A Dutch VAT number, the btw-identificatienummer (VAT identification number), is NL, nine digits, the letter B and two digits; the official example is NL000099998B57. For a BV the nine digits are its RSIN. The Belastingdienst (Netherlands Tax Administration) issues it after KVK registration, with no application, and anyone can check it in the EU's VIES system.
This guide is about the number itself: how to read it, where to find your own, how to check a customer's and which number goes on an invoice. A business that does not have its number yet, whether a new BV or a company based outside Holland, starts with Dutch VAT registration, where getting the number is the whole job.
What does a Dutch VAT number look like?
The Dutch tax authority calls it the btw-identificatienummer, often shortened to btw-id (btw is the Dutch abbreviation for VAT). The KVK (Netherlands Chamber of Commerce) gives the general format as NL, nine digits, the letter B and two digits (KVK, VAT identification number page, checked on 29 September 2026). That makes 14 characters, two of them letters; business.gov.nl counts them as 14 numbers (business.gov.nl, checked on 29 September 2026).
The NL at the front is not a Dutch invention. Art. 215 of the VAT Directive 2006/112/EC requires every VAT identification number to carry a prefix under ISO code 3166, the country code standard (EUR-Lex, consolidated text of 14 April 2025). In Dutch law the number is defined in art. 2a(1)(g) of the Wet op de omzetbelasting 1968 (Wet OB, Turnover Tax Act) by reference to art. 214 of the Directive, which obliges member states to identify taxable persons by an individual number (Wet OB 1968, version in force from 1 January 2026).
The format of a Dutch VAT number. Sources: business.gov.nl and kvk.nl, checked between 29 September and 3 October 2026; EUR-Lex.
| Item | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| General format | NL, 9 digits, the letter B, 2 digits (the KVK's pattern: NL123456789B01) | KVK |
| BV, NV, VOF and CV | NL + RSIN + B + 2 digits | business.gov.nl |
| Sole proprietor | NL + 9 digits + B + 2 digits; the BSN is not included | business.gov.nl |
| Official example of a VAT ID | NL000099998B57 | business.gov.nl |
| VAT tax number | no NL prefix; official example 111234567B01 | business.gov.nl |
| The final two digits | random; the suffix runs from B01 to B99 | business.gov.nl |
| Length | 14 characters, two of them letters | business.gov.nl |
| Why NL | the ISO 3166 country code, art. 215 VAT Directive | EUR-Lex |
The last two digits are random, so no formula tells a valid Dutch number from an invalid one (business.gov.nl, Using and checking VAT numbers, checked on 3 October 2026). The only check is VIES, covered below.
What are the nine digits inside the number?
For a BV, NV, VOF or CV the nine digits in the middle are the company's RSIN, the Rechtspersonen en Samenwerkingsverbanden Informatienummer (legal entities and partnerships information number) (business.gov.nl, Numbers for VAT, checked on 3 October 2026). Every legal entity and partnership receives an RSIN from the KVK, together with its KVK number, when it registers (KVK, How do I look up VAT numbers, checked on 3 October 2026). Dutch government bodies use the RSIN to link the data of one organisation across their registrations, which makes it the business counterpart of the BSN, the citizen service number (business.gov.nl, checked on 29 September 2026).
A sole proprietor has no RSIN. The nine digits of a sole proprietor's VAT ID do not include the BSN (business.gov.nl, Numbers for VAT). The difference between the RSIN and the BSN, and which one serves as a tax identifier, has a guide of its own; business.gov.nl describes the btw-nummer as the Dutch equivalent of the TIN, the tax identification number.
Which four numbers does a Dutch BV hold?
The four numbers of a Dutch BV, who issues each and where each appears. Sources: kvk.nl, business.gov.nl and the Handelsregisterwet 2007, checked between 29 September and 3 October 2026.
| Number | Form | Issued by | When | Where it appears | Who may see it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KVK number (KVK-nummer) | 8 digits | KVK | on registration in the Business Register | letters, orders, invoices, quotations and announcements, advertising excepted (art. 27(1) Hrw 2007) | public; proof of registration |
| RSIN | the nine digits inside the VAT ID | KVK, with the KVK number | on registration | your own free in My KVK; another company's on its paid Business Register extract; not required on a website | on the paid extract; links data between Dutch government registrations |
| VAT ID (btw-identificatienummer) | NL + RSIN + B + 2 digits | Belastingdienst | by letter, within 10 working days of KVK registration | invoices, quotations, website; the number VIES checks | customers and other EU tax authorities |
| VAT tax number (omzetbelastingnummer) | RSIN + B + 2 digits, no NL | Belastingdienst | in the same letter | only in dealings with the Belastingdienst | not for customers; VIES rejects it |
The four numbers are really two series. For every legal form other than a sole proprietorship the VAT ID and the VAT number carry the same digits (business.gov.nl, LEI, RSIN, VAT and KVK number: which is which, checked on 29 September 2026), so a BV has the eight-digit KVK number on one side and the RSIN on the other, which reappears inside both VAT numbers.
