Dutch addresses and numbers: postcodes, phone numbers and forms
How to write and say a Dutch address, postcode and phone number, what 12-II or 12hs means, and how to fill in dates and times on Dutch forms.
Sooner or later, every new arrival in the Netherlands has to give their address, phone number and date of birth — at the town hall, the doctor's, the bank or on the phone with a delivery company. The numbers themselves are easy once you know them, but the format is different from English, and the way people say them can be hard to follow. This post covers the vocabulary, the usual formats and the phrases you'll need.
All addresses and numbers in this post are made-up examples.
Writing a Dutch address
A Dutch address puts the street first and the house number after it, with no comma:
- Kerkstraat 12
- 1234 AB Utrecht
On an envelope, the name goes on the first line, then street and number, then postcode and town:
| Line | Example |
|---|---|
| Name | Mevrouw A. de Vries |
| Street + number | Kerkstraat 12 |
| Postcode + town | 1234 AB UTRECHT |
Writing the town in capitals is a common convention that postal guidelines have long recommended; lowercase (Utrecht) also gets delivered. For the current official advice, check PostNL's website.
The postcode always has four digits followed by two capital letters, usually with a space: 1234 AB. Together with the house number, the postcode identifies an address so precisely that many websites ask only for postcode and huisnummer and fill in the street for you.
Key words:
| Dutch | English |
|---|---|
| het adres | address |
| de straat | street |
| het huisnummer | house number |
| de toevoeging | addition (to a house number) |
| de postcode | postcode |
| de woonplaats | place of residence, town |
| de plaatsnaam | name of the town |
| de afzender | sender |
| de geadresseerde | addressee |
House number additions
Many buildings have several homes behind one number, so the number gets an addition: de toevoeging. You'll see several systems, and the meaning can vary by city, so if in doubt, ask.
| You see | Usually means |
|---|---|
| 12A, 12B | separate homes at number 12 |
| 12-1, 12-2 | first floor, second floor (or simply home 1, 2) |
| 12-I, 12-II, 12-III | first, second, third floor (common in Amsterdam) |
| 12hs or 12-huis | ground floor (huis) |
| 12bg | ground floor (begane grond) |
| 12-boven, 12bv | upstairs (boven) |
| 12bis | an extra address next to number 12 |
In speech, Dutch floors are often given with hoog ("high"): twee hoog is the second floor. Note that the Dutch count like the British: the ground floor is de begane grond, and de eerste verdieping is the floor above it.
- Ik woon op nummer twaalf, twee hoog. — I live at number twelve, second floor.
- Ik woon in de Kerkstraat. — I live in Kerkstraat.
- Wij wonen aan de Prinsengracht. — We live on the Prinsengracht.
- Wat is uw adres? — What is your address?
- Wat is uw postcode en huisnummer? — What's your postcode and house number?
- Is er een toevoeging? — Is there an addition (to the number)?
Both in de straat and aan de straat are used; with canals and water, aan is the norm.
Saying a postcode
People read the digits either one by one or as two pairs, and then say the letters with their Dutch names:
- Een twee drie vier, A B. — 1234 AB (digit by digit)
- Twaalf vierendertig, A B. — 1234 AB (in pairs)
Letters that often cause confusion over the phone are E (ee), I (ie), G (gee), H (haa), J (jee) and Y (Griekse ij). See the Dutch alphabet for all of them, and Dutch names for spelling tricks like D van Dirk.
Phone numbers
Dutch mobile numbers start with 06. Landline numbers start with an area code, such as 020 for Amsterdam, 010 for Rotterdam or 030 for Utrecht. From abroad, you replace the first 0 with the country code +31, so 06 becomes +31 6.
When people say a phone number, they usually read the 06 (or area code) first and then group the rest, often in pairs:
- 06 12 34 56 78
- Nul zes, twaalf, vierendertig, zesenvijftig, achtenzeventig.
Some people read every digit separately, and others mix pairs and single digits. If you can't follow, ask for single digits:
- Wat is je telefoonnummer? — What's your phone number?
- Mijn nummer is nul zes… — My number is zero six…
- Kunt u het cijfer voor cijfer zeggen? — Could you say it digit by digit?
- Kunt u het herhalen, alstublieft? — Could you repeat it, please?
- Ik lees het even terug. — Let me read it back.
- Mijn nummer staat in de mail. — My number is in the email.
Remember that Dutch numbers above twenty are said "back to front": 56 is zesenvijftig (six-and-fifty). That's what makes phone numbers tricky to catch. Our post on numbers and time explains the system.
Email addresses have their own vocabulary: @ is apenstaartje ("little monkey tail"), a dot is punt, a hyphen is streepje, and alles aan elkaar means "all one word".
- Anna punt devries apenstaartje voorbeeld punt nl. — anna.devries@voorbeeld.nl
Dates and times on forms
Dutch forms write dates day–month–year, usually with hyphens or slashes: 15-10-2026 or 15/10/2026. So 03-04-2026 is 3 April, not 4 March. Some online forms ask for dd-mm-jjjj — the j stands for jaar (year).
| On the form | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Geboortedatum | date of birth |
| Geboorteplaats | place of birth |
| Datum | date |
| dd-mm-jjjj | day-month-year |
| Tijdstip | time |
| Handtekening | signature |
| Nationaliteit | nationality |
When you say a date, use the plain number + month: vijftien oktober. When the month is clear, people also say just de vijftiende (the fifteenth). Years from 2000 are said as a full number: tweeduizend zesentwintig.
- Ik ben geboren op 3 april 1990. — I was born on 3 April 1990.
- Wat is uw geboortedatum? — What is your date of birth?
Written times use the 24-hour clock, often with a dot or colon and uur: 14.30 uur. In speech people mostly use the 12-hour clock, and half points to the next hour: half drie is 2:30, not 3:30. See numbers and time.
IBAN and BSN: two numbers you'll be asked for
Two terms come up again and again in Dutch paperwork:
- het IBAN (also het rekeningnummer) — your bank account number. You'll need it for salaries, rent and refunds.
- het BSN (burgerservicenummer) — your citizen service number, a personal identification number you get when you register with your municipality.
Treat your BSN as sensitive: only give it to organisations that actually need it, such as your employer, the tax authorities, your health insurer or your doctor. If a website or person asks for it and you're not sure why, ask.
- Wat is uw IBAN? — What's your IBAN?
- Mag ik uw BSN? — May I have your BSN?
- Ik heb nog geen BSN. — I don't have a BSN yet.
- Waarom heeft u mijn BSN nodig? — Why do you need my BSN?
For how to get a BSN and register your address, see your municipality's website or the government's information on rijksoverheid.nl.
Quick summary
- Address: street + number (Kerkstraat 12), then postcode + town (1234 AB Utrecht).
- A postcode has four digits and two letters; postcode + house number is often enough online.
- Additions like 12A, 12-II or 12hs show which home in the building; twee hoog = second floor.
- Mobile numbers start with 06; people say them in pairs: nul zes, twaalf, vierendertig…
- Dates are day–month–year; half drie is 2:30.
- IBAN = bank account number; BSN = citizen service number. Share your BSN carefully.
Practise it
Brush up on Numbers, send a parcel in At the post office, and register your address in At the municipality.