Registering in Rotterdam: Getting Your BSN and Using the International Center

This guide is for internationals who have just moved to Rotterdam, or are about to, and need to register with the municipality and get their citizen service number (BSN). After reading it, you will know which documents to bring, what the Rotterdam International Center can arrange for you, and where you will need your BSN once you have it.

• What the BSN is and why it matters
• Documents EU and non-EU nationals need
• Registering with the municipality
• Using the Rotterdam International Center
• Where you will use your BSN
• FAQ

What the BSN is and why it matters

Everyone in the Netherlands has a personal registration number called the Citizen Service Number, or Burgerservicenummer (BSN). Dutch citizens receive it along with their birth certificate. If you were not born in the Netherlands, you have to apply for it yourself, according to the City of Rotterdam’s page on the Citizen Service Number.

The BSN comes early on a newcomer’s to-do list because other steps depend on it. The municipality states that you need it to:

• be permitted to work
• open a bank account
• make use of a care institution, such as a hospital
• apply for benefits

Get your BSN sorted first and the rest of your settling in, from your first salary payment to your first doctor’s visit, gets easier.

Documents EU and non-EU nationals need

The documents you need depend on your nationality. The City of Rotterdam lists the following:

• If you are from the EU or the EEA: a valid passport or identity card.
• In other cases: your visa, residence permit (Verblijfsvergunning) or work permit (Tewerkstellingsvergunning).

These are the documents the municipality names for getting a BSN. Its page does not cover supporting documents such as proof of address, rental contracts, or translated or legalised civil documents like birth or marriage certificates. Before your appointment, ask the municipality what you need to bring for your own situation. It decides case by case.

If you are a non-EU national, check that your residence permit or visa matches your current situation. If you are still waiting for a residence permit, the Rotterdam International Center can help coordinate the IND side of the process, which is covered below.

Registering with the municipality

You do not apply for a BSN on its own. When you come to live in the Netherlands and register with the municipality in the Municipal Personal Records Database, you automatically receive a BSN. The national government explains on its Government.nl page on the BSN that the BSN is a unique personal number allocated to everyone registered in the Personal Records Database (BRP), and that everyone who registers with the BRP automatically receives one.

In practice, registering with the municipality and getting your BSN happen together. The official pages used for this guide do not set a deadline for registering after you arrive, give processing times, or say how long it takes to receive your number after the appointment. Contact the municipality directly for current timelines and appointment availability. Those details are set by the municipality and can vary with your circumstances.

If you have lived in the Netherlands before and had a Social-Fiscal (SOFI) number, you do not need to do anything about it. The City of Rotterdam confirms that SOFI numbers were automatically converted into BSNs.

Using the Rotterdam International Center

The Rotterdam International Center helps new residents settle in the city. It offers information and services for expats and for companies that employ international staff in Rotterdam. Its help covers local and international education, healthcare, housing, taxes and careers.

The One-Stop-Shop

The center’s main practical service for newcomers is the One-Stop-Shop. Through it, you can book appointments to:

• register with the municipality to receive a BSN
• collect your residence permit from the IND (Immigration and Naturalisation Service) and/or provide your biometric information
• open a Dutch bank account with ABN AMRO or ING

This lets you handle registration, your residence permit and your bank account in one place instead of arranging each one separately.

Support for highly skilled migrants

If you are coming to Rotterdam as a highly skilled migrant, the center can assist with the entire immigration procedure with the IND and can handle the registration process on your behalf. Your employer may already be working with the center, so ask your HR department before you book anything yourself.

Fees, appointments and contact details

The Rotterdam International Center charges fees for appointments. The municipality’s page does not list the amounts, so check the current fees with the center before booking. More detail on the One-Stop-Shop is on the “How we help” page of Rotterdam Partners, which the municipality links to.

• Address: Groot Handelsgebouw, Weena 725, 3013 AM Rotterdam
• Opening hours: Monday to Thursday, 9 am to 5 pm. Make an appointment before you visit.
• Fridays: available by phone and email only
• Telephone: +31 10 790 01 90
• Email: info@rotterdaminternationalcenter.nl

Where you will use your BSN

Once you have your BSN, government organisations use it to process your personal data. According to Government.nl, you can use it for any government service in the Netherlands, and you do not have to give your details to each organisation separately because they can find them through your BSN.

Healthcare

You use your BSN to identify yourself when you need care. Recognised care providers, such as general practitioners (huisartsen) and health insurance companies, have to use it.

Education

In schools, the BSN is called the personal identification number (PGN) or education number. It is the same number as your BSN, and schools must use it in their records. If you are moving with children, they will need their own BSN for school registration.

Benefits

Childcare organisations must ask for your BSN and your child’s BSN. The Benefits Office of the Tax and Customs Administration checks the childcare hours you report against the childcare organisation’s records. The same applies to landlords for housing benefit and to health insurers for healthcare benefit.

Protecting your number

The BSN exists mainly to support contact between government organisations, and between individuals and government. Non-government organisations such as GPs and other healthcare providers, pharmacies and health insurers can only use it if the law requires them to. Each organisation must make sure that you are using your own BSN. Share your number only with organisations that have a legal reason to ask for it, which helps prevent identity fraud.

FAQ

Can I get a BSN without registering at an address in Rotterdam?

The official pages used for this guide describe one route: you receive a BSN automatically when you register with the municipality in the Personal Records Database. They do not describe other routes or the address requirements for registration. Contact the municipality or the Rotterdam International Center to find out what applies to you, because those cases are decided individually.

I had a SOFI number from a previous stay. Do I need a new number?

No. The City of Rotterdam states that if you had a SOFI number, you do not need to do anything. Your SOFI number was automatically converted into your BSN.

How much does the One-Stop-Shop cost?

The Rotterdam International Center charges fees for appointments, but the municipality’s page does not give the amounts. Ask the center by phone on +31 10 790 01 90 or by email at info@rotterdaminternationalcenter.nl before you book.

Can I walk into the Rotterdam International Center without an appointment?

The center asks you to make an appointment before visiting. It is open Monday to Thursday from 9 am to 5 pm at Groot Handelsgebouw, Weena 725. On Fridays it is available only by phone and email.

Official sources: rotterdam.nl · rotterdam.nl · government.nl

Last verified: 11 October 2026 against the official pages linked above. Rules and fees change; the official page always wins. General information, not legal or tax advice.