The two requirements
Establishment: the licence attaches to businesses established in the Netherlands — a real Dutch BV with its administration here qualifies naturally: the address done properly. Regularity: the tax administration grants the licence to businesses that import as a pattern rather than a one-off — expected flows described in the application carry new companies before history exists.
The foreign-company route
Businesses established elsewhere access the identical cash-flow effect through a fiscal representative with a general licence: the representative’s authorisation covers your imports, VAT reverse-charges into the Dutch return filed under the representation, and your goods clear like a local’s: the full representation chapter. Many groups later graduate: the Dutch BV takes over the flow and holds its own licence — the standard maturing path.
The practical sequence
VAT registration active (that timeline), the EORI in place (the customs ID), the application filed with the flows described — and the licence typically lands within weeks. First shipments planned around the grant date clear at full speed from day one: the sequencing habit that separates smooth market entries from expensive first containers: why the licence pays.