The Netherlands: Kenya's largest destination, and who inspects
The European Union page on this site states the rules that are the Union's — duty, origin, inspection frequency, the false codling moth statement. This page is about the member state where most Kenyan flowers actually arrive: which authority sets the requirements, which agency opens the boxes, which system files the entry, where a consignment may enter, what the inspection agency charges, and what VAT the Netherlands applies. Every figure is from the Dutch authority or agency that sets it, with the date it was read.
The position at a glance
- Customs duty
- 0% under the EU–Kenya EPA, conditional on proof of origin The third-country rate is 12%. The agreement has no origin protocol of its own — the rules are borrowed from the Market Access Regulation. Both are set out on the European Union page, not here. Source read 25 September 2026
- Import VAT
- 9% — the reduced rate for ornamental horticulture products The Dutch tax authority lists sierteeltproducten (bulbs, flowers, plants, nursery stock) under 9%. A government proposal made on Prinsjesdag 2026 would move them to the general 21% from 1 January 2028, expressly including imported ornamental products. Both chambers of parliament still have to decide. It is a proposal, not law. Source read 25 September 2026
- Who sets the import requirements
- NVWA — the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority The NVWA is responsible for keeping the EU's phytosanitary import requirements current in the Netherlands - which products need a phytosanitary certificate, the inspection percentages, the quarantine organisms, the import bans - and publishes them. Source read 26 September 2026
- Who inspects the flowers
- KCB — the Kwaliteits-Controle-Bureau, on the NVWA's behalf KCB is an independent administrative body directed by the ministry and the NVWA. It carries out the phytosanitary import inspections of consignments of cut flowers and pot plants, as well as fresh fruit and vegetables and packing wood. Source read 26 September 2026
- How the entry is filed
- CLIENT-import, the national system, which generates the CHED and feeds TRACES The Netherlands uses a national IT system for handling Common Health Entry Documents. After an import inspection the information in CLIENT-import is sent automatically to TRACES and registered in a CHED. To request an inspection you must be registered with KCB and have access to CLIENT-import. Source read 26 September 2026
- Points of entry
- Any point of entry may be used; the main ones in use are Schiphol, the Rotterdam harbour area