The Non-Mailing Indicator
- Edited 13 September 2024
- 1 min
The Non Mailing Indicator (NMI) is a tool you use to protect your contact details. If you turn on the NMI, businesses are no longer allowed to use your Business Register data for mail advertising or door-to-door sales. Anyone who requests an extract of your details from the KVK will see the NMI on it and must take your wishes into account. Once you have activated the NMI, both your Business Register extract and the information on the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce KVK website will specify this.
Businesses use the information from the Business Register to check the details of business partners or to find new customers. You can also use this business information to find new customers or check who you are doing business with.
Activating the NMIÂ
Use the (Dutch only) form for switching the non-mailing indicator on or off.
When you register in the Business Register, you can activate the NMI straightaway. Activating the NMI at a later date usually has little noticeable effect: if you wait a couple of months, for example, many organisations will already have recorded your details in their files. And so they will remain, unless they get regular database updates from KVK.
So if you want to prevent receiving unwanted mail or visits, you would do well to activate the NMI directly upon registration.
As soon as KVK has activated the NMI (within a few working days) and the address database users have processed this, the number of mailings should drop. Address database users are required to process the NMI in their databases.
Good to know
Your phone number listed in the Business Register is not public data. Only organisations that have permission to do so, such as the Netherlands Tax Administration or civil-law notaries, can see your phone number.
No more unwanted mail?
Turning on the NMI means that others are less able to find your address. For example, Google does not include businesses with an NMI in Google Maps. The NMI does not guarantee that nobody will come to your door anymore. Businesses and organisations also find address details in other places, such as directories and websites. And businesses naturally also reach you by email or phone. So get started with more tips against unwanted mail, e-mails or phone calls.
Frequently asked questions
Companies are only allowed to send you commercial email if you have given them your consent. There is an exception to this rule. If the company has sold a service or product to you (i.e. you are an existing customer), they may email you about similar services or products without asking your permission.Â
If you receive unwanted digital mail (spam), ask the sender to stop. If they do not stop, you can lodge a complaint with the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets . They also offer tips on how to avoid receiving spam.
The Commercial Register Act 2007 (Handelsregisterwet) states that KVK must register the phone number of every entrepreneur. The phone number is not public. Only KVK and authorised organisations, such as the Netherlands Tax Administration or a civil-law notary, can see your phone number and contact you.Â
Are you bothered by annoying phone calls? Read here what you can do about it.Â
You can change your business details in the phone guide and Yellow Pages (Telefoongids & Gouden Gids) yourself online, via . Open your entry on detelefoongids.nl, click on your name to see the details. Then click the 'Manage your company data free of charge' link (in Dutch: 'Beheer gratis jouw bedrijfsgegevens').
To request removal of your details by Google, use this . To request removal from other websites, you can use the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens, AP) sample  (in Dutch).Â
On social media, manage the visibility of your details through your settings.