Netherlands Company Registry (KVK) (2025 Update)
The Dutch Chamber of Commerce (also known as KVK) provides a modern, easily integrated company registry, complete with application programming interfaces (APIs) and open data.
However, tracing ownership is hard on the KVK. Company filings only list the main shareholder, and ultimate beneficial ownership (UBO) information can only be retrieved by Dutch competent authorities and obliged entities, not overseas entities with a legitimate interest (although this is set to change in 2026).
This guide is for financial crime professionals trying to search for companies on the KVK’s Handelsregister. It covers available data (including ownership), company documents, and searching via portal or API.
What is the Netherlands Company Registry?
The Dutch Chamber of Commerce (Kamer van Koophandel or KVK) is the official company registry of the Netherlands.
It’s responsible for registering and dissolving businesses operating in the Netherlands and maintaining the Dutch Business Register (Handelsregister).
What Data Is Available?
Basic: Entity name, KVK number, RSIN number, registration date, and registered office.
Financial: Revenue, balance sheet, and assets.
Officers: Main shareholder, directors, and other representatives.
History: Previous names, legal forms, and officers.
Useful to know: KVK shareholder information only shows the main shareholder of a Netherlands-registered entity. Other shareholders remain in a private register held by the company.
How to Conduct a KVK Company Search
The Handelsregister is easy to navigate, particularly if you follow these steps.
1. Visit the Official Website.
The Dutch Chamber of Commerce (Kamer van Koophandel).
2. Log In.
You must set up an account to access company documents.
3. Find the Register.
Select ‘Handelsregister’ or ‘Business Register’ from the menu.
4. Search For a Company.
Enter the company’s name, registration number or address.
5. Click ‘Search’.
Review basic information. You’ll see basic details: KVK number, company name, legal form and address.
Limitations: You will see a maximum of 50 results, even if there are more.
Tip: Search works on whole-text matching. For example, "koophand" has zero results while "koophandel" has about 1,000 results.
Available Documents
Business Extract from The Trade Register (Uittreksel Handelsregister): Available in English and Dutch, this provides a broad overview of a company. Includes name, number, registered address and registration date, legal form, capital structure, and representatives’ names, addresses and roles.
Extract (Uittreksel): Available in Dutch, this is like the Business Extract, only without information on capital structure.
Annual Accounts (Jaarrekeningen): The last 7 years of a company’s financial information. Includes balance sheet, assets, and revenue information.
Company History (Handelsregister Historie): A company’s history, from former legal forms and signatories to retired officials and shareholder names.
Foundation Statutes (Statuten): A business entity’s internal rules and agreements, outlining responsibilities, including its Deed of Incorporation and Articles of Association.
Pricing: Online viewing (€2.85), digital certified copy (€9.25), and a paper certified copy (€18.55).
Processing: Instant retrieval.
Other Ways to Access Dutch Company Registry Data
APIs
The KVK offers multiple Application Programming Interfaces with which to retrieve structured company registry data in the Netherlands.
KVK Handelsregister Zoeken: For basic registry searches, including name, number, RSIN, address and location. This should be paired with...
KVK Handelsregister Basisprofiel: This lets you request company registry data by KVK number, including code description and number of employees.
KVK Handelsregister Vestigingsprofiel API: With this, you can retrieve data on specific branches, including contact and ownership details.
KVK Handelsregister Naamgeving API: This provides information on legal names, naming history, naming regulations, and trademarks.
Notice something? Structured shareholder data isn’t covered, meaning that verifying shareholders is a manual process. Kyckr extracts shareholder data from Dutch company filings and uses it to verify Dutch UBOs.
Important to Know
How to get an API key: Complete the order form on the developer's portal and receive an agreement. Access is usually activated within 3 days.
Remember: The KVK Zoeken API displays a maximum of 100 results per page (default = 10 results per page).
Pricing structure: Fixed monthly fee plus per-query costs.
The average response time: Around 500 ms.
Open Data
The KVK offers a vast, free bulk dataset called the KVK Business Open Data Set.
Details: Location, registration date, activity, legal form, and dissolution date
Problem: The data is completely anonymised. That means no company names or KVK numbers.
Utility: For analyses of strategy and policy.
Beneficial Ownership Information in the Netherlands
Beneficial ownership information in the Netherlands is currently only available to national competent authorities and obliged entities, such as Dutch banks and law firms.
But this is changing. A recent law will provide access to persons and organisations that can prove a ‘legitimate interest’. However, the rules haven’t been fully formed.
A UBO API will become available in 2026.
Verify Dutch UBOs Instantly
Kyckr provides live access to the KVK via API or online portal, alongside 299 other official company registers in 100 countries. Our tool, UBO Verify, extracts shareholder data from company filings in real time, enabling financial crime teams to verify Dutch UBOs in seconds. Book a demo to find out more.