Moving to the Netherlands: the first 90 days

What do I need to know before moving to the Netherlands?

Most of the first 90 days follow one chain. You need the right to live and work. You need a home, because the municipality wants proof of address. You register, which gives you a citizen service number (BSN). The BSN then opens the bank account, DigiD and the rest. Health insurance runs alongside.

The Netherlands is a busy destination. Statistics Netherlands (CBS) counted 308,357 immigrants in 2025, after 335,668 in 2023 and 316,305 in 2024 (CBS StatLine 83474ENG, recorded in our research on 5 October 2026). The IND’s “knowledge and talent” category, which covers highly skilled migrants, orientation-year graduates and intra-company transfers, received 19,490 applications in 2025, and 86% of decisions were positive (IND yearly figures 2025). People from India, Turkey and the United States were the largest groups.

This guide gives the order of the steps and the rules we could source. Our other guides go deeper on renting, registering and the BSN and health insurance.

Do I need a permit to move to the Netherlands?

It depends on where you come from.

EU and EEA citizens. The government lists freedom of movement and residence within the EU and EEA as its own topic and sends people to the IND for the permit routes (Government of the Netherlands). The IND’s highly skilled migrant page is written for non-EU and non-EEA nationals. You still register with your municipality if you stay longer than four months.

Everyone else. Skilled workers usually come on a highly skilled migrant permit. Only an employer recognised by the IND can apply for it, so your employer starts the process. The IND must decide within 90 days, the application costs EUR 423, and the page says the employer pays it by direct debit (IND, read 7 Oct 2026; IND fees). The permit lasts as long as the employment contract, up to five years. If the job ends, you have up to three months to find a new one, or six months if you became unemployed after 22 May 2026 with at least two years of tenure.

If you are moving with a partner and children, check their route at ind.nl before you book anything. If you hold a UK passport, check the IND’s current pages for your situation: we did not read a source for British citizens and do not state a rule.

Tax benefit. If your employer recruited you from abroad, you may qualify for the 30% facility. For 2026 the salary threshold is EUR 48,013 a year, and you must also meet a distance rule (Belastingdienst, read 7 Oct 2026). ReloFinder gives no tax advice. Ask your employer or the tax office.

How hard is it to find a home in the Netherlands?

Our research marks housing as the main pain point of a move to the Netherlands. CBS reported that rents rose 4.4% in July 2026, with 4.3% in Amsterdam, 4.5% in Utrecht and 4.7% in Rotterdam (CBS StatLine 83163ENG and 83162ENG, recorded in our research on 5 October 2026). Our research names Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam and Eindhoven as the main cities for relocation agencies, with Utrecht a fifth candidate.

The rules that protect you, from the government’s tenants’ plan (read 7 Oct 2026):

• The deposit is at most two months’ basic rent.
• If your landlord uses a rental agency, the landlord pays the agency, not you. If you hire your own intermediary, you pay that person.
• A tenancy agreement dated 1 July 2023 or later must be in writing, and landlords must state in writing how they select tenants.

Our guide to renting in the Netherlands covers these rules. Our guide to finding an apartment covers the search itself, with an agency or on your own.

How do I register and get a BSN?

Register within five days of arriving if you will stay for more than four months. It is free, and your partner and children come with you to the municipality. You register where your intended address is. If you have no fixed address you may register your postal address instead. People who are waiting for a residence permit do not have to register within five days (SDG portal, read 7 Oct 2026).

In Rotterdam you register in person at the city hall and take proof of residence such as a tenancy agreement or a landlord’s declaration. Other municipalities have their own appointment rules. The registration is what triggers your BSN, which the government describes as a unique number given to everyone in the personal records database (Government of the Netherlands).