A sole proprietorship breaks the pattern. It has no RSIN, and its VAT tax number contains the owner's BSN, which is why the KVK tells businesses never to give that number to customers (KVK, What is a VAT tax number, checked on 3 October 2026).
VAT ID or VAT tax number: which one do you give to customers?
Two numbers arrive in the same letter, and only one is meant for the outside world. The VAT ID goes to customers and on invoices, quotations and the website (KVK, VAT identification number page). The VAT tax number, the omzetbelastingnummer, is for dealings with the Belastingdienst only and has no NL in front; its official example is 111234567B01 (business.gov.nl, Numbers for VAT).
VIES, the EU's checking system, accepts only the VAT ID. Enter the VAT tax number and the result is invalid, even for a business that is fully registered (KVK, checked on 29 September 2026). That swap is a common reason why a customer reports that a perfectly good Dutch number fails, and the VIES sections below come back to it.
The two VAT numbers in one letter, and what each is for. Sources: business.gov.nl and kvk.nl, checked between 29 September and 3 October 2026.
| VAT ID | VAT tax number | |
|---|---|---|
| Format | NL + 9 digits + B + 2 digits | 9 digits + B + 2 digits, no NL |
| Official example | NL000099998B57 | 111234567B01 |
| Used with | customers, EU suppliers and other EU tax authorities | the Belastingdienst only |
| On invoices | yes | never |
| In VIES | accepted | rejected |
Is the VAT number the same as the KVK number?
No. The KVK number has 8 digits and is issued by the KVK as proof that the business is in the Handelsregister (Business Register) (KVK, KVK number: all you need to know, checked on 29 September 2026). The VAT ID has 14 characters, comes from the Belastingdienst and shows that the business is an entrepreneur for VAT.
Both belong on an invoice, each under its own rule. The VAT ID is required by art. 35a(1)(c) Wet OB (Wet OB 1968). The KVK number is required by art. 27(1) of the Handelsregisterwet 2007 (Hrw, Trade Register Act), which also puts it on letters, orders, quotations and announcements, though not on advertising (Hrw 2007, checked on 29 September 2026).
The KVK gives out no information on other businesses' VAT numbers (KVK, How do I look up VAT numbers), so the register is no bridge from one number to the other. Our guide to what a KVK number looks like and where it appears covers the eight-digit number on its own.
How does a new BV get its VAT number?
The notary registers the company
The notaris (civil-law notary) registers the BV or NV in the Business Register, and the Belastingdienst is notified (KVK, VAT identification number page, checked on 29 September 2026).
The KVK passes the details on
The registration data go to the Belastingdienst automatically; nobody applies for the VAT number separately (business.gov.nl, checked on 29 September 2026).
The Belastingdienst decides on VAT status
Under art. 7(1) Wet OB an entrepreneur is anyone who independently carries on a business, with no turnover test (Wet OB 1968). Even a business with only VAT-exempt activities receives a VAT ID (business.gov.nl, Numbers for VAT, checked on 3 October 2026).
The letter arrives
Both numbers come by post within 10 working days, according to business.gov.nl; the KVK's VAT identification number page gives its own variant, within 2 weeks. A company that is not an entrepreneur for VAT receives a letter saying so (KVK, What is a VAT tax number, checked on 3 October 2026).
The Belastingdienst charges nothing for the number. The only state fee on this route is the one-off KVK registration fee, EUR 85.15 in 2026 (KVK, Registration fee, checked on 3 October 2026).
So a BV registered a week ago with no number yet has not missed a step: there is no application to file, and the letter can take up to 10 working days. What happens when the letter does not come, or when the company is not on the automatic route at all, is the work of the registration service rather than the subject of this guide.
No VAT number yet, or registering from outside the Netherlands? We take the registration through to the letter.
Where do you find your own VAT number?
- Log in to Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk, the Belastingdienst's business portal.
- Open the menu Btw (VAT).
- Choose btw-identificatienummer: both your VAT ID and your VAT tax number are shown there (KVK, What is a VAT tax number).
A BV logs in to the portal with eHerkenning, the business login, and never with DigiD, the personal login for citizens (Belastingdienst). How a company run from abroad obtains it is covered in our guide to the Dutch business login.
