The entire process from start to finish of the Dutch American Friendship Treaty and Dutch Japanese Trade Agreement
By: Henry Nguyen
What is the DAFT & DJFT Visa?
The Dutch-American Friendship Treaty(DAFT) or Dutch-Japanese Trade Agreement(DJTA) allows Japanese and American citizens to immigrate to the Netherlands and either freelance or form a company. The requirements are very minimum however the immigration process can be confusing and not so straight forward.
Luckily, we at KassKop have been through this and will smoothly bring you your desired Visa!
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To apply for the Dutch-American Friendship Treaty(DAFT) or Dutch-Japanese Trade Agreement(DJTA)
Notes: In this process, it is important you have appointments and documents done swiftly as possible; as to not risk going overboard Visa stay(and visa extension); This means you must watch how long your visa stay is, and make appointments for Residence Endorsement Stickers until you get your residence permit/visa. In an unlikely situation, you miss these appointments, have savings to do a short “visa run” outside the Schengen zone.
Listed fees from the various Dutch departments and vendors are subject to change. We will not be covering the cost of these fees except for mailing in your initial DAFT paperwork.
- Funds and Budget- You will need these estimates to go through with the visa process
- €4500 to put in a Dutch Business Bank Account(You get to keep this)
- €475 for various IND and Kvk fees
- Download Revolut to pay fees
- (Optional) €1000-2000 for incorporating a Dutch corporation
- (Optional) €15-100/month for a coworking space (You can avoid this by having your rental landlord, in the lease say you can operate your business from there)
- Prepwork before flight:
- You need a valid Passport
- *You need to collect some documents before you begin the process. To ensure there are no future delays, get important documents verified or “apostilled” through the issuing state; usually through the Secretary of State
- Birth Certificate
- Marriage Certificate (If Relevant)
- Partner’s Birth Certificate (If Relevant)
- Children’s Birth Certificate (If Relevant and under 18)
- There are many cases where they do not ask for apostilled documents however do not take this risk
- (Optional) sign me off to handle the paperwork on your behalf, this is required if you want me mail your paperwork myself or pay fees on your behalf (Seeing as you do not have a Dutch bank account, *these fees are separate from the consulting fees)
- (Optional) Download Whatsapp on your phone so we can quickly communicate with you, if only for emergencies. You can choose to primarily use email or whatsapp.
- In Your Lease Agreement, Have the Landlord write that you can operate a business in your apartment
- (Optional) you can rent a coworking space, as long as it as a P.O. box to receive mail regarding your business(€15-100/month)
- Decide if you want to register as a sole proprietor or form a corporation
- Sole Propreitor cost €65-85 to form while a corporation will require at least €1000
- Do you have a criminal record?
- If you have a significant criminal record and was it recent? Minor offenses and if it was from awhile ago, has less ability to affect your visa decision.
- You must be in the Netherlands to go to the process, however (Optional) I as your consultant can mail your forms out 1-4 weeks before you arrive, ensuring a swifter process. Nevertheless, you must be in the Netherlands to truly go through the process and so you must be able to have at least temporary housing for 3-5 months. (We can recommend Housing Specialists)
- While this process can be completed within the 3 months that you as an American or Japanese can remain visa-less in the Netherlands, you will get a visa extension so long as you follow this process. Once you receive your visa and permit, you can stay for 2 years initially and can renew for 3 years after (so long as you make sufficient income to do so).
- Note that staying for 5 years, allows you to get Dutch permanent residency and even apply for Dutch citizenship
- Essentially as long as you make income requirements, this is a very straight(ish) forward path( to permanent residency/Dutch citizenship.
- Note that staying for 5 years, allows you to get Dutch permanent residency and even apply for Dutch citizenship
- You need to get a Dutch phone number when you arrive for future appointments, we recommend Lebara because its easy and cheap
- While this process can be completed within the 3 months that you as an American or Japanese can remain visa-less in the Netherlands, you will get a visa extension so long as you follow this process. Once you receive your visa and permit, you can stay for 2 years initially and can renew for 3 years after (so long as you make sufficient income to do so).
- 4. You need to fill out specific pages on for this form, but not all of it. Here are the pages you should fill out
- Page 2, fill in: You are in the Netherlands and you want a residence permit. You are a national of one of the following countries: Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the United States of America, South Korea, Monaco, Vatican City, the EU/EEA countries or Switzerland
- Page 2, *You can ignore the “Tuberculosis” section as you are an American or Japanese citizen
- Page 3, Make sure you check the “Dutch-American Friendship Treaty”
- Page 4-5, You must put in a Dutch “home” postal address to receive the mail for your application
- I will provide my business postal address for your use, however if you are already in the Netherlands when you start this application process, you should preferably use your own (Make sure you have access to this postal location for 1-2 months at least)
- Page 6-7, These are self explanatory, fill to your best
- Appendix Antecedents, Fill these out
- TB Pages, (SKIP, as you are American or Japanese)
- Fingerprints, Passport and signature (SKIP, you will deal with this when you have an appointment)
- Declaration of intent to undergo a TB Test, (SKIP)
- TB Test referral form (SKIP)
- Declaration on Income of Self Employed Person (SKIP for now), you’ll need to send it in later
- An official extract of Kvk registration (Ask for this when you register at the Kvk)
- Balance statement saying at least 4500€
- Signature of an accountant to verify this
- Submitting and paying for the application (Skip this, you will do this when the IND instructs you too)
- *Do not staple or use paperclips on the papers
- Submit a Business Plan (Optional but highly recommended)
- *Mail the documents or I will do it for you to
Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst
9560AA Postbus 5 Ter Apel
- (Optional Renewal)- To renew the visa after 3 years, you must prove you have sufficient income from your business (Just around 11k Euro/year)
- (Click Here!)- We can help you find work, housing, integrate, utilities, services, learn Dutch, make friends and general counsel! This deal will relieve stress, anxiety and potentially even save countless time and money from helping you with work, housing and services.
References & Works Cited
Ebright, N. (2019, April 17). Dutch-American Friendship Treaty (Daft): How to apply (outside the randstad). Nikki Abridged. https://www.nikkiabridged.com/2019/04/16/daft-how-to-apply/
How to get a daft visa – dutch american friendship treaty visa. Dutch