After that, in this order:

1. DigiD. You need your BSN, a registered address and a mobile phone. DigiD says the activation letter arrives within three business days, and within five working days at most (DigiD). It goes to your registered address.
2. A bank account. In person you bring ID, official proof of address such as a tenancy agreement, your BSN and, if you come from outside the EU, your residence permit (IN Amsterdam).
3. A driving licence exchange, if you need one. You apply at the municipality, RDW writes within 15 working days, and you can collect after five more. Licences from some non-EU countries can be exchanged only if you lived there for 185 days in the year you got the licence, but highly skilled migrants on the expat scheme can exchange a licence from any country (RDW).

Our registration guide has the document list.

Health insurance in one paragraph

SKGZ says everyone legally obliged to take out Dutch health insurance must enrol within four months of arriving, and that your basic cover must start on the first day of work if you are employed (SKGZ). If you are moving for a job, arrange the policy before your start date. Our health insurance guide covers fines, children and the arrears premium.

Can an expat centre help instead of an agency?

Several cities run international centres for newcomers. IN Amsterdam, The Hague International Centre and Holland Expat Center South each publish a partner or service-provider list, and some of the providers on those lists are relocation agencies (IN Amsterdam, The Hague International Centre, Holland Expat Center South, read for our research on 5 October 2026). A partner list is a commercial arrangement, not a ranking, so use it as one source among several.

The centres also run some official steps. In Rotterdam, once the IND approves a highly skilled migrant, the centre books a combined appointment to collect the residence permit and register with the municipality (Rotterdam International Center, read 7 Oct 2026). Ask your employer whether the city where you will work has such a service. It can remove two appointments from your first week.

What does the move cost?

We cannot give a first-month budget from sources, but these figures are published:

• The permit application fee is EUR 423, paid by the employer on the highly skilled migrant route.
• Registration is free.
• A deposit is at most two months’ basic rent.
• Two agencies publish a home-search fee of one month’s rent, with a minimum of EUR 1,000 or EUR 1,495, excluding VAT. The standard Dutch VAT rate is 21% (Business.gov.nl).

The full price picture is in our guide to what a relocation agency costs in the Netherlands.

Where can a relocation agency help?

A relocation agency works for you, or for your employer, and charges for it. It can search for homes and attend viewings, book and attend your registration and bank appointments, and help with school search. It cannot remove the five-day deadline, shorten the IND’s decision period, or guarantee you a home.

Two points are often confused. A rental agent, a makelaar, who works for the landlord is paid by the landlord. A relocation agency that you hire works for you, and you or your employer pay it. Our research also found that many Dutch agencies serve employers first, so ask early whether your employer has a contract with one.

Corporate packages are negotiated between the agency and the employer, and our research found that few agencies publish prices for private clients. If your employer offers a relocation budget, find out before you hire anyone yourself: the contract, the scope and the invoice may already exist.

Read how to choose a relocation agency in the Netherlands before you sign, and see what settling-in services include. If you want to compare agencies, start at the Netherlands hub or get matched.

A 90-day plan

When	What	Rule
Before you arrive	Employer applies for your permit, if you need one. Start the home search. Ask when your health cover must start.	IND decision within 90 days
Days 1 to 5	Register with the municipality, in person.	5 days from arrival
Week 1 to 2	BSN comes with the registration. Apply for DigiD, open a bank account.	Letter in 3 to 5 working days
Weeks 2 to 6	Exchange your driving licence if it qualifies.	15 working days, plus 5 to collect
By month 4	Health insurance in force, or from the first day of work if employed.	SKGZ

Is moving to the Netherlands a good idea?

It is for many people, and the figures above show why so many come. The limits are real. Rents are rising, a tenancy agreement is the key to registration, and the permit route depends on an employer. Plan the home first, and ask for written quotes before you pay anyone.

What we could not source

We did not find an official figure for how long a newcomer typically needs to find a rental home, so we give none. We did not read an IND page for UK citizens or for the Dutch American Friendship Treaty route, so the guide states no rule for either. We did not find an official list of the documents a landlord may ask for, only the rule that landlords must state their selection criteria in writing. Municipalities differ on appointments and accepted proof of address.