Starting a Business in the Netherlands (Non-Resident Guide)

Most non-residents can start a business in the Netherlands entirely remotely, without ever needing a visa or work permit. But the right company structure and the right approach depend on your situation, whether you're staying overseas or planning to relocate, running a solo venture or bringing on staff.

In this guide, I'll walk you through which Dutch business structure fits, whether the Netherlands is the right base for you, and where to go for the full registration process.

Is the Netherlands the right place to start a business?

For most non-resident founders, the Netherlands is a genuinely strong place to start a business. Beyond the tax rate you'll find on any formation page, three things set it apart: who you're doing business with, who you're hiring, and what daily life looks like if you relocate.

Access and connections

• Full access to the EU single market, no separate registrations for cross-border trade across all 27 member states. Valuable whether you're a UK founder outside the EU, a US company entering Europe, or an Asian business wanting a single EU base.
• Tax treaties with 95+ countries, reducing or removing withholding tax on cross-border dividends, interest, and royalties.
• Europe's largest port (Rotterdam) and one of its busiest airports (Schiphol), putting most of Western Europe within a day's reach.

Highly qualified workforce

• English is widely spoken in business settings, removing a barrier that trips up founders in many other EU markets.
• Several Dutch universities feature in the Global Employability University Ranking, reflecting how well local graduates are prepared for the workforce.
• A meaningful share of international graduates stay and work in the Netherlands after finishing their studies, useful if you're building a genuinely international team.

Quality of life (if you relocate)

• The Netherlands ranked 7th in the 2026 World Happiness Report, the highest-placed country in Western Europe outside the Nordics, a real factor if you or hires are considering the move.
• A strong culture of work-life balance, reflected in widespread flexible working arrangements.
• Despite this, Dutch workers remain among the most productive in Europe.

What Netherlands business structures can you choose from?

Most non-resident founders default to a Dutch BV company formation, but it isn't the only option. Four structures cover nearly every situation: BV, cooperative, general partnership (VOF), and sole proprietorship.

Choosing the right Netherlands company formation mainly depends on liability, employee headcount, and how many people are involved.

A BV remains the default for non-residents. It's the only structure here that works for a solo founder, offers full liability protection, and sets up entirely remotely.

A cooperative structured as UA offers similar protection, but only suits two or more founders sharing ownership, common among freelancer collectives and joint ventures. It's not an option if you're working alone.

The VOF and sole proprietorship routes carry unlimited personal liability and, in practice, require a genuine operating presence in the Netherlands. Both are a poor fit for a non-resident running the business from abroad.

Can you start a business in the Netherlands as a non-resident?

Yes, non-residents can start and own a Dutch business entirely remotely, without living in the Netherlands or holding an EU passport. No permit or visa applies, unless you're planning to relocate to the Netherlands yourself rather than run the company from abroad.

For the full breakdown of documents, identity verification, and the remote registration process, see our guide to registering a company in the Netherlands.

How do you register a business in the Netherlands?

Registration follows the same broad shape regardless of structure:

1. Choose your legal form.
2. Prepare your identity documents.
3. Register with the KVK (the Dutch Chamber of Commerce). If you're forming a BV, a civil-law notary drafts and files your deed of incorporation as part of this step.
4. Receive your VAT number from the Belastingdienst once registration goes through.

What does it cost and how long does it take?

Most non-residents can register a business in 3 to 5 business days when working with a Netherlands company formation agent, at a predictable cost.

• Timeline (with an agent): 3 to 5 business days once your documents are ready.
• Timeline (DIY): Longer and less predictable. KVK's own guidance notes appointment slots can take over a week to secure in busy periods, before you've even sourced a notary for a BV.
• KVK registration fee: €85.15, fixed by law, the same regardless of route.
• Notary fees (BV only): typically €300–€1,500, since notaries set their own rates.

Why use a company formation agent?

• A fully-managed process from start to finish.
• Documents checked before they reach the notary, reducing rejections.
• Appointments booked on your behalf.

For a non-resident coordinating this from another time zone, that difference is usually the whole point of using an agent at all.

Hiring staff? What non-resident founders should know

If you plan to hire skilled staff from abroad, the Netherlands offers a real incentive: the 30% ruling. It lets you pay qualifying employees up to 30% of their salary tax-free through 2026, reducing their effective tax rate and making Dutch salaries more competitive for candidates relocating from elsewhere.

Here’s what employees need to quality:

• Recruited from outside the Netherlands, not already working here before being hired.
• Lived more than 150km from the Dutch border for at least 16 of the 24 months before their first working day, as per the Government ex-pat criteria.
• Earns above the minimum salary threshold: €46,107 in 2026, or €35,048 for employees under 30 with a master's degree.
• You, as the employer, apply together with your employee; the Belastingdienst must approve the ruling before it takes effect.

The figures stated above apply to payroll, not to how you pay yourself as a BV director in most cases. If hiring is part of your plan, this is where your accounting and payroll setup need to align from the start.

How does the Netherlands compare to France and Germany?

All three countries are strong EU jurisdictions, but they differ sharply on capital requirements, tax rates, and setup speed.

France's €1 minimum capital looks accessible on paper, but the two aren't equivalent in practice.

France requires a formal capital deposit into a blocked bank account before registration, and most French banks expect meaningfully more than €1 to operate.

Germany sits at the other extreme with a €25,000 capital requirement, and the slowest, most document-heavy setup of the three.

For speed, low upfront cost, and a fully remote process, the Netherlands is the clearest fit for most non-resident founders.

Is starting a company in the Netherlands right for you?

Based on everything above, the Netherlands is likely the right choice if:

• You want EU market access without relocating yourself.
• You're comfortable with a remote, notary-led setup rather than an in-person registration.
• Your business benefits from strong logistics, a multilingual workforce, or the Netherlands' tax treaty network.
• You value a short setup timeline over the flexibility of a €1 minimum-capital jurisdiction like France.
• You may eventually hire staff and want access to incentives like the 30% ruling.

It's less obviously right if your business is small and purely local, with no real need for EU market access. In that case, the cost and structure of a BV may be more than you actually need.

Starting a business in the Netherlands - FAQs

Need help starting a business in the Netherlands?

You've read what's involved. But choosing the right structure, then coordinating a notary, the KVK, and the Belastingdienst from another country, is its own job.

Why foreign founders choose Intercompany Solutions:

• Since 2017, our team has helped 2,000+ founders start a business in the Netherlands, from 50+ countries across the UK, North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin America.
• We're based locally in Rotterdam and deal with both the KVK and the Belastingdienst daily.
• Fixed pricing, confirmed before you commit, with no hidden fees added once the process starts.
• One team covers structure advice, formation, VAT, accounting, and payroll, so you're not coordinating separate providers.
• The entire process runs remotely. Most founders never need to visit the Netherlands.