Money matters

Money

The currency in the Netherlands used to be the guilder (NFL, Dfl, Hfl, f or f), but this has changed (along with other European currencies) since the first of January 2002 into the Euro (€). The coins have a universal front side but differ at the back, representing the various participating countries.

There’s a picture of Queen Beatrix on the backside of the Dutch coins. There are coins of (1, 2), 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents and 1 and 2 euro. There are banknotes of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, and 500 Euro.

 

Bank affairs

In the Netherlands credit cards are not as commonly used as in some other countries. Most tourist shops accept all major credit cards. However, not all shops and restaurants do, due to high commissions to be paid to the banks. International credit cards like VISA, MasterCard or American Express have the possibility to make use of the Cash-in-Advance service through bank offices and ATM-machines. To use this service, you must first obtain your personal ATM identity code from your credit card issuer.

Traveller cheques are widely accepted, and are usually paid slightly above the current exchange rates for cash. Personal cheques however, are usually not accepted, unless drawn from a Dutch Bank affiliate.

VISA Cards and Master Cards (lost or stolen):      020-6600611

 

Insurance

 

During the summer school you can get an insurance certificate from AON consulting which covers medical expenses, travel accidents, liability insurance, personal property, legal assitance and addiotional costs. For more information please visit the website www.students-insurance.eu

 

Postal and telephone service

In the Netherlands post offices are open daily between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays, from 9 a.m. until 12 p.m. on Saturdays, and are closed on Sundays. At the post office you can buy stamps and send letters and parcels. Orange mailboxes are located outside the post office and throughout the city. The right side is for local mail (indicated by a range of postal codes) and the left for all other destinations. Mailboxes are emptied once a day at 6 p.m., except on Saturdays. Airmail postage rates are as follows:

 

 

When making a telephone call reaching outside your area, you must first dial the area code of the person you want to reach, which in the Netherlands begins with zero (0). After dialling this code, you can dial the subscriber’s number. Please note that all Dutch telephone numbers consist of 10 digits.

To call abroad from the Netherlands, dial 00 followed by the international country code. Public phone boxes require telephone cards of 5 or 10 euro. These are available at train stations, post offices, newsagents and bookshops. A small number of public phones is still coin-operated, while several accept credit cards.

 

Useful telephone numbers