Why MrKantoor requests information when you apply for a business address

As an entrepreneur, you can use a business postal address. This can be useful when you work from home and want to keep your home address private in the Dutch Chamber of Commerce (KvK) Business Register. Entrepreneurs based abroad who want to establish a branch of their company in the Netherlands also use this service.

You can contact MrKantoor to apply for a business registration address. Once approved, you can use their address for your KvK registration. Before your application is accepted and the agreement can take effect, checks are carried out on your company and on you as the applicant. This is necessary to establish that you are a trustworthy client.

For this customer due diligence, we use the guidance and risk matrix for the Dutch Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act (Wwft).

What is the Wwft?

As its name suggests, the Wwft is intended to prevent money laundering and other forms of fraud. The government has drawn up guidelines and a risk matrix for this purpose. Both documents can be used by business address providers subject to the Wwft to assess applications to use a business registration address. The guidance provides a useful aid for both MrKantoor and you as a client in understanding the legal obligations.

A business address provider uses the risk matrix to assess whether a company wishing to enter into an agreement meets the conditions applied by the provider. After all, the company uses the registration address, which in this case makes MrKantoor jointly responsible in certain respects if problems arise.

Customer due diligence

When a company applies to use a business postal address, customer due diligence begins. The aim is to complete this as quickly as possible so that the agreement can take effect. Naturally, the checks must be carried out very carefully. For this purpose, the government has drawn up a risk matrix based on the provisions of the Wwft.

A business address provider can use this matrix to make a considered decision about whether to accept a company’s application.

Legal requirements for customer due diligence

Business address providers subject to the Wwft must investigate their clients’ identities before entering into an agreement. These checks include establishing the applicant’s identity using a valid identity document. However, this alone is not sufficient: additional checks are always carried out, for example through the KvK’s UBO register. The risk matrix also requires an examination of the purpose and intended nature of the business relationship.

It must be clear what the company does and which parties it does business with. An additional risk may arise, for example, if an applicant does business with countries outside the Netherlands. A country may be on a sanctions list. The same can also apply to an entrepreneur. When a person represents a company, it must be established whether they are authorised to sign an agreement on the company’s behalf.

These are just a few examples of matters that may arise during customer due diligence. The checks also depend on the nature of the company and the information supplied by the applicant when seeking to enter into an agreement.

Keeping client information up to date

Verifying the client’s and the company’s details is not enough. Throughout the agreement, a business address provider subject to the Wwft must monitor whether a company complies with the guidelines. For example, there may be suspicions that suspicious transactions are taking place. This could involve unusual mail received for the company or suspicions of questionable contacts when a client uses a flexible workspace or meeting room.

In such cases, a business address provider must report these suspicions to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). The FIU can investigate further to determine whether criminal offences have actually occurred. The business address provider decides whether to submit a report. A suspicion alone may be sufficient; evidence of a criminal act by the company is not required.

Business address providers subject to the Wwft must retain all information collected about companies for at least seven years.

How to ensure a smooth registration with MrKantoor

If you are considering using the services of a business address provider subject to the Wwft, make sure you supply the requested information with your initial application. This helps your application to be processed quickly, allowing you to register the office address with the KvK as your company’s official address sooner. Additional information may be requested following your application, for example if you indicate that you do business with clients abroad or if you are a politically exposed person (PEP).

This requires further investigation to rule out potential conflicts of interest. An application can usually be processed within a few days. Once everything is complete, you can use the address supplied by MrKantoor as your company’s new registration address.

More information

Would you like more information about how we assess applications for a business address? Our website provides more information about the conditions we apply. You can also find information about our registration addresses, which naturally meet all the requirements set by the KvK. You can complete the contact form on the website to apply directly for a business postal address.

Your application will then be processed as quickly as possible.