Registering with a municipality and getting a BSN
Your expected length of stay and actual living address determine the registration route, so confirm both before booking an appointment.
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BRP or RNI: start with expected duration
People who will live in the Netherlands for more than four months generally register as residents with the municipality where they live. That registration enters them in the Personal Records Database (BRP). People staying for no more than four months can use non-resident registration (RNI) when they need a citizen service number.
The national government summarises both routes in its moving-to-the-Netherlands guidance. Your municipality publishes the appointment method and evidence it requires. Read both: the national page explains the framework, while the municipal page controls the practical appointment.
What the BSN does—and does not do
The burger service number (BSN) is a personal identifier used in contact with Dutch public bodies and in many employment, tax and healthcare processes. It is normally issued through BRP or RNI registration.
A BSN is not proof of a right to live or work in the country. It is also not a health-insurance policy, bank account or DigiD login. Those processes may use the number, but each has separate conditions. Be cautious when a landlord, recruiter or online post describes a BSN as if it settles every formal requirement.
Before making the appointment
Check these points with the municipality you will use:
- whether your expected duration calls for BRP or RNI registration;
- whether you must attend in person and whether family members need separate appointments;
- which proof of identity, residence status and address is accepted;
- which civil-status documents are required for your household;
- whether those documents need legalisation or translation;
- how you will receive confirmation and the BSN.
Requirements can differ by situation. Bring only what the official appointment instructions request, but keep the broader move file accessible in case staff need clarification.
The address is not a technicality
For resident registration, the municipality needs the place where you actually live. A hotel, serviced apartment or informal sublet is not automatically suitable for registration. Ask the accommodation provider whether registration is allowed, then confirm with the municipality. A promise in a listing is not an official decision.
If permanent housing will not be ready when you arrive, compare the cost of a flexible temporary stay with the risk of signing a long lease remotely. Keep cancellation terms aligned with appointment and key-handover dates.
Regional appointment services
Holland Expat Center South is the current non-profit governmental agency serving eligible internationals in parts of Brabant. It combines some municipal and IND services for specified groups and participating municipalities. Eligibility and participating locations can change, so use its current appointment page rather than assuming you qualify because you work near Eindhoven.
People settling in Maastricht should use the current information from the Municipality of Maastricht. If you will live elsewhere, use that municipality’s own site; the workplace municipality is not necessarily the correct registration authority.
After registration
Store the confirmation safely and check that names and address details are correct. Then work through the processes that apply to you: employer payroll, health insurance, DigiD, banking, school or childcare, and a local general practitioner. If your address later changes, report the move through the applicable official route rather than assuming another organisation will update the BRP for you.