Registering for a VAT number

Your company will most likely need a VAT registration number. After the registration at the Chamber of Commerce, your company details will automatically be forwarded to the Dutch Tax Authorities (Belastingdienst). The Belastingdienst will first assess if you are an entrepreneur for VAT purposes. Afterwards they will send you your VAT number within 5 working days. In some cases the Belastingdienst will need some additional information from you before they hand out the VAT number. This information request is usually processed by mail and is sent to your new company’s address.

This process is the same for a sole proprietor (eenmanszaak), partnership (vof) and a limited liability company (BV).

The VAT number has the following format: NL123456789B01. You can check the validity of your VAT number for EU cross-border transactions using the EU VAT VIES tool. This is also helpful if you want to invoice a foreign company and want to be sure if you should charge VAT or not.