The other place the numbers sit is the original letter the Belastingdienst sent after the KVK registration (business.gov.nl, Numbers for VAT). Keep it with the company's records: it is the one document that shows both numbers side by side.
Can you look up another company's VAT number by name?
No. There is no register of VAT numbers, in the Netherlands or abroad, and neither the Belastingdienst nor the KVK gives out another entrepreneur's number (KVK, How do I look up VAT numbers, checked on 3 October 2026; business.gov.nl, Using and checking VAT numbers, checked on 3 October 2026). Even VIES will not answer the question the other way round: for data protection, national authorities do not supply the name and address that belong to a VAT number (Your Europe, checked on 3 October 2026).
What remains are the places a business shows its own number:
- Ask the business. VAT numbers can only be requested directly from your customers or suppliers (KVK).
- Read its quotation or invoice. The number is usually printed there (KVK).
- Read its website. A business that sells products or services through a website must show its VAT ID there (business.gov.nl).
- For the nine middle digits only, read its Business Register extract. The extract is paid and shows the company's RSIN (KVK, RSIN number page, checked on 29 September 2026).
The extract does not close the gap. A Dutch BV's VAT ID is NL, the RSIN, B and two digits, and the extract gives the RSIN; it never gives the two final digits, which are random. Ordering one is explained on the company register page. For the full number, the business itself remains the source.
How do you check a Dutch VAT number in VIES?
VIES, the VAT Information Exchange System, is a search engine run by the European Commission, not a database of its own: at the moment of each search it retrieves the data from the national VAT databases of the member states (Your Europe, Check a VAT number (VIES), checked on 3 October 2026). It checks Dutch VAT IDs and those of the other EU countries (Belastingdienst, VAT ID check, checked on 3 October 2026). The Belastingdienst and the KVK describe the same steps.
- Choose your customer's EU country.
- Enter the number without the two country letters: for a Dutch VAT ID, everything after NL.
- Use capital letters: the system is case-sensitive (Belastingdienst).
- Optionally enter your own country and VAT ID.
- Select Verify, then print or save the result (KVK, How do I look up VAT numbers).
Only the VAT ID works. The VAT tax number, the one without NL, is rejected whatever its status (KVK, VAT identification number page).
What does each VIES result mean, and what do you do next?
Five VIES results, what each means and what to do. Sources: kvk.nl, belastingdienst.nl and Your Europe, checked between 29 September and 3 October 2026.
| VIES result | What it means | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| "Yes, valid VAT number", with name and address | the customer is a registered entrepreneur | print or save the page and keep it with the invoice as proof towards the Belastingdienst |
| "Invalid input" or "Invalid VAT number for cross-border transactions within the EU", on the first check | the entry may be wrong: a Dutch VAT tax number entered instead of the VAT ID returns the cross-border message; the number field must omit the country letters and use capitals | re-enter the VAT ID correctly |
| Still invalid after a correct entry | per the European Commission: the number does not exist, is not activated for intra-EU transactions, or the registration is not yet finalised | charge Dutch VAT and refer the customer to its own tax authority |
| Valid, but no name and address (German numbers) | names and addresses from Germany cannot be checked in VIES | a valid result is sufficient proof that you deal with an entrepreneur |
| Valid Dutch number, postal address shown | the business address may be shielded in the Business Register; the Belastingdienst then supplies the postal address held by the KVK | nothing: this is lawful shielding |
- Entered without NL, in capitals: is the result valid?Save the record with the invoiceCheck the entry first
- VAT tax number entered, or an input error?Re-enter the VAT IDThe number itself fails
- Still invalid after a correct entry?Charge Dutch VAT, refer the customer to its tax authoritySave the record with the invoice
German numbers: no name and address shown. Shielded Dutch address: the postal address is shown.
The check matters because of what it unlocks. In the Belastingdienst's words, when the customer is an entrepreneur, goods transported to another EU country generally go at 0 percent VAT, and services can often be reverse-charged to the client. If the customer turns out not to be an entrepreneur, the supplier could receive an additional assessment and a fine (Belastingdienst, VAT ID check). The European Commission recommends keeping track of each validation in case of a tax control (Your Europe).
Where the number fails after a correct entry, the supplier charges Dutch VAT and tells the customer to contact its own tax authority (KVK). The standard rate is 21 percent under art. 9(1) Wet OB in 2026 (Wet OB 1968); everything else about rates is on our page on VAT in the Netherlands.
Which number goes on an invoice, and which article requires it?
