Owning a car in the Netherlands: what to arrange

Vehicle registration, licence validity and permission to use foreign plates have separate rules. Check all three before you pay.

Check the car’s registration and your licence separately. If you live in the Netherlands and the car has foreign plates, import it or confirm an exemption before driving.

You must exchange an EU or EFTA licence issued while you were already registered in the Netherlands. Complete the exchange before driving here.

Ukrainian licence holders covered by temporary protection can continue driving, including with an expired licence.

Check the RDW foreign-licence rules (External site, opens in a new tab) and use the foreign-licence exchange guide for your route.

If you are registered, or should be registered, in the BRP (population register), you generally may not drive a foreign-plated car on Dutch public roads. Without an exemption, you must pay BPM (vehicle purchase tax) and MRB for that road use. NederlandWereldwijd (External site, opens in a new tab) (Netherlands Worldwide) explains the foreign-plate route for your situation.

For non-residents, the general tax exemption allows up to three months of use per year. If your main home is in another EU country and you do not use the car to transport goods or people for payment, the limit is six months per year. That year starts with the first use on Dutch roads. These periods need not be consecutive. The Belastingdienst (External site, opens in a new tab) (Dutch tax authority) also lists study and commuting exceptions.

Residents borrowing, renting or leasing a foreign-plated car may qualify for up to two consecutive weeks. The car must have been made available abroad. Request the short-use exemption (External site, opens in a new tab) before using it here. You can use it for the same car only once every 12 months. If you exceed the limit or fail the conditions, BPM and MRB apply from the first day.

Make all six checks before paying for a used car:

• Enter the plate in the RDW plate check (External site, opens in a new tab). It shows public technical, tax, owner-count and last-transfer data. It excludes the owner’s identity.
• Read the RDW mileage judgement (External site, opens in a new tab). “Logical” means the recorded readings increase. “No judgement” can occur for an imported or modified car. It means RDW lacks enough information to judge the mileage. It does not prove a clean history.
• Compare the VIN (vehicle identification number) on the car and papers. Check the APK expiry, maintenance records, recalls, damage and any finance or lease claim.
• Ask an independent mechanic to inspect the car if the price or risk justifies the cost. Put promised repairs and included items in writing.
• Check the seller has the kentekencard (registration card) and complete nine-digit tenaamstellingscode (registration code). For an older paper certificate, check that the original registration and transfer documents are complete.
• Work out the full monthly cost: insurance, MRB, maintenance, tyres, fuel or charging and a parking permit. Check zone restrictions too. Compare your options with the public transport guide.

When you buy from a business, the car must meet what you can reasonably expect from its age, price and description. ACM ConsuWijzer (External site, opens in a new tab) (government consumer advice service) explains wettelijke garantie (statutory guarantee). It has no fixed standard term.

If an unexpected defect appears within one year after delivery, the law normally presumes the car did not meet the sales agreement at delivery. The seller must prove otherwise, including any claim that you caused the problem. This rule does not apply if the type of car or fault rules out that presumption.

A private purchase has fewer consumer protections. Use a written contract and have the car inspected.

To put a car in your own name, you must be at least 18. You must also be registered in the BRP with a Dutch residential or correspondence address. The transfer fee is €13.10 in 2026.

You need the valid kentekencard or temporary document number and the complete registration code. For a paper registration certificate, take the original registration and transfer documents. You cannot transfer a paper certificate online.

Choose one of these two transfer routes. Your identity document and the type of registration document decide which route you can use.

A residence permit or foreign-national identity document cannot be used to register a car. Check the RDW list of accepted identity documents (External site, opens in a new tab) for your document. If your identity document does not show your BSN (citizen service number), have the number ready for the desk employee.

After checking the car and documents, complete the handover in this order:

1. Arrange WA insurance to start at the transfer time.
2. Complete the transfer through your chosen route.
3. Save your tenaamstellingsverslag (registration report) and part 1 of the code.
4. Give the seller the vrijwaringsbewijs (proof that the car is no longer in their name).
5. Collect the car after the seller has that proof.

The transfer takes effect immediately. Any previous suspension ends, and the insurance, tax and applicable APK duties become yours. The kentekencard and part 2 of the code arrive by post. You may drive in the Netherlands for up to 14 days without the card. You must carry it when driving abroad. Confirm that the car is in your name through Mijn RDW (External site, opens in a new tab) (your vehicle account), rather than the public plate check.

Check these three duties when the car is registered in your name. MRB and APK exemptions can apply. A formal suspension pauses the duties while you keep the car off public roads.

