Useful terms

Term definitions

English to Dutch translations

Dutch to English translations

TERM DEFINITIONS

-A-

Alien's Police

Every regional police force in the Netherlands has a department that supervises foreign nationals in the Netherlands. This department is called the Aliens Police. In certain cases, foreigners are required to report to the Aliens Police upon arrival in the Netherlands.

Apostille

A diplomatic method for certifying the authenticity of a document. It is a statement on a separate sheet of paper affixed to the original document, signed and dated by the Ministry of Justice or of Foreign Affairs in the country of the document’s origin.

-B-

Burgerservicenummer

The new name for one's given identity number when moving to the Netherlands. It identifies you to the government, most often for the receivig of benefits. Previously called the Sofi Nummer

-C-

C-visa

See “Schengen visa”. 

C+D visa

 Type of visa that combines a provisional residence permit and Schengen visa.

Catch 22

An occurance where two things are necessary, and one is not obtainable without having the other one first. Thus, a situation which is unresolvable.

-D-

Deduction (tax)

An amount of income that you can substract from your total income when figuring due amounts of tax. For example, if you donate $1000 worth of goods to charity, it's possible you may be able to deduct $1000 from the amount on which you will owe tax. Deductions are similar to allowances; they reduce the amount of your income that may be taxed.

Double legalization

A diplomatic method of authenticating a document. To do this, the signature on the document is first legalized by the Ministry of Justice or of Foreign Affairs in the native country. Subsequently, the Dutch Ministry of Justice or of Foreign Affairs must authenticate the signatures, verifying the issuing authority in the native country.

Drogisterij

A shop which sells holistic and other non-prescription health goods.

-E-

Expat; Expatriate

Someone who lives outside of his or her home country. Expatriates are different than immigrants in that they usually do not intend to stay in the foreign country for life.

Extraterretorial costs

The extra costs that an expatriate acquires because of living outside one's home country (I.e. higher rent, double taxes, new furniture, etc.)

-F-

Fired

When one is terminated from employment because of unsatisfactory preformance.

-G-

GP

This means 'general practitioner' and refers to a doctor who deals with your various medical needs which do not require a specialist's attention. Normally, people chose one GP for their needs so she or he can become familiar with your general health and history in order to best help you.

-H-

Healthcare insurance

A system which pays for an agreed percentage of the related bills when you require medical care. Health insurances may be private or publicly provided, or both and offer very different types of coverage.

-I-

-J-

-K-

Knowledge Migrant

A special category of foreign worker in the Netherlands for which a special, expidited process of obtaning a work permit is available. Click here for more details.

-L-

Laid off

When one one is released from employment against his/her wishes, for reasons of company staffing needs (and not because the empoyee was unsatisfactory).

-M-

Medical care

Any type of attention by medical professionals.

MVV

Authorization for temporary stay in the Netherlands. See the subject area "visa and residence permits" for more information.

-N-

Non-earned income

Income which is not gained in exhcnage for services. Interest from amounts you hold in a bank, monetary gifts or inheritance are examples.

-O-

Occupational pension

pension rights acquired through your work

-P-

Partial nonresident taxpayer

A tax status specifically relating to the 30% rule. For this status, a person is a resident of the Netherlands and thus a resident taxpayer. However, upon request the person is treated (fictitiously) as a non-resident taxpayer so that certain income taxed, and advantageous deductibles apply to it (i.e. the 30% rule), but other income is not subject to Dutch tax.

Pension

A special financial account specifically for the purpose of supporting one in his or her retirement. Pensions may be paid by the government, employer, through a private account, or a combination of these.

Portability

The ability to legitimately move something (here benefits) from one place to another.

Posting; Posted

When one is bureaucratically employeed and living in one place, yet actually lives in works in another. Such an arrangement is usually for a specific, temporary amount of time.

-Q-

-R-

Randstad

The most populous area of Holland which, if one were to connect the dots between them, the population in that whole area is dnese enough that one could vaguely consider it one hige city conglomerate. Amsterdam, The Hague and Utrecht are the main Randstad cities, although others such as Haarlem, Delft and Leiden are part of this area as well.

Repatriation

The act of readjusting to one's home country and culture after living abroad.

-S-

Schengen states

Social security

A system of insurances provided by the government for various life events which can affect your financial well-being such as unemployment, disability, or childcare.

Sofi-nummer

The former name of one's given identity number in the Netherlands for purposes of recognition for receiving benefits; now called a Burgerservicenummer (BSN).

-T-

Taxation

A system by which people pay money to the government in order to fund the servies that government provides.

Taxble income

Financial gains which are subject to governemnt taxation. Does not include money amounts which are legally specified for personal allowances and deductions.

Treaty

A legal agreement between governments.

-U-

-V-

VAT

"Value Added Tax" a sales tax levied on the sale of goods and services. It is a "comsumption tax" meaning that what you are paying extra for is not the raw goods, but the value added to the raw msterial by its being made into an assembled product and/or the serving of it.

VKV

Short stay visa for the Netherlands. See our section "visa and residence permits" for details.

VVR

Residence permit for the Netherlands. See our section on "visa and residence permits" for details.

-W-

-X-

-Y-

-Z-

zorgtoeslag

A toeslag is a subsidy or a state contribution to help with the costs of something. In this case, for care for those whose income is below a certain level.

ENGLISH to DUTCH translations