Wikimedia Chapters Association/Place of registration/Netherlands
Introduction
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The country
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The Netherlands is a country with generally a high degree of political, social and economical stability. The laws and regulations concerning corporations and associations are straightforward and the same in the whole country. It is a member of the European Union and many other international organizations.
The most densely populated area is in the west of the Netherlands, an area called the en:Randstad with the major cities en:Amsterdam, en:Rotterdam, en:The Hague and en:Utrecht. It would be normal that a national or international (non profit) organization has its seat in one of these four cities. A NGO register mentions 432 NGOs in the Netherlands, most of them based in the Randstad area. see here
Amsterdam is the offical capital of the Netherlands and home to many (international) NGOs, foundations and companies. Rotterdam is known as a major international commercial and economical centre. The Hague is the seat of UN institutions such as the International Criminal Court, the International Court of Justice, European institutions such as Europol etc. The office of the Dutch chapter is based in Utrecht.
All these cities are within easy reach of Amsterdam Airport (Schiphol), which is the number four airport in Europe by passengers. There are good international train connections to Paris, Brussels, Cologne, Berlin, London and many other cities.
In the Netherlands, English, German and French are common subjects at school. A majority of the people have a good working knowledge of English. see here
The costs of living in the Netherlands are on an average level for Western Europe. see here
Tax exemptions and transfering money between the Netherlands and the Wikimedia Foundation should be no problem. WMNL has arranged for WMF to receive the official non profit status according to the Dutch law. Dutch law has no requirements with regard to the nationality of e.g. board members.
Wikimedia Nederland
editWikimedia Nederland was established in 2006. It is known for activities such as the first Chapters Conference (now Wikimedia Conference), the Amsterdam GLAMcamp of 2011 and Wiki Loves Monuments. WMNL has an office in central Utrecht, a ten minutes walk from the Central Station. At the moment, staff consists of the executive director and two employees.