A new client asks for your KVK number for the quote, and a supplier’s sign-up form wants your KVK number, VAT number and RSIN all at once. What is a KVK number, where does it come from and how does it differ from the other numbers of your business?
How to register your business and what it costs is covered in our article on registering with the KVK. This one is about the number itself: what it looks like, where to find it and which other numbers come with it, including those from the Dutch Tax Administration (Belastingdienst).
In short:
- What it is: an eight-digit number that shows your business is in the Business Register (Handelsregister) of the KVK, the Dutch Chamber of Commerce. Every business has one.
- When you get it: when you register. Register from a week before to a week after your start date and you get it straight away; register earlier and a letter follows in the week your business starts.
- Where to find it: in the KVK welcome letter, in a KVK extract, in Mijn KVK and in the online Business Register.
- Where it must appear: on letters, quotes, invoices, your website and business e-mails, with a few exceptions.
- What it is not: your VAT number (that comes from the Belastingdienst), your RSIN or the branch number.
What is a KVK number?
The KVK number is the eight-digit number a business or organisation receives when it registers in the Business Register of the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce (KVK). It shows that the business is registered there. Under the Dutch Commercial Register Act (Handelsregisterwet), all Dutch businesses and organisations have to register, which you can do if you meet the KVK’s criteria for an entrepreneur. A business has only one KVK number, even if it carries out several activities or trades under several trade names.
The number exists mainly so that people can check who they are doing business with. With a KVK number you look a business up in the Business Register and see details such as the visiting address and the officers (functionarissen). That way you can check a new client or supplier, and they can do the same with your business.
A KVK number example
A KVK number consists of eight digits, without letters or a country code. A real example of a KVK number is in Vivid’s imprint: the Dutch branch of Vivid Money S.A. is registered in the Business Register under number 96555491. If you look that number up in the Business Register, you see the details that belong to that registration, such as the visiting address and the officers. A customer checks your business the same way.
That makes the KVK number easy to tell apart from the other numbers on an invoice. A VAT number starts with NL and has a letter B before the last two digits, a branch number has twelve digits. The KVK number is the only one of the three with exactly eight digits and nothing else.
In the footer of an invoice or quote, the numbers can sit with the company details. Using made-up numbers and the Belastingdienst’s example VAT ID, it could look like this:
The branch number and the RSIN do not have to be there. The VAT tax number does not belong there: you only use it in contact with the Belastingdienst.
Where do I find my KVK number?
If you have lost your own number, the KVK names four places where you can find it:
You get the number when you register. According to the KVK, you can come in to register no earlier than three months before your business starts. If you register a week before or after the start date, you get the KVK number straight away. If you register earlier, you receive a letter with the number in the week of the start date. Do not wait too long: you have to be registered within a week after your business has started its activities.
Where the KVK number has to appear
Customers and business partners must be able to check who they are dealing with. That is why the law says that your business’s KVK number has to be on letters, quotes, invoices, your website and business e-mails. So the number belongs on every invoice, and in the footer of your e-mails too. The KVK names a few exceptions: associations and foundations without a business, owners’ associations (VvE), the government and religious communities.
You also need the number yourself to show that you have a business. The KVK gives these examples, among others:
KVK number, branch number and RSIN
At registration and afterwards, a business gets more than one number. They come from two authorities and each has its own purpose. The RSIN and the branch number (vestigingsnummer) come from the KVK, the VAT ID and the VAT tax number from the Belastingdienst:
| Number | Issued by | Feature | Used for | On your invoice |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KVK number | KVK | Eight digits | Shows your business is in the Business Register | Required |
| Branch number (vestigingsnummer) | KVK | Twelve digits | One per branch, such as a shop or office | Not required |
| RSIN | KVK | Not for a sole proprietorship | Data exchange between organisations, such as the Belastingdienst | Not required |
| VAT ID (btw-id) | Belastingdienst | NL, nine digits, B, two digits | Contact with customers and suppliers | Required, unless exempt or using the KOR |
| VAT tax number (omzetbelastingnummer) | Belastingdienst | Nine digits, B, two digits | Only contact with the Belastingdienst | Not meant for customers |
Branch number (vestigingsnummer)
According to the KVK, every branch of a business in the Business Register has a branch number of twelve digits. A branch is a place where the business carries out activities, such as a shop, workshop or office. If a business has one branch, that is its main branch; there can also be secondary branches. The branch number does not resemble the KVK number, and you do not have to put it on your letterhead, invoices or website. If you take over a branch and continue it, the branch number stays the same. You find the number of a branch by searching the Business Register by business name, address or KVK number, or in the extract. Not every organisation has one: many associations, foundations and owners’ associations have no branch and therefore no branch number.
RSIN
RSIN stands for Rechtspersonen en Samenwerkingsverbanden Informatienummer, the information number for legal entities and partnerships. You receive it at registration alongside the KVK number, except with a sole proprietorship (eenmanszaak): only sole proprietorships do not get an RSIN. Organisations use the RSIN to exchange data about your business, including the Belastingdienst, the Personal Records Database (BRP) and the Land Registry (Kadaster). Your own RSIN is in Mijn KVK, another business’s in the Business Register extract. You do not have to put it on your website. The number exists for legal forms with legal personality, such as a bv, and for partnerships, such as a vof. You also come across it outside your own business: according to Ondernemersplein, if you want to deduct a donation to a charity from your taxes, you need that charity’s RSIN.
The KVK number by legal form
Every business in the Business Register gets one KVK number, but which other numbers come with it and who handles the registration depends on the legal form:
For the duty to state the number, the legal form of a business makes no difference: the KVK number belongs on your invoices, quotes and website. According to the KVK, an association or foundation without a business is one of the exceptions.
The difference between a KVK number and a VAT number
The VAT number, in full the VAT identification number or btw-id, does not come from the KVK but from the Belastingdienst. After your KVK registration, the Belastingdienst assesses whether you are an entrepreneur for VAT; this takes at most ten working days. If you are, you get a VAT ID and a VAT tax number. The VAT ID has a fixed structure: NL, nine digits, the letter B and two digits, for example NL123456789B01. For a sole proprietorship it does not contain your citizen service number (BSN); for other legal forms, the nine digits are the RSIN.
On your invoice, the KVK number and the VAT ID therefore sit side by side. According to the KVK, the VAT number does not have to be on the invoice if you are exempt from VAT or use the small business scheme (KOR). The VAT tax number is only for contact with the Belastingdienst. That is why, as a freelancer (zzp’er), you receive two letters: one with your VAT ID and one with your VAT tax number, which does contain your citizen service number.
One KVK number, sometimes two VAT numbers
While a business always has one KVK number, it can apply to the Belastingdienst for a second VAT number. According to the KVK, this is possible if you already have a business and start a new activity, for example a second shop or an activity with a different VAT rate. You then also get an extra VAT tax number, keep separate records for that activity and file a separate VAT return for it. If you work in a sector that is exempt from VAT, according to the KVK you do get a VAT number, but you do not charge VAT and do not file VAT returns.
Checking a VAT number
You look up a KVK number in the Business Register, but according to the KVK there is no central place to look up VAT numbers. You can, however, check in VIES, the European Union’s database, whether a VAT number is valid and whether the business’s name and address details are correct. That only works with the VAT number itself: if you search with a VAT tax number, you get an error message. So do not give your VAT tax number to customers either. You find your own VAT ID and VAT tax number in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk, under ‘Btw’.
Good to know: the KVK number says who you are in the Business Register, the VAT ID who you are for VAT. If you are an entrepreneur for VAT and no exception such as the KOR applies, both belong on your invoice.
Your numbers when you stop
You cannot cancel a KVK number on its own. If you stop your business, you deregister it with the KVK, and the KVK passes the deregistration on to the Belastingdienst. Your VAT number then still belongs to your business, but it is no longer in use. It can take a while before the Belastingdienst has processed the deregistration, and sometimes you still have to file a VAT return when you have already stopped. So keep the letters with your numbers after stopping too.
Your KVK number and a business account
You also need your company details to open a business account. At Vivid, this is how it goes:
Vivid in short: with your KVK details at hand you apply online for a business account with a Dutch IBAN, and a bv in formation can already start with a Founder account. Read more at Vivid Business.
Your business account with Vivid
Apply online with your company details, with a Dutch IBAN and sub-accounts with their own IBAN.
Frequently asked questions
How many digits does a KVK number have?
Eight. A KVK number consists only of digits, without letters or a country code. A branch number has twelve, and a VAT ID starts with NL.
Where do you find your own KVK number?
In the KVK welcome letter and in Mijn KVK. If you look your business up by name in the online Business Register, you see the number there too.
Is the KVK number the same as the VAT number?
No. What the KVK number shows is your registration in the Business Register; the VAT number comes from the Belastingdienst and shows that you are an entrepreneur for VAT. The VAT number starts with NL and has a letter B.
Does a sole proprietorship have an RSIN?
No. According to the KVK, only sole proprietorships do not get an RSIN. So the extract of a sole proprietorship does not show an RSIN either.
Does the branch number have to be on your invoice?
No. According to the KVK, you do not have to put the branch number on your letterhead, invoices or website. The KVK number does have to be there.
Can a business have more than one KVK number?
No. Every business has one KVK number, even with several activities or trade names. Each branch does have its own branch number.
Where do you find a customer’s VAT number?
On that customer’s website or invoices, or you ask for it. According to the KVK there is no central list. In VIES, the European Union’s database, you can check whether a VAT number is valid.
Can you cancel your KVK number?
Not on its own. If you stop your business, you deregister it with the KVK. The KVK passes the deregistration on to the Belastingdienst.
This article provides general information and is not legal or tax advice. The rules mentioned are as published by the KVK, Ondernemersplein and the Belastingdienst, and may change. Vivid’s payment services are provided by Vivid Money S.A., an electronic money institution authorised and regulated by the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) in Luxembourg; its Dutch branch is registered with De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) as an electronic money institution.
