Expanding Business into the Dutch Market – Staying GDPR/AVG Compliant

If you decide to expand your business into the Dutch market, there are a few important things you need to consider and legal processes to cover. Having a native Dutch speaker on the ground to be your representative is a sensible choice for a company coming in from a different country. It helps you to have a specialist in all things Dutch data protection and someone that can speak the language so that no nuance is lost in translation. This representative is known as ‘externe functionaris gegevensbescherming’ in Dutch. Data Protection Company, DPO NL, says that “Organisations of all sizes need to do more to progressively improve their compliance in an ever-changing global privacy landscape.”

Why should you expand your business into the Netherlands?

The Netherlands is the perfect location for an expanding business looking to make ground in a new country and territory. It is the gateway to Europe and for all trading activities within the European continent. What makes the Netherlands such a fantastic place to conduct business and to expand? There are a few good reasons we can think of.

Location

As we’ve mentioned, the Netherlands is the gateway to Europe for non-EU businesses. Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam is a transport hub, one of the biggest airports with flight routes to every single part of the world. Rotterdam is the largest harbour in Europe and provides trade links to all parts of the world, and there are also excellent rail and road routes throughout Europe and towards the UK and Ireland too.

Business tax

The Netherlands is a very attractive option for businesses aiming to expand into the country in terms of its corporate tax system. The Netherlands has very competitive corporate income tax rates. This is 15% on the first €245,000 profit range and then 25% on profits exceeding that amount. There are also a wide range of tax solutions and incentives that help to reduce the VAT burden in Europe, which local expertise can help you learn all about as you are seeking information about whether to expand your business into the Netherlands.

A great workforce

The Netherlands has a population that is well-educated, and willing to continue learning within a trade. This makes for a fantastic workforce that you can tap into, with staff that are productive, efficient, and well-versed in information technology, life sciences, and the electronic fields to name just a few sectors.

Fantastic communication

A country that has a highly educated population and large numbers of immigrants that have made the Netherlands its home, makes for a country that is willing to learn, has fantastic language skills (especially English) and lends itself to high levels of customer service and communication within companies.

Work with a specialist to expand into the Netherlands

There are a few reasons why you should build a relationship with a specialist DPO that understands the details of the Netherlands data protection systems and processes. There are different steps that you need to work through to be successful when expanding your business into the Netherlands, understanding the Dutch tax system, business culture in the country, alongside the specifics of data protection and how GDPR works in the Netherlands.

Extensive research into the country, the potential markets you could target, advertising and marketing plans should all be considered prior to making the leap into opening a business in the Netherlands. You can then register your business in the correct format and begin to understand the different tax implications and hire the right type and number of staff.

GDPR in the Netherlands

If you use or store personal data relating to your customers, employees, suppliers, or any other type of person, then you are legally obliged to take measures to protect that data. This ensures the privacy of the people whose data you hold and the processes you implement must adhere to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR or Algemene Verordening Gegevensbescherming, AVG).

GDPR must be applied to any business that:

• Is based in the EU and processes personal data.
• Is based outside of the EU but processes personal data of citizens of the EU.

Any non-EU business that processes data of EU citizens must appoint a representative in the EU.

Expanding into the Netherlands as a business from overseas is very exciting. It is a country that has a lot of potential, especially if you are a British company seeking to maintain or make connections with Europe in the wake of Brexit and the restrictions that this has placed on British businesses in the EU. The Netherlands has a well-educated, hard-working labour force to plug into, fantastic transport links to other parts of Europe and all over the world, and is just a friendly, welcoming place to conduct business. Whatever you decide to do when expanding into the Netherlands, whatever form the business takes, you need to ensure that you remain compliant with GDPR, or AVG as it is known in the Netherlands. Finding a professional, expert service that helps you make this transition and remain compliant over the coming years is vital to the success of your business.