Art. 34c(1)(a) Wet OB obliges a business to invoice another entrepreneur, or a legal person that is not an entrepreneur, for its supplies (Wet OB 1968). The invoice is due by the 15th day of the month after the supply (business.gov.nl, Invoice requirements, checked on 29 September 2026). What the invoice must carry is set out item by item in art. 35a.
What a Dutch invoice must carry, by article. Sources: Wet OB 1968 (version in force from 1 January 2026), Hrw 2007, the VAT Directive, business.gov.nl and kvk.nl.
| Invoice item | Rule | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Duty to invoice | to another entrepreneur or a non-entrepreneur legal person | art. 34c(1)(a) Wet OB |
| Deadline | by the 15th day of the month after the supply | business.gov.nl |
| Supplier's VAT ID | always | art. 35a(1)(c) Wet OB; art. 226(3) VAT Directive |
| Customer's VAT ID | where the customer is liable for the VAT or receives an intra-Community supply; the Belastingdienst's list names exports of goods to other EU countries, related transport services and reverse charge | art. 35a(1)(d) Wet OB; art. 226(4) VAT Directive |
| Names and addresses | full name and address of both parties | art. 35a(1)(e) Wet OB |
| Reverse-charge wording | btw verlegd (VAT reverse-charged) | art. 35a(1)(m) Wet OB |
| KVK number | on invoices; business.gov.nl adds "if you have one" | art. 27(1) Hrw 2007 |
| Never | the VAT tax number, which for a sole proprietor contains the BSN | KVK |
| Simplified invoice | total not above EUR 100: the supplier's identity replaces the number | art. 34d(1)(a) and art. 35a(2)(b) Wet OB |
| Exceptions | a VAT-exempt business or a KOR (small businesses scheme) user puts no VAT ID on its invoices; a KOR user may not mention VAT at all | KVK; art. 25a(4) Wet OB |
| Retention | 7 years; 10 for immovable property | business.gov.nl |
Getting this wrong costs the other side: a customer holding a defective invoice loses its VAT deduction (business.gov.nl, Invoice requirements). The EU-level basis for both VAT ID lines is art. 226(3) and (4) of the VAT Directive (EUR-Lex).
The rule also runs the other way. EU businesses must state the VAT ID of their Dutch clients on their invoices (business.gov.nl, Using and checking VAT numbers), and a supplier not established in the Netherlands reverse-charges the VAT to a customer that holds a Dutch VAT ID, under art. 12(2) Wet OB (Wet OB 1968). A Dutch VAT number is therefore something a BV hands out from its first invoice onward, and something its foreign suppliers will ask for.
Whether an invoice must also be electronic is a separate question, covered in our guide on who has to send e-invoices in the Netherlands.
What happens to the number when the company changes?
The Dutch VAT ID over a company's life. Sources: business.gov.nl and belastingdienst.nl, checked between 29 September and 3 October 2026.
| Event | Effect on the VAT ID | Source |
|---|---|---|
| A new activity or a branch | a second VAT ID may be requested; it brings a second VAT tax number, an additional VAT return and separate records | business.gov.nl |
| The BV's shares are transferred | the legal person and the business do not change, so the numbers continue | Belastingdienst |
| A change of legal form | in some cases a new VAT ID, to be passed at once to suppliers in other EU countries | Belastingdienst |
| Deregistration from the Business Register | the VAT ID and the VAT tax number are deregistered automatically, with written confirmation | business.gov.nl |
| Customs and other EU authorities | the VAT ID is linked automatically to the EORI number and is the number the Belastingdienst passes to other EU tax authorities, for instance for a refund | business.gov.nl |
For a buyer of an existing BV, the share transfer row is the one that matters. The Belastingdienst puts it plainly: when the shares in a company are transferred, the legal person and the business do not change, so the VAT ID and the VAT tax number stay with the company. A change of legal form is a different event and can bring a new VAT ID (Belastingdienst, checked on 29 September 2026).
A second VAT ID, requested for a new activity or a branch, comes with its own VAT return and its own records (business.gov.nl, Numbers for VAT); VIES checks it like any other Dutch VAT ID. Deregistration from the KVK ends both numbers without a separate request to the Belastingdienst (business.gov.nl, Using and checking VAT numbers).
Does a foreign company without a Dutch office get an NL number?
Only by registering directly. The automatic route runs through the KVK, so an entity the KVK will not register, among them foreign legal forms without a subsidiary in the Netherlands, receives its VAT number by form instead (KVK, VAT identification number page).
The Belastingdienst's Department of International Issues deals with Dutch VAT for all foreign entrepreneurs. A foreign business registers there directly in the cases the Belastingdienst lists, for instance intra-Community trade that brings a duty to file Dutch returns, a refund claim by a business from outside the EU, or an entrepreneur from a non-EU country using the One Stop Shop via the Netherlands (Belastingdienst, Your tax office and registration, checked on 3 October 2026).