Give the insurer the plate and meldcode (insurance registration code). The meldcode is the last four digits of the VIN. Get written confirmation of the insurance start time. Casco (cover for damage to your own car) is optional; WA does not cover that damage. Ask the insurer whether it accepts your foreign licence and no-claims record.

Household personal liability insurance is separate from car insurance. For household cover, use the personal liability and contents insurance guide.

MRB depends on vehicle type, weight, fuel, emissions and province. Use the calculation tool on the MRB page (External site, opens in a new tab). If you owe MRB and no bill arrives within one month after registration, contact the Belastingdienst. You still owe the tax.

A passenger car qualifies for the oldtimer (External site, opens in a new tab) (classic car) MRB exemption if it meets both age conditions. It must have been first used at least 40 years ago and before 1 January 1988. The exemption is automatic. Insurance and any required APK still apply.

In 2026, fully electric and hydrogen passenger cars pay 70% of the corresponding full petrol rate unless exempt. Passenger cars emitting 1–50 g CO₂ (carbon dioxide) per kilometre pay the full rate unless exempt. Check the 2026 electric-vehicle rates (External site, opens in a new tab) before budgeting.

For example, if the corresponding full petrol rate is €100 per quarter, a fully electric passenger car pays €70 per quarter in 2026. The €100 is an example amount. Use the tax calculator for your car’s actual rate.

For ordinary passenger cars up to 3,500 kg and under 30 years old, the APK schedule depends on fuel. Petrol and electric cars have their first test after four years, then at six and eight years, then yearly. Diesel and LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) cars have their first test after three years, then yearly.

Cars aged 30–49 need an APK every two years. Cars aged 50 or more have no APK duty. Age runs from the date the car was first admitted to the road.

Testing up to two months early keeps the existing expiry day and month. Confirm the exact deadline in the RDW APK schedule (External site, opens in a new tab) or Mijn RDW.

A schorsing (registration suspension) can run for one, two or three years. During it, MRB, WA and APK duties stop. You must keep the car off public roads, including when parked. Apply through the RDW suspension service (External site, opens in a new tab).

You can drive to a booked inspection during suspension under specific conditions. For an APK appointment, insure the car for that day and take the appointment confirmation. Use the shortest route around the appointment time. Get an APK report dated that day, whether the car passes or fails.

A registration transfer ends the suspension. The duties return as soon as the suspension expires or you end it. If you end it within 30 days, you must pay MRB for the suspended period.

A fine does not end your insurance and inspection duties. Arrange the missing cover or inspection, or suspend the car and keep it off public roads. In 2026, the RDW fine table (External site, opens in a new tab) lists €500 for an uninsured passenger car and €190 for a vehicle up to 3,500 kg without a valid APK. RDW compares the registration, insurance and APK registers daily.

Fixing the car’s status does not automatically cancel an earlier fine. Follow the appeal instructions and deadline on the notice. If the car was insured on the date of the check, ask your insurer for the official statement needed for an appeal. If it had a valid APK, use the inspection report as evidence. The Openbaar Ministerie (External site, opens in a new tab) (public prosecution service) explains these evidence rules.

Before driving on foreign plates, confirm whether an exemption applies. Without one, Dutch residents must pay BPM and MRB from the first day of use on Dutch public roads. The registration route and Douane (External site, opens in a new tab) (Customs) rules depend on where the car comes from.

If you bring your own car when you move, follow the RDW moving-import route (External site, opens in a new tab). If you buy a car in another EU or EFTA country, use the RDW European-import route (External site, opens in a new tab).

For a car bought outside the EU, complete the declaration to Douane where you bring it into the Netherlands. This also applies to purchases in EFTA countries. Check the Douane car-import rules (External site, opens in a new tab) before the RDW inspection.

For a move from another EU country, the BPM moving exemption (External site, opens in a new tab) covers BPM only. All these conditions apply:

• The car is part of your household goods.
• You will use it for the same purpose after moving.
• You owned and used it for at least six months before the move.
• Your normal residence was abroad for at least 12 months before the move.
• You apply within 12 months after moving.

Apply for the exemption before the RDW inspection and bring the required exemption document. Family members who live with you may drive the car. If you sell, rent or lend it within 12 months after the exemption starts, you must pay BPM. The BPM exemption does not remove registration or any MRB duty.

For a move from outside the EU, use the Douane relocation route. Complete the required declaration before the RDW inspection.

Before the RDW inspection, complete any required declaration to Douane and obtain any exemption documents required for your route. Register the car in this order:

1. Book the RDW inspection.
2. Take the original foreign registration certificate and the documents required for your route to the appointment.
3. File the required BPM return, even if an approved moving exemption makes the amount zero. An exempt moving vehicle needs a paper return.
4. After RDW and Belastingdienst approval, use the registration certificate to get Dutch plates.

