Owning a car in the Netherlands: registration, tax and insurance

Registration, permission to drive and permission to use a foreign plate are three separate questions. Owning the car does not make your licence valid, and a valid licence does not let a Dutch resident keep using any foreign plate. Check all three before you pay.

The detailed exceptions matter: an EU or EFTA licence issued while you were already registered here cannot simply be used, and temporary-protection rules for Ukraine are different. Read the RDW foreign-licence rules and start any exchange early with the foreign-licence exchange guide. An exchange application does not extend the 185-day driving period.

If you are registered, or should be registered, in the Dutch population register, you generally may not drive a foreign-plated car on Dutch public roads. A non-resident can generally use one privately for up to six months in a year. Residents borrowing or renting one may qualify for a maximum two consecutive weeks, but the short-use exemption must be requested before use and has strict limits. Use the foreign-plate checker for your facts.

• Enter the plate in the public RDW plate check. It shows public technical, tax, owner-count and last-transfer data, but never the owner's identity.
• Read the RDW mileage judgement. ‘Logical’ is useful; ‘no judgement’ can be normal for an imported or rebuilt car and is not proof that the history is clean.
• Check the VIN against the car and papers, the current APK expiry, maintenance records, recalls, damage and any finance or lease claim.
• Have an independent mechanic inspect the car when the price or risk justifies it. Put promised repairs and included items in writing.
• Check the seller has the registration card and complete nine-digit registration code before you pay. A seller should keep the car until the transfer succeeds.
• Price the full monthly cost: insurance, MRB, maintenance, tyres, fuel or charging, parking permit and possible zone restrictions.

When you buy from a business, the car must meet what you could reasonably expect from its age, price and description; this statutory guarantee has no fixed standard term. During the first year, the seller normally has to prove that a disputed defect was not present at delivery. A private purchase has weaker consumer protection, so use a written contract and inspection.

A private buyer must normally be at least 18 and registered in the Dutch population register with a residential or correspondence address. You need the seller's registration card (or document number) and the complete registration code. The RDW transfer page shows the accepted documents and the current €13.10 fee.

The transfer takes effect immediately. WA cover must start at that moment and a previous suspension ends. The buyer receives a registration report with part 1 of the code; the seller receives the vrijwaringsbewijs (indemnification certificate). Do not hand over the car before the seller has that proof. The card and code part 2 arrive by post. You may drive in the Netherlands for up to 14 days without the card, but must always carry it abroad. Confirm your registration in Mijn RDW, not from the public plate check.

Give the insurer the plate and meldcode, the last four digits of the VIN, and get written confirmation of the start time. Casco cover for your own car is optional. Ask each insurer how it treats a foreign licence and foreign no-claims record. Household personal liability insurance is separate; see the personal liability and contents insurance guide.

MRB depends on vehicle type, weight, fuel, emissions and province. Check the amount on the road-tax page and contact the Belastingdienst if no bill appears within one month; you still owe it. In 2026, fully electric and hydrogen passenger cars pay 70% of the corresponding full petrol rate, while passenger cars emitting 1–50 g CO₂/km pay the ordinary full rate. Check the 2026 electric-vehicle rates rather than an old quotation.

For ordinary passenger cars up to 3,500 kg, petrol and electric cars are first tested after four years, then twice every two years, then yearly from age eight. Diesel and LPG cars are first tested after three years and then yearly. A test up to two months early normally keeps the old expiry date. Confirm the exact deadline in the RDW APK schedule or Mijn RDW.

A schorsing (registration suspension) can run for one, two or three years. During it, MRB, WA and APK duties stop, but the car may not be driven or parked on a public road. Limited trips to a booked inspection have conditions, including insurance for that day. A sale ends the suspension, and the duties return as soon as it expires or is ended. If you end it within one month, MRB can be charged back to the start. Check the RDW suspension page before moving the car.

RDW compares the registration, insurance and APK registers daily. The RDW fine table checked in August 2026 lists €500 for an uninsured car and €190 for a light vehicle up to 3,500 kg without a valid APK. Fixing the car's status prevents new problems but does not automatically cancel a notice already issued; follow the objection instructions on that notice.

• Confirm whether an exemption applies before driving on foreign plates. A Dutch resident using them can owe both BPM purchase tax and MRB from the first day.
• For a vehicle from the EU or EFTA, follow the RDW moving-import route and book the RDW inspection. For a vehicle from elsewhere, complete the Customs route first.
• File the required BPM return, even when an approved exemption makes the amount zero. After RDW approval, arrange Dutch plates and WA insurance; MRB starts through the registration.

The BPM moving exemption is for BPM only. For a move from another EU country, the usual conditions include at least 12 months' normal residence abroad and owning and using the vehicle for at least six months before the move. Apply within 12 months and preferably obtain the decision before the RDW inspection. After exemption, you normally may not sell, rent or lend the vehicle for 12 months, apart from use by a cohabiting family member. MRB and registration still apply; moves from outside the EU follow Customs rules.

Paid parking, resident permits, visitor schemes and waiting lists are municipal. Check your address before buying; a permit is not guaranteed merely because you own a car. In a blue zone, set an approved parking disc to your arrival time and obey the signed maximum. An unpaid municipal parking charge can become a parking-tax assessment, while a traffic offence may come from the CJIB. Follow the issuer and deadline shown on the notice; see municipal parking-tax rules and the blue-zone rules.

Municipal milieuzones can exclude older diesel passenger cars by emissions class; petrol passenger cars may enter a milieuzone. Zero-emission zones are based on registration category and apply to vans and lorries, including a privately used van—not to an ordinary passenger car. Rules and transition periods change, so enter the plate in the national zone checker before buying or travelling.

• Call 112 for injuries, immediate danger or a blocked unsafe road. Give first aid if you can and move drivable vehicles to safety after taking quick photos.
• Never leave without exchanging names, contact, plate and insurance details. Photograph positions, damage, signs and road conditions, and record witnesses.
• Complete the European accident statement or the approved mobile report. The police advise sending the paper form to your insurer within 24 hours.

Police do not attend every damage-only collision and do not decide civil liability; insurers do. They may attend where there are injuries, suspected drink-driving, missing licence or insurance, aggression, serious obstruction or an unresolvable dispute. Follow the police accident steps and call if the situation is unsafe.

For a Dutch sale, keep the vehicle and keys until the buyer completes the transfer and you receive the vrijwaringsbewijs. Give the buyer the latest APK report, check in Mijn RDW that the vehicle has left your name, then end or change your insurance. The RDW informs the Belastingdienst. Keep the proof; a replacement report is possible if it is lost.

A foreign buyer needs a formal export, not an ordinary Dutch transfer. It is safest for the buyer to register the export in their own name. If you arrange it, you can remain responsible until it is registered abroad. Follow the RDW export procedure, keep the indemnification and export documents, and do not cancel insurance before deregistration is confirmed. After export, driving in the Netherlands for up to 14 days on the white export number is allowed only with insurance and, for a car, a valid APK.

• Check the licence, residence status and plate before using the car.
• Check the vehicle history, parking permit, zones and full monthly budget.
• Get an insurance quote and confirmed start time before the RDW transfer.
• Transfer only when both parties can receive and save the RDW proof.
• Save the insurance, MRB, APK and parking deadlines, and keep sale or export proof when the car leaves you.