Hydrogen companies in the Netherlands: your Dutch company for EU sales, imports and projects

Start a hydrogen business in the Netherlands: four groups

Each group needs something different in the EU. Your own Dutch limited company (a BV) covers the EU side for all four.

Hydrogen import and CBAM: small importers of hydrogen and ammonia

Since 1 January 2026, the EU carbon border tax (CBAM) covers six groups of goods: iron and steel, aluminium, fertilisers, cement, hydrogen and electricity. It covers hydrogen from the first kilogram. The 50-tonne threshold excludes hydrogen and electricity (Regulation (EU) 2023/956, Article 2a(4)). So every importer of hydrogen needs the status of authorised CBAM declarant before the first import, also for a test shipment.

Ammonia counts as a fertiliser good under CBAM, with customs code 2814. For fertilisers, the importer needs the status above 50 tonnes a year. The 50 tonnes count all CBAM goods of one importer in one calendar year together, except hydrogen and electricity.

E-methanol and e-kerosene fall outside the six CBAM groups in 2026. Their importer needs a VAT number and an EU customs number (EORI number).

What your Dutch company covers

• The status. Your Dutch company is established in the EU, so it applies for the status itself. The application needs eHerkenning level 3, the Dutch business login. The Dutch Emissions Authority (NEa) decides.
• The import. Your company imports in its own name, with a VAT number, an EORI number and the Article 23 licence. A customs broker files the import declarations.
• The certificates. Your company buys its own CBAM certificates. Sales start on 1 February 2027. The first annual CBAM declaration, for 2026 imports, is due by 30 September 2027.
• The emissions data. An accredited verifier checks the emissions data of your imports (European Commission, 2026).

CBAM applies to hydrogen from the first kilogram, so estimate the cost for your imports with the CBAM cost calculator.

An importer from outside the EU works through an indirect customs representative. That representative is then always the CBAM declarant. All steps: authorised CBAM declarant for exporters. Exporters from the Gulf: your EU importer for Gulf exports.

Sell electrolysers in Europe: hydrogen equipment for the EU market

You make electrolysers, fuel cells, compressors or storage tanks outside the EU and sell them to projects in Europe. Each delivery into the EU needs an importer. With most sales terms, the project buyer imports. With delivered duty paid (DDP) terms, your side is the importer, and your own Dutch company can take that role.

Many products with CE marking, such as machinery, pressure equipment and electrical equipment, need an economic operator established in the EU. For a manufacturer outside the EU, this is an importer, an authorised representative or a fulfilment service provider (Regulation (EU) 2019/1020, Article 4).

EU product rules and CE marking

Which EU product rules apply depends on the product. For hydrogen equipment, these can be the rules for machinery, pressure equipment and electrical equipment. The manufacturer checks the product against these rules and puts the CE marking on it.

Compressors and pumps count as machinery. New machinery placed on the EU market from 20 January 2027 must meet the EU Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 (European Commission, 2026). A product specialist checks which rules apply to your electrolyser, fuel cell, compressor or tank, and helps your engineers with the technical file.

Projects with European Hydrogen Bank support also look at the origin of their electrolysers. In the third auction, the terms asked that at least 75% of a project’s electrolysers come from countries other than China (Innovation Fund 2025 Hydrogen Auction).

What your Dutch company covers

• The importer role. Your company imports your equipment and sells it to European projects. As importer, it checks the CE marking and the documents of the manufacturer.
• Numbers and licence. A VAT number, an EORI number and the Article 23 licence. With the licence, your company reports the import VAT in its VAT return and deducts it in the same return.
• Spare parts. Your company can keep spare parts in a customs warehouse. It pays the duty and the import VAT when the parts leave for the EU market.

More on the importer role: importer of record in the EU and the Article 23 licence. CE marking and the 2027 rules in detail: machinery and electronics in Europe.

European Hydrogen Bank eligibility: producers who want EU support

The European Hydrogen Bank auctions fund production in the European Economic Area (EEA) only. The support is a fixed premium per kilogram of hydrogen, verified and certified (European Commission, 2026).

The third auction closed on 19 February 2026. More than €1 billion went to 9 projects in 7 EEA countries, from 58 bids in 11 countries. Its terms asked for:

• a plant in the EU or the EEA;
• renewable hydrogen, or in some topics low-carbon hydrogen from electrolysis;
• at least 5 MW of electrolysers at one site;
• at least 75% of the electrolysers from countries other than China;
• operation within 5 years of the grant signature.

So a producer from outside the EU builds its plant in the EEA to take part. For a plant in the Netherlands, your own Dutch company can own the plant, sign the contracts, employ the staff and file the VAT returns. The bid itself is specialist work: after you ask, our team selects a grant specialist, and you see the price first.

The dates and terms of the fourth auction, planned for December 2026, and of the Dutch SDE++ and WBSO schemes are explained on subsidies for energy and industry projects in the Netherlands.

The EU Hydrogen Mechanism for producers abroad

Producers outside the EEA can use the EU Hydrogen Mechanism. The European Commission launched it in July 2025. It collects supply and demand for renewable and low-carbon hydrogen, so European buyers can meet suppliers from the EU and abroad. Your company can register its supply there, and our team helps with the registration.

Engineering, certification and advice firms on projects around Rotterdam

When your engineering, certification or advice firm from the Gulf, Oman, Turkey or India works on hydrogen projects around Rotterdam, a Dutch company signs your contracts here, invoices your Dutch clients and employs your staff.

• Your Dutch company, with a VAT number for your invoices. See company formation in the Netherlands.
• Payroll for your staff. Your company registers as an employer, and we do the payroll. See Dutch payroll.
• Permits for staff from outside the EU. The Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) decides on every permit. Only an employer recognised by the IND as a sponsor can apply for a highly skilled migrant permit (IND, 2026). An immigration lawyer from our network prepares the recognition and the applications.
• Salary for a highly skilled migrant in 2026: at least €5,942 gross a month at 30 and older, and €4,357 under 30 (IND, 2026).
• The bank file. A BV must have a business bank account. Our team prepares the complete file, and the bank decides. Approval often takes 2 to 8 weeks (business.gov.nl, 2026).

For 2026, the Dutch list of low-tax jurisdictions names Bahrain and leaves out the UAE. For owners in Bahrain and the UAE, our team checks the current list first. More for your country: the Dutch holding for Gulf owners, starting from Turkey and starting from India. For a team that comes for one project: your project team in the Netherlands.

Renewable hydrogen certification in short

Hydrogen made with renewable electricity, and fuels made from that hydrogen such as ammonia, count as renewable fuels of non-biological origin (RFNBO). To sell them as renewable in the EU, they need a certificate under a voluntary scheme that the European Commission recognises (European Commission, 2026):

• ISCC EU
• REDcert, for countries with a REDcert country profile
• CertifHy, worldwide, for RFNBO only

Low-carbon hydrogen. Hydrogen from natural gas with carbon capture counts as low-carbon only at 70% fewer emissions than the fossil comparator. This rule from Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2359 has been in force since 11 December 2025 (EUR-Lex, 2025).

A certification body audits your plant and supply chain. Your company signs the contract with the certification body and pays it directly. Project dates, terminals and the certification rules for imports: hydrogen and ammonia imports into the EU.

What we arrange, and what partners do

Doing business in or from the Netherlands, with Europe or the rest of the world? You get more than a Dutch company. You get the right structure to grow your business and your wealth, with the lowest possible tax burden. Our team works from Hoofddorp, next to Schiphol.

Partners are chosen per assignment, after you ask, for your products and volumes: selected partners near Schiphol and Rotterdam. Our team checks the partner’s licence or status before a quote goes to you. You see every price first, and the partner invoices your company directly for its own work. We invoice our own work, and you have one contact person on our team. See how we work with partners.

Your Dutch company (BV) starts from €2,950 excl. VAT. A holding with an operating company starts from €4,950 excl. VAT. Other work has its own price, which you see first. Your company is usually set up within one week once all documents are complete.

How it works, step by step

1. Free first advice. You tell us your products, your volumes, your EU buyers and your plans. Our team answers in writing which option suits your company.
2. Documents. Our team sends the list of papers for your country, with the steps for the apostille or legalisation.
3. Your Dutch company. You sign a power of attorney for the deed in your own country, and the notary in the Netherlands signs the deed.
4. Numbers and login. The VAT number, the EORI number, the Article 23 licence when you import, and eHerkenning level 3.
5. Status and registrations. The CBAM application for imports of hydrogen or ammonia, the registration as an employer, and your supply in the EU Hydrogen Mechanism.
6. Partners. After you ask, our team selects a customs broker, a verifier, a certifier, a product specialist or an immigration lawyer. You see every price first.
7. Bank file. Our team prepares the file for your bank. The bank decides.
8. Every year. Bookkeeping, VAT returns and, for importers, the CBAM declaration by 30 September.

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