Arrange WA insurance to start when the car is registered in your name. Registration also starts MRB unless an exemption applies.

For a car from the EU or EFTA, ask RDW to accept any valid inspection from those countries and take proof to the appointment. If an APK is required and no inspection is accepted or carried out, arrange the test immediately after receiving the Dutch registration certificate. For a relocation from outside the EU or EFTA, RDW issues an APK report after approval.

Check paid parking, resident permits, visitor schemes and waiting lists for your address before buying. Your gemeente (municipality) sets these rules. Owning a car does not guarantee a permit. For example, Amsterdam’s resident-permit page (External site, opens in a new tab) checks address eligibility, costs and waiting lists. Other municipalities have their own conditions.

In a blauwe zone (parking-disc zone), use a parkeerschijf (parking disc) that meets Dutch requirements. Place it visibly behind the windscreen and set it to your arrival time. You may round up to the next whole or half hour. Follow the maximum parking time on the sign. The Rijksoverheid (External site, opens in a new tab) (Dutch government) explains the parking-disc rules.

Unpaid municipal parking charges can lead to a naheffingsaanslag parkeerbelasting (parking-tax assessment). A traffic offence can lead to a fine from the CJIB (Central Judicial Collection Agency). Follow the issuer’s instructions and the deadline on the notice. Rechtspraak (External site, opens in a new tab) (Dutch judiciary) explains the two procedures.

A milieuzone (environmental zone) can exclude older diesel passenger cars by emissions class. Petrol passenger cars may enter. Check your plate in the Milieuzonecheck (External site, opens in a new tab) (environmental-zone checker) and check the local boundaries before buying or travelling. This tool covers environmental zones; zero-emission zones need a separate check.

Zero-emission zones depend on the vehicle’s registration category. They cover vans and lorries, including privately used ones. Vehicles registered as passenger cars fall outside these rules. For a van or lorry, use Op weg naar ZES (External site, opens in a new tab) (zero-emission-zone information service) to check current access and transition rules. If you use it only privately, check whether you qualify for an RDW exemption.

Protect people first, then record what happened. Follow these steps in order:

1. Call 112 for injuries, immediate danger or an unsafe blocked road.
2. Move yourself and others to safety. Do not move an injured person unless necessary for safety.
3. Give first aid if you can.
4. Take photos of the vehicle positions before moving the cars, if it is safe.
5. Move the cars to a safe place if they can be driven.
6. Exchange names, contact details, registration numbers and insurance details before leaving.
7. Photograph the damage, signs and road conditions.
8. Record witnesses’ contact details.
9. Complete the Europees schadeformulier (European accident statement) or use the mobile report linked in the police guidance.

If you use the paper form, Politie (External site, opens in a new tab) (Dutch police) advises informing your insurer within 24 hours. The mobile report sends the information automatically.

Police do not attend every damage-only collision. They attend where there are injuries, very serious damage, suspected drink-driving, a missing licence or insurance, aggression, a road that cannot be cleared or a dispute the parties cannot resolve. Insurers decide who is responsible for paying for the damage. Call if the situation is unsafe.

For a Dutch sale, keep the car and keys until the buyer completes the transfer and you receive the vrijwaringsbewijs. Give the buyer the latest APK report if the car has been inspected. Check in Mijn RDW that the car has left your name, then end or change your insurance. RDW informs the Belastingdienst.

Keep the proof. If you lose it, download an RDW overview of vehicles previously in your name. Many insurers accept that overview. The RDW lost-proof guidance (External site, opens in a new tab) explains how to get it.

If the buyer lives abroad, the car needs a formal export. Have the buyer register the export in their own name. If you arrange it, you remain responsible until the car is registered abroad. Follow the RDW export procedure (External site, opens in a new tab). Keep the vrijwaringsbewijs and export documents, and wait for confirmed deregistration before cancelling insurance.

After export, you may drive in the Netherlands for up to 14 days on the white export plates. A car must have insurance and a valid APK for those journeys.

Before buying or using the car, check the licence, residence status, plates, vehicle history, parking permit, zones and monthly budget. Before transfer, get an insurance quote and confirm its start time. Make sure both parties can receive and save the RDW proof. After transfer, save the insurance, MRB, APK and parking deadlines. When you sell or export, keep proof that the car has left your name.

Use the guide that matches the task you still need to complete:

• Exchange a foreign driving licence.
• Set up and use DigiD.
• Check municipal taxes and an assessment.