🇳🇱
Opening a Personal Bank Account in the Netherlands (Foreigners)
Document Checklist
paspoort of identiteitskaart
Valid passport or EEA national identity card
Where to get: Issued by your home-country passport or ID-card authority
Required: Original document, unexpired; ID-card must be issued by a country inside the European Economic Area for the EEA-passport path
bunq accepts a valid passport or EU/EEA ID. Knab's acceptatiecriteria-particulier accepts an EEA passport or ID-card, OR a Dutch indefinite-residence permit plus home-country passport, OR a Dutch residence permit (minimum 5 years) plus passport. Triodos accepts a paspoort, identiteitskaart, or verblijfsvergunning verbatim, and explicitly does not accept a driving licence (rijbewijs).
BSN
Burgerservicenummer (BSN)
Where to get: Issued by the gemeente when you register in the Personal Records Database (BRP) on arrival, or at an RNI-loket municipality if you stay under four months
Required: Required at intake by Knab and Triodos. bunq grants up to 90 days after signup to supply it.
Knab's acceptatiecriteria-particulier states verbatim 'Je bent minimaal 18 jaar en hebt een burgerservicenummer (BSN)'. bunq states verbatim 'You don't need a tax ID or proof of residence straight away. We give you up to 90 days to get that sorted'. Triodos does not list BSN on the public productpagina but requires Dutch banking onboarding, which requests BSN at customer-due-diligence intake under Wet ter voorkoming van witwassen en financieren van terrorisme (Wwft) and CRS reporting obligations.
Dutch residential address
Where to get: Address registered at your gemeente in the BRP. PO boxes and temporary addresses are not accepted by Knab; bunq accepts any EU or EEA address.
Required: Knab and Triodos require residency in the Netherlands. bunq accepts an address in the EU or EEA.
Triodos states verbatim 'Je kunt geen rekening in Nederland openen als je in het buitenland woont'. Knab's acceptatiecriteria require a residential address ('Adres moet een woonadres zijn') and exclude the Caribbean Netherlands ('overzeese gebiedsdelen').
Smartphone with the bank's app
Where to get: iOS App Store or Google Play. Each bank publishes its own app: bunq, Knab App, or Triodos Bankieren NL.
Required: Required for all three banks — onboarding and identity verification run in the app
bunq and Triodos run end-to-end onboarding inside the app. Knab presents product information and tariffs on knab.nl but routes the actual signup through the Knab App.
Email address and Dutch mobile number
Where to get: Personal email; Dutch SIM from KPN, Vodafone, Odido, or another local provider
Required: Email is required by all three banks; a Dutch mobile number is the practical default for SMS OTP and DigiD-style flows
Bank communications, dispute notices, and statements route to email; OTPs and app-confirmation prompts route to the registered mobile number.
Tax-residence declaration
Where to get: Self-declared in the app during onboarding
Required: All three banks ask the customer to declare tax residence under FATCA and CRS
Knab's acceptatiecriteria-particulier excludes US tax residents from the Privérekening path. bunq and Triodos handle FATCA reporting per the standard Dutch banking framework.
View full guide
→