Category: Information Center

Mortgages and buying a home in the Netherlands

Excerpted from https://fvbdeboer.nl/ with permission

If you are planning to be in the country for some time, you may wish to buy a house in the Netherlands, as it can work out more beneficially financially than renting long-term. However, it is a good idea to make sure you are aware of all the pitfalls too before investing in a foreign country. FVB de Boer has written a 10-point guide to make sure that you have thought of everything before taking the plunge.

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Warning: Phone Scam

International employees at the University of Groningen have been targeted by phone scammers.

This has been an ongoing issue, and was highlighted earlier this month in an article by Traci White on The Northern Times.

It is scary to be threatened with arrest and deportation, but remember, NO official Dutch government body will demand payment direct over the phone. If you receive such contact, do not pay any deposit or fine. You can seek further information and advise via the Connect, IWCN or via the University of Groningen

Please be vigilant!

Choosing and applying for secondary schools

It will soon be 15 March!  For whom is this an important date? Why is this an important date?  If you have children in Group 8 (final year) of the Basisschool (primary school) this is important for you.  The 15th of March is the deadline for registering for a secondary school.  You must apply before the deadline or your child risks not having a place at secondary school in September.

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Do I need to register for a BSN?

If you live abroad and come to the Netherlands to work or study, you will need a citizen service number (burgerservicenummer (BSN)) for your dealings with the Dutch authorities.

Government authorities use the BSN to correspond with citizens and exchange personal information with other (governmental) agencies, when legally permitted; for example, between the municipality and the Tax and Customs Administration (Belastingdienst). The BSN is an important tool for improving government services, and is also used to combat identity fraud and solve issues with misspelled names.

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Changing energy suppliers

There are a lot of companies in the Netherlands offering energy services, all in their own way, so how do you go about finding one and switching to them?

We recently changed energy suppliers after being with our old one for some years, and I wish I had done it sooner! We should save €350 during our 1 year contract, and when that ends I will most likely switch again, unless our new supplier offers another nice deal.

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Warning Sirens in the Netherlands

Every first Monday of the month at noon, you will hear warning sirens sounding across the whole Netherlands. Their practice alarm lasts just over a minute, but it is part of the Netherlands national warning system in place since WWII.

Although worrisome for many expats, the monthly practice alarm (called waarschuwingsstelsel in Dutch) is no cause for concern.

The siren alarm system was set up in response to the threat of attack from Germany during WWII. The system was kept in running order after WWII because of the Cold War, and is still kept to alert the public in case of a large fire or environmental disaster, for example.

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Rights of Tenants

All newcomers to the Netherlands are confronted with the necessity of having to find housing. This can be a very stressful period as it involves a fast-track course in learning housing-market conditions and regulations, as well as possibly having to adapt your lifestyle to the space available, the neighborhood and the surroundings.

In the Netherlands one important distinction to make is that between social-sector housing and private-sector housing. Although most of the rights and obligations for tenants are the same regardless of the sector, the main differences revolve around the price of the rent, its eventual increase and the authority to contact in case of dispute.

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