Which of those cases applies, and what the registration asks for, is the work of the registration service in the related block below; this guide stops at the number.
From our practice
When a Dutch number fails in VIES, we check the entry before anything else: whether the VAT tax number went in instead of the VAT ID, whether NL was typed into the number field, whether the letters are in capitals. Only a correct entry that still fails is a VAT question. Each valid result is saved with the invoice it supports.
Ilse Brouwer, Tax, VAT and licensing lead · Reviewed by Joost van Leeuwen, Company formation and company law lead, on 4 October 2026.
Sources
- Wet op de omzetbelasting 1968, art. 2a(1)(g), 7(1), 9(1), 12(2), 25a(4), 34c(1)(a), 34d(1)(a) and 35a, version in force from 1 January 2026, wetten.overheid.nl, checked on 29 September 2026
- Handelsregisterwet 2007, art. 27(1), wetten.overheid.nl, checked on 29 September 2026
- VAT Directive 2006/112/EC, art. 214, 215 and 226, consolidated text of 14 April 2025, EUR-Lex, checked on 3 October 2026
- business.gov.nl, Numbers for VAT, checked on 3 October 2026
- business.gov.nl, Using and checking VAT numbers, checked on 3 October 2026
- business.gov.nl, LEI, RSIN, VAT and KVK number: which is which, checked on 29 September 2026
- business.gov.nl, Invoice requirements, checked on 29 September 2026
- KVK, How do I look up VAT numbers, checked on 3 October 2026
- KVK, What is a VAT tax number, checked on 3 October 2026
- KVK, Everything you need to know about the VAT identification number, checked on 29 September 2026
- Belastingdienst, VAT ID check, checked on 3 October 2026
- Your Europe, Check a VAT number (VIES), checked on 3 October 2026
- KVK, Why does the VIES website say my VAT ID is invalid, https://www.kvk.nl/en/international/why-does-the-vies-website-say-my-vat-id-is-invalid/, checked on 3 October 2026
- KVK, KVK number: all you need to know, https://www.kvk.nl/en/about-the-business-register/kvk-number-all-you-need-to-know/, checked on 29 September 2026
- KVK, RSIN number, https://www.kvk.nl/en/about-the-business-register/rsin-number/, checked on 29 September 2026
- KVK, Registration fee, https://www.kvk.nl/en/registration/registration-fee/, checked on 3 October 2026
- KVK, Shielding your business address, https://www.kvk.nl/en/about-the-business-register/shielding-your-business-address-what-are-the-options/, checked on 29 September 2026
- business.gov.nl, Filing your VAT return in the Netherlands, https://business.gov.nl/finance-and-taxes/filing-tax-returns/filing-your-vat-return-in-the-netherlands/, checked on 29 September 2026
- Belastingdienst, Invoice requirements, https://www.belastingdienst.nl/wps/wcm/connect/bldcontenten/belastingdienst/business/vat/vat_in_the_netherlands/vat_administration/invoice_requirements, checked on 3 October 2026
- Belastingdienst, Your tax office and registration, https://www.belastingdienst.nl/wps/wcm/connect/bldcontenten/belastingdienst/business/vat/vat_in_the_netherlands/your_tax_office_and_registration/your_tax_office_and_registration, checked on 3 October 2026
- Belastingdienst, Uw onderneming wijzigt van rechtsvorm (change of legal form), https://www.belastingdienst.nl/wps/wcm/connect/bldcontentnl/belastingdienst/zakelijk/ondernemen/onderneming_wijzigen_of_beeindigen/uw_onderneming_wijzigt_van_rechtsvorm/uw_onderneming_wijzigt_van_rechtsvorm, checked on 29 September 2026
- Belastingdienst, This is how eHerkenning works, https://www.belastingdienst.nl/wps/wcm/connect/en/business/content/this-is-how-eherkenning-works
- Belastingdienst, Buitenlands rekeningnummer doorgeven of wijzigen (login to the business portal), https://www.belastingdienst.nl/wps/wcm/connect/nl/betalenenontvangen/content/buitenlands-rekeningnummer-doorgeven-of-wijzigen, checked on 29 September 2026
Related service
Dutch VAT registration For a business that does not have its number yet: a new BV waiting on its letter, or a company outside the Netherlands registering directly.
DutchRegist: Ready-Made Companies in the Netherlands Taking over the shares of an existing BV: what a buyer checks before the notarial transfer, the company's VAT position included.