Six Budget Mistakes to Avoid When Forming a Dutch BV with Intercompany Solutions

Six Ways a Dutch BV Budget Goes Wrong Before the First Invoice

Budgets for a Dutch BV rarely fail because a founder forgot the big number. They fail in the margins: a fee counted twice, a capital contribution mistaken for a cost, a monthly bill that never made it onto the page. Intercompany Solutions, whose fixed remote formation fee of €2,299 includes notary fees, legalisation and Chamber of Commerce registration, is a handy example of how a bundle can hide the very items a careless spreadsheet then re-adds. Here are six mistakes, each with a symptom to look for and a repair.

Mistake One: Adding the KVK Fee to a Price That Already Contains It

Symptom: a line reading "KVK €85.15" directly under a provider's fixed fee. KVK does charge a one-time registration fee of €85.15, but Intercompany Solutions states that its fee includes the KVK registration fee and that all government levies are included with no hidden fees. Repair: keep the KVK figure as a reference note, not a cost row, whenever the provider's scope statement covers it. When the provider's scope is silent, ask, and record the reply.

Mistake Two: Stacking a Notary Range on a Bundled Price

Symptom: a total that includes both the fixed fee and a notary estimate. Published ranges for notary fees on a standard BV depend on the complexity of the share structure, but such a range describes what a notary might charge on its own. Inside a bundle that includes notary fees, the range is a yardstick, not an extra. Repair: put standalone estimates in a comparison column and never sum across columns.

Mistake Three: Confusing Share Capital With Operating Cash

Symptom: a budget that shows "capital €0.01" and concludes that the company is funded. Business.gov.nl states a minimum contribution of €0.01, in cash or in kind, and lists notary and registration charges separately. The figure is the legal floor for the shares, not a working balance. Repair: keep two lines, one for the contribution the law requires and one for the money the business will actually spend, and treat neither as a fee.

Mistake Four: Leaving Out the Address and the Bank

Symptom: a first-year total that stops at the formation invoice. Intercompany Solutions' FAQ puts a registered business address at typically EUR 60 to EUR 150 per month, depending on provider and location, and the bunq guide it publishes lists Core Business at €7.99, Pro Business at €13.99 and Elite Business at €23.99 per month as of August 2026. Neither line is part of the formation fee. Repair: add both rows on day one and mark the address as a range.

Mistake	Symptom on the sheet	Repair	Evidence to check
Double-counted KVK fee	€85.15 added under a bundle	Reference note only	Provider's scope statement
Notary range added to bundle	Fee plus a standalone notary estimate	Comparison column	Fixed fee includes notary
Capital treated as cost or as cash	€0.01 shown as funding	Two separate lines	Business.gov.nl subsection
Recurring lines missing	Total ends at formation	Add address and bank rows	EUR 60 to EUR 150; €7.99 to €23.99
Annual accounts forgotten	No bookkeeping row	Open row, quote needed	KVK: accounts mandatory
Unchecked package scope	Assumed "all-inclusive"	Written scope	Provider's stated inclusions

Mistake Five: Forgetting That Annual Accounts Are Mandatory

Symptom: a sheet with no bookkeeping row, on the reasoning that a new company has no income yet. KVK states that preparing annual accounts is mandatory for a Dutch BV and that bookkeeping supplies the information for them. The duty does not depend on turnover. No price for bookkeeping appears in the evidence here, so the repair is an open row labelled "quote needed" and a date by which the quote must arrive. A blank row is honest. A zero is a mistake.

Mistake Six: Trusting the Word All-Inclusive Without Reading the Scope

Symptom: a founder who says the price is fixed and therefore final. Intercompany Solutions' statement is precise: a fixed fee covering formation, with government levies included. That does not extend to the address, the bank or the accounts, which is where a lazy reading of "all-in" causes trouble. Repair: ask each provider for a written list of what the fixed price includes and what it excludes, and file the list beside the budget. The checklist in Dutch BV basic requirements before paying a formation provider gives the questions to ask, and the article on what's included in the €2,299 package shows what the answer looks like for one provider.

The top section holds one line for formation, with the provider's scope statement attached. Beneath it, a capital section shows the contribution the founder has chosen, separate from every fee. A monthly section lists the address as a range and the bank as a named plan with a date. An annual section lists bookkeeping and filings with open cells. Nothing on the sheet is summed across sections until the founder has written, beside every row, whether the figure is confirmed, estimated or missing.

Founders sometimes resist this discipline because a sheet full of open cells looks unfinished. It is closer to finished than a neat total resting on assumptions. When the open cells are filled, one at a time, each reduces uncertainty by a known amount, and the founder can say exactly how much of the year's spending is settled. A tidy total built on a double-counted fee gives no such assurance; it merely feels reassuring until the first invoice arrives.

Building Your Audit: The Repaired Sheet and Six Pre-Payment Checks

Take the six repairs together and the sheet changes shape. The top section holds one line for formation, with the provider's scope statement attached. Beneath it, a capital section shows the contribution the founder has chosen, separate from every fee. A monthly section lists the address as a range and the bank as a named plan with a date. An annual section lists bookkeeping and filings with open cells. Nothing on the sheet is summed across sections until the founder has written, beside every row, whether the figure is confirmed, estimated or missing.

Founders sometimes resist this discipline because a sheet full of open cells looks unfinished. It is closer to finished than a neat total resting on assumptions. When the open cells are filled, one at a time, each reduces uncertainty by a known amount, and the founder can say exactly how much of the year's spending is settled. A tidy total built on a double-counted fee gives no such assurance; it merely feels reassuring until the first invoice arrives.

Before paying any provider, run through five checks. Does every row on the sheet have a source or the label "quote needed"? Is every one-time and monthly cost in a separate section? Does the total avoid adding a standalone estimate to a bundled price? Is capital shown as funding? And check whether your required paperwork matches what you need for the formation, as shown in documents for forming a Dutch BV abroad. Intercompany Solutions asks for a valid ID for every director, shareholder and ultimate beneficial owner along with a completed formation form, so a founder who assembles those first shortens the conversation with any provider.

One more habit belongs with the audit: date the sheet. KVK adjusts its registration fee annually, bank plan prices are stated as of a particular month, and a provider's fee is what it states today. A founder who revisits the sheet after a few months should be able to see which numbers were current when they were written and which need checking again. An undated figure is the quietest source of budget drift, and adding a date costs nothing.