, AFM vergunning (Wft) |
Collection notes
- Legal Registration: Order digitally certified (gewaarmerkt) copy at kvk.nl; available in Dutch and English.
- Constitutive Documents: Notarised at incorporation; deed must contain statuten. Retrievable via KvK (statuten product).
- Tax Registration: BTW-id is the primary cross-border tax identifier; verify via EU VIES. RSIN is supplementary for government integrations.
- Operating Permit: No single national operating licence; municipalities issue under local APV and environment permit rules. Requirement and form vary by gemeente. Not applicable for professional-services B.V.s with no physical premises.
- Sector-Specific License: Banking, payment services, e-money, and insurance: authorised by DNB. Investment services, fund management, and securities: authorised by AFM. Crypto-asset service providers (CASPs) require DNB authorisation under the EU MiCA framework.
- Governance Records: Lists bestuurders (directors), commissarissen (supervisory board members), and signing authority (bevoegdheid: zelfstandig, gezamenlijk).
- Signing Authority: Standard B.V. signing authority registered in Handelsregister; third-party authority via notarised volmacht (BW Art. 3:60). Bestuursbesluit needed only when authority is not self-evident from the Handelsregister; volmacht needed only for external/third-party representatives.
- Address: Provide a lease agreement (no recency requirement) OR a utility bill OR a bank statement dated within 90 days. The same document satisfies both registered-address and operating-address checks.
Person roles
When you submit a person on the application body, set theirrole to one of Conduit’s canonical BusinessPersonRole values. Use this table to map a local corporate-governance title onto the right canonical role.
| Local role | Canonical API role | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Bestuurder (B.V./N.V./Stichting) | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Executive director; day-to-day management authority; registered in Handelsregister. |
| Beherend vennoot (V.O.F./C.V.) | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Managing partner with unlimited liability and operational authority. |
| Commissaris (N.V. / two-tier B.V.) | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Supervisory board member (Raad van Commissarissen); governance/oversight, not executive. |
| Gevolmachtigde | LEGAL_REPRESENTATIVE | Holder of a volmacht (power of attorney); authority to bind the company within the scope granted. |
Notes
- Flex-BV min capital is €0.01, not zero. Since the Flex-BV reform (eff. 2012-10-01, BW Art. 2:178), a B.V. requires at least one share at a minimum par of €0.01. Verify issued share capital from statuten.
- RSIN is not interchangeable with KvK-nummer. RSIN (9 digits) is the government-interoperability ID used by Belastingdienst and other public bodies; KvK-nummer (8 digits) is the Handelsregister identifier. Both appear on the uittreksel; collect both if possible.