The cost of moving to the Netherlands: 2026 official fees, first-month housing money, and the costs people forget

You can price most of a move to the Netherlands before you book anything. The official costs are fixed and public: the IND (Immigration and Naturalisation Service) publishes its application fees, the basisexamen inburgering buitenland (the exam many family migrants take before the MVV entry visa) has one set price, and Dutch law caps the rental deposit. This guide collects those 2026 amounts, adds the first-month housing and health insurance money, and lists the costs people forget. It also names the costs that no official page can price, so you know what to get quotes for. It covers the one-time cost of the move itself; for the monthly budget that starts after you arrive, use the cost of living guide.

Almost every newcomer from outside the EU pays the IND an application fee for a residence permit. The fee depends on the route. These are the 2026 amounts for the common routes:

Two things about these amounts. First, they are valid from 1 January to 31 December, and the IND sets new fees every 1 January. Second, on the family route there is no separate bill for the MVV. The €254 pays for one combined application, the TEV procedure (Toegang en Verblijf, Entry and Residence): the entry visa and the residence permit together. The fee is also not the only money rule on that route. The sponsor must meet an income norm, and the IND resets that norm every 1 January and 1 July. The MVV and family reunification guide covers the procedure and the current norm. If you are not sure which route is yours, start with the residence permits overview.

On the family route there is usually an exam before the visa: the partner abroad passes the basisexamen inburgering buitenland before the MVV application. Some partners do not have to take it. The complete exam costs €150 in 2026, stated on the official Naar Nederland site. If you take only one part, for example a resit of one failed part, you pay €50 for that part. The exam has three parts: speaking, reading and knowledge of Dutch society. The language level is A1. You register and pay through DUO, the government's education agency, and you sit the exam at a Dutch embassy or consulate-general. Whether the exam applies to you, how to register and how to prepare are covered in the basisexamen prep guide.

Your certificates cost money to get ready, and no single official price exists. Legalisation happens in the country that issued the document, and each country's authorities charge their own fees. The charges of Dutch embassies for consular services are listed per country on the consular fees pages. For some countries the ministry's Consular Service Centre can mediate to obtain and legalise documents. That service costs €131 per document, or €36.25 when only the final legalisation by the Dutch embassy is missing. Sworn translators set their own rates, so ask more than one for a quote. Which documents you need in which form, and why to arrange them before you leave, is the subject of the documents guide. Do not treat this line as small: several certificates, each issued, legalised and translated, add up.

The deposit is capped by law. For rental contracts signed from 1 July 2023 on, the maximum deposit is two months' basic rent. Basic rent means the kale huur (bare rent), without service costs. On top of the deposit comes the first month's rent. How high that is depends on the segment: in 2026, social housing has a starting bare rent of €932.93 or less, mid-rent runs up to €1,228.07, and the free sector sits above that. Where homes are listed and how selection works is covered in the finding a rental guide.

Two payments are not yours to make. If the landlord hired the letting agency, the mediation fees are the landlord's cost, and the agency may not charge you as well. You only pay an agency that you yourself hired to search for you. And pay nothing at all before you have seen the home, checked the landlord and signed a contract. Requests to pay before a viewing or a contract are the standard fraud pattern; the rental scams guide lists the checks that catch it.

Dutch health insurance is mandatory, and waiting does not make it cheaper. You must take out a policy within four months of your residence permit taking effect, and the policy must run from the day the permit took effect. Sign up in month three, and you pay the premiums for the missed months retroactively. So the premium belongs in your budget from month one. The average premium for basic insurance in 2026 is €1,884 a year, which is €157 a month per adult. Your insurer sets your exact premium. Children under 18 pay no premium. At a normal income, zorgtoeslag (healthcare benefit) pays part of the premium back every month. The deadline, the fine for missing it, and the zorgtoeslag application are covered in the health insurance guide.

The table adds up the fixed fees and the first housing payments for one common case: a partner moving on the MVV family route and renting privately at €1,100 bare rent. The rent is an assumption. Every other number is an official 2026 amount from this guide.

Document costs come on top and depend on your country and the number of certificates. The deposit is not lost money. It comes back at the end of the tenancy under the rules in the rental contracts guide, but you must have it available now. The fee side looks different on the other routes: the IND collects the highly skilled migrant fee from the employer, and the study fee is paid through the educational institution. Ask your institution whether it charges the fee on to you.

These costs sit outside the application and the rent, so they are missing from most moving budgets.

• Municipal taxes in your arrival year. After you register at an address, the gemeente (municipality) sends yearly bills, such as afvalstoffenheffing (waste charge) and rioolheffing (sewer charge), and the waterschap (water board) sends its own tax bill. Each municipality sets its own rates every year. At a low income you can ask for kwijtschelding (a waiver); the gemeente then looks at your income and assets. Amounts and the waiver steps are in the municipal taxes guide.
• The driving licence. An EU or EFTA licence can be exchanged for a Dutch one if you meet the requirements. Most other licences cannot, apart from a short list of countries and special cases. You apply at your municipality and pay a fee that differs per municipality, as the RDW (the national vehicle authority) explains. If exchange is not possible, you take the Dutch theory and practical exams instead. The driving licence guide covers both paths and what they cost.
• Furnishing the home. Dutch rentals are let at very different levels of finish. A home listed as kaal (bare) or ongemeubileerd (unfurnished) can come with far less than you expect. Ask the landlord for a written list of what stays: flooring, curtains, lamps, appliances. Everything missing is yours to buy, so budget for it before you sign.
• Pets and household goods. Moving a pet or a container of used belongings has its own rules and costs. The pets and household goods guide covers them, including the customs relief for used household goods.
• Energy and water. Contracts for the new address start at move-in and bill a monthly advance from the first month. The utilities guide covers choosing and setting up the contracts.

No official body sets prices for flights, international movers, shipping containers or storage. Prices differ per route, per season and per company. Collect two or three quotes for each of these while you plan, and put them next to the fixed fees above. Furniture works the same way: the cost depends on what the home includes and on what you bring. Your quotes plus the official amounts in this guide are your real moving budget.

IND fees are valid from 1 January to 31 December, and new fees apply every 1 January. The income norm for family sponsors changes even twice a year, on 1 January and 1 July. A budget made in the autumn can be wrong by the week you apply. Re-check the IND fees page just before you submit, and on the family route check the current income amounts at the same time.

For contracts signed from 1 July 2023 on, two months' bare rent is the legal maximum deposit. A higher demand is unlawful. It is also a warning sign, because asking for many months upfront is a common fraud pattern. Do not pay above the cap. Check the home and the landlord first, and run the checks from the rental scams guide before any money moves.

Newcomers often leave health insurance until the rest of the admin is done. The policy then still starts on the day the permit took effect, and you pay the premiums for the missed months retroactively. Waiting saves nothing and only makes the first bill bigger. Arrange the policy early in your arrival admin; the first 90 days checklist shows where it fits in the order.

The bills tied to your address follow the yearly cycles of the gemeente and the waterschap, not your moving date. The first envelopes can arrive when the moving budget is already spent. Plan for them in your first year. If a low income means you cannot pay, ask the gemeente for kwijtschelding instead of ignoring the bills. A waiver is also possible for the water-board tax.

After the one-time costs come the monthly ones. The cost of living guide puts 2026 numbers on rent, groceries, energy and the benefits that bring part of the money back. The documents guide covers what to arrange before you leave, and the first 90 days checklist covers the admin after you land.