Amsterdam Week One: The Expat Checklist | City Retreat

Before You Even Arrive: Make Your Municipality Appointment

This is the single most important piece of advice in this entire article, and most people miss it.

To get your BSN (burgerservicenummer — your Dutch citizen service number), you need to register with the Amsterdam municipality. In 2026, Amsterdam Stadsloket appointments are running 6–8 weeks out.

The BSN is the key that unlocks almost everything else on this list: your bank account validation, your salary payroll, your health insurance setup, and your local GP registration. The sooner your appointment is made, the sooner your life in Amsterdam properly begins.

Highly skilled migrant (kennismigrant)? IN Amsterdam at Concertgebouwplein offers a combined IND and municipality appointment, typically 2–6 weeks rather than 6–8. Make an appointment via iamsterdam.com.

For a full walk-through of the registration process, documents, and what your BSN unlocks, read our complete guide to registering in the BRP in Amsterdam →

The Practical Stuff Nobody Mentions

Get a Dutch SIM first

Do this on the way home from the airport. You need a Dutch phone number for almost every registration that follows — DigiD, banking apps, health insurance portals, municipality callback systems. All of them will text a Dutch number.

Prepaid options like Lebara and Lyca are available in most supermarkets and phone shops. KPN, Vodafone, Odido, and Simpel offer monthly contracts. Any of them will do for now.

Get onto public transport

Amsterdam's trams, buses, metro, and ferries all run on a tap-in/tap-out system. You have two options:

For full details on routes, apps (NS, 9292), and getting around the city, see our Amsterdam public transport guide →

Don't lock yourself out

The Bureaucratic Sequence

Open a bank account (don't wait for your BSN)

Traditional Dutch high-street banks can take weeks to process your paperwork if you don't have a BSN yet, creating a frustrating bottleneck. To bypass this, leverage digital challenger banks immediately upon landing.

Fintech platforms allow you to set up a fully functioning account via their mobile app in minutes using just your passport and rental agreement, granting you a grace period to supply your BSN later. This keeps your momentum going so you can sign up for gym memberships, phone plans, and groceries on day two.

You need a Dutch bank account to receive salary and pay bills. Don't wait for the BSN — you'll just create a bottleneck at the worst possible time.

Three Things to Do Immediately

Sign up for Dutch health insurance

Mandatory for every Dutch resident. You have four months from registration, but your insurer will backdate your policy to your registration date regardless — so there's no reason to delay.

For a full guide to the Dutch healthcare system including how to claim, what's covered, and the GP referral process, see our healthcare & GP registration guide →

Apply for DigiD

DigiD is your digital identity for all Dutch government services — tax, healthcare portals, benefits, address changes. Apply free at digid.nl. The activation code arrives by post within three business days.

Apply early. You'll need it for health insurance, zorgtoeslag, and a dozen other things — and it always turns up at the least convenient moment if you leave it late.

Register with a GP (huisarts)

The Dutch system is gatekept: your GP is the entry point to almost all medical care. You cannot see a specialist without a GP referral. Register before you need one.

Search at zorgkaartnederland.nl for practices accepting new patients near you. In popular central neighbourhoods, practices fill up — if you're struggling, contact your health insurer. They're legally obliged to help you find a practice.

The Quality-of-Life Essentials

Get a bike

This is — genuinely — the most important item on the list for your day-to-day happiness. Amsterdam is a cycling city in a way that has no equivalent in most of the world. Trams are fine. Cycling is life.

For expats, Swapfiets is the obvious starting point: a monthly subscription (from around €16.50/month) that includes maintenance and a replacement bike if yours breaks or gets stolen. No upfront cost, no faff. If you'd rather own one, buying second-hand is also an option, but theft is a genuine concern, so two locks minimum either way.

Find your Albert Heijn

Amsterdam's main supermarket chain. Most open early and close late. The app has good deals. Your Dutch bank card works on their payment terminals (iDEAL and contactless). In the Jordaan, Oud-West, or De Pijp you'll pass one within five minutes of your front door.

For a deeper look at life in different Amsterdam neighbourhoods (where to shop, eat, and spend time), see our Amsterdam neighbourhoods guide →

Check your annual municipal taxes

If you are registered at an Amsterdam address on 1 January of any given year, you'll receive an annual bill covering water charges and residential waste tax (afvalstoffenheffing). This surprises people who arrive in December and find a bill waiting in January. Worth knowing: if you weren't registered in Amsterdam for the full calendar year, the charge is calculated pro-rata, so you won't pay for time you weren't there. For a full breakdown of what's included and how it's calculated, see our Amsterdam residential taxes guide →

Emergency Numbers for Your First Week

Put these in your phone before anything else.

More Guides for Life in Amsterdam