Van export insurance: white Dutch export plates for vans up to 3,500 kg

Buying a van in the Netherlands for your business

Ex-lease and ex-fleet vans are widely available in the Netherlands, from panel vans and crew cabs to box vans and pick-ups. Whether you buy one for your own business or several for resale, driving them home on white export plates is an alternative to paying for transport.

For that drive the van needs the same package as a car: once the van is reported for export, the yellow plates are no longer valid and the van needs white export plates plus temporary export insurance with a green card. We supply both. The export deregistration at the RDW is done by the seller or another RDW-recognised company, or by us at our office in Hengelo for €50 per van during opening hours. We then need the van's Dutch number plates, which stay with us, its registration card with the tenaamstellingscode and a driving licence, identity card or passport; the van itself can stay in the seller's yard. The complete explanation is on the page about Dutch export plates with insurance.

Export plates for vans: from €100 including 2 plates

For a van or light commercial vehicle up to 3,500 kg the price starts at €100, the same starting price as for a car. Included are two white Dutch export plates, the 14-day third-party liability insurance and the green card as a PDF by e-mail. Delivered by DHL Express anywhere in Europe, the total starts at €150, including the surcharge of €50 per shipment. The type of body does not change the category: a panel van, a van with windows, a double cab, a tipper or a van with a tail lift is still a van, and up to 3,500 kg it falls under the van rate, with the exact amount depending on the van's empty weight and year of manufacture. Because the rate group follows the vehicle type, a van converted into a camper counts as a motorhome: whether it is registered as a camper or still as a van, it is charged at the motorhome rate, from €180.

Send us the Dutch registration number and we will look up the vehicle type, the empty weight and the year of manufacture in the registration data, so you do not have to guess. All prices per vehicle type are on the price page.

Above 3,500 kg: the truck rate applies

Some vans, especially long-wheelbase models with a heavy body, a tail lift or a chassis cab conversion, are above 3,500 kg. Such a vehicle is no longer a light commercial vehicle for our prices but a heavy vehicle, and the truck rate, from €180, applies, also including two white export plates and the green card. The same applies to a minibus or any other vehicle above 3,500 kg. Not sure which side of the line your van is on? Send the registration number or a photo of the registration certificate, and we will tell you which rate applies before you pay. Details for heavy vehicles are on the page about truck export insurance.

Business invoice and dealers buying several vans

If you buy as a company, we issue the invoice in its name, with the address and VAT number you give us, also for companies outside the Netherlands. Dealers and fleet buyers who collect several vans at once can send us one list with the registration numbers, the destination and the start date; we confirm the price per van, issue the policies and can put everything on one invoice. Each policy is issued in the company's name, and your drivers may drive the vans on it.

Collecting with several drivers on one day? Have the plates delivered to the Dutch seller or to the depot where your drivers start, or collect them together at our office in Hengelo on the way to the seller. For a list of vans with different start dates, give us the date per van; each policy runs its own 14 days.

Driving the van home and registering it

With the white export plates fitted, the green card in the cab and a valid APK (the Dutch periodic inspection), the van may be driven for 14 days from the start date, on Dutch roads and in every country where the green card is valid. The cover is third-party liability only; the van itself and any tools or goods inside are not insured. Keep the green card, the RDW export document and the purchase invoice together, because a van on export plates with a loaded cargo area may well be checked at a border.

After arrival you register the van at your national vehicle authority, where a registration deadline and taxes or duties apply, depending on your country and on whether the van is new or used. Check the APK expiry date before you buy, just as you would for a car. We do not arrange the foreign registration; the official Your Europe page linked under this page gives an overview of the rules in EU countries.