International Newcomers (IN) Amsterdam (formerly Expatcenter Amsterdam)

IN Amsterdam (formerly Expatcenter Amsterdam), launched in 2008 as a joint initiative of eight municipalities, the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) and the Dutch Tax Office, provides a one-stop process for residence permits, municipal registration and citizen service numbers (BSN) for highly skilled migrants and their employers, plus help with taxes, healthcare and education, and a partnership programme connecting newcomers with local service providers.

After completing the IND application, a highly skilled migrant visits the IN Amsterdam office roughly four weeks later to collect their residence permit, register with the municipality and receive a BSN; those staying four months or less can register in the Non-residents Records Database. The IN Amsterdam Partnership Programme, launched 2009, connects businesses with the international community, and partners such as ACCESS Netherlands and the !WOON helpdesk offer free consultations on healthcare, housing, learning Dutch, job searching, childcare and tenancy issues.

More than 1,000 international companies have used the streamlined procedures since 2008, and over 100 organisations have joined the partnership programme since 2009; the ACCESS Netherlands helpdesk hosted at IN Amsterdam handles 20,000 enquiries a year. In 2020, 32% of private-sector jobs in the Amsterdam Area were created by foreign companies (~230,000 direct jobs, plus about 230,000 indirect jobs).