Proof of visiting address and postal address in the Business Register

Every business and organisation must have a registered visiting address listed in the Business Register. Do you receive your post at a different address? Then you can also provide a postal address.

• What is a visiting address?
• Proof: certificate of ownership, rental or service contract
• Conditions for declaration of consent
• KVK checks

What is a visiting address?

A visiting address is the place where your organisation or business carries out its work or, for example, receives customers and suppliers. Or where staff from KVK and the Netherlands Tax Administration carry out inspections. You must be present on a regular basis at your business’s or organisation’s business address as listed in the Business Register.

The activities of the business or organisation must also take place there. The business address must not be a PO Box. A postal address in the Netherlands must be listed in the Basic Register of Addresses and Buildings (BAG, in Dutch).

If the visiting or postal address is not the same as the residential address of a business owner or managing director as recorded in the Basic Register of Persons (BRP, in Dutch) maintained by Dutch municipalities, you must provide evidence that the business or organisation uses that visiting or postal address.

Proof: certificate of ownership, rental or service contract

How you prove that you are using a visiting or postal address depends on the situation. Do you own a residential or commercial property where you do not live yourself? If so, you can prove this with a certificate of ownership from the (Land Registry Office, in Dutch) or a copy of a purchase agreement.

You can also rent premises for your business or organisation. In that case, a copy of a tenancy agreement, for example, will serve as proof. KVK will check with the Land Registry Office to verify whether a landlord is the owner of the property.

If the landlord is not the owner of the property, KVK will require further evidence. This could be a main tenancy agreement in which the owner gives permission for subletting. Alternatively, it could be, for example, a statement from the property owner giving permission, in addition to a tenancy agreement.

If a business or organisation operates from a multi-company building, a commercial agreement serves as proof. This could be a tenancy or service contract. 

In the case of a multi-company building, the rental company must be listed at the same address in the Business Register. The letting company must also be registered in the Business Register with the business activity: ‘De verhuur of bemiddeling van bedrijfsruimte’ (‘The letting or brokering of commercial premises’).

Conditions for a declaration of consent

Is there no service, rental, or purchase agreement to prove that a business or organisation is using a visiting or postal address? In some cases, the tenant or owner of a residential address can give you a declaration of consent to show they allow you to use the address to register your business or organisation in the Business Register.

These are the conditions for a declaration of consent:

1. The address that the business or organisation registers in the Business Register as its visiting or postal address is classified as a residential property under the BAG.
2. The business does not have a business agreement, such as a service, rental, or purchase contract for the use of the residential address.
3. The owner of the property agrees to the business or organisation carrying out its activities there.
4. The person giving consent either lives at the address as recorded in the BRP or is the owner of the property at that address according to the Kadaster (in Dutch).

By signing this declaration, the tenant or owner of the property allows a business owner or managing director to set up a business or organisation at the residential address and to register it in the Business Register.

KVK checks

An address must be listed in the Basic Register of Addresses and Buildings (BAG). Use the BAG Viewer (in Dutch) to check that the address in the BAG is correct. Check the street name, house number, suffix (such as 24a or 24b), or designated use (such as retail premises). The activities of the business or organisation must be consistent with the property’s designated use. If something is incorrect, you can report the error on the BAG Viewer website.

The Business Register is linked to the BRP. A residential address must be correctly recorded there. If a residential address is missing or incorrect in the BRP, the municipality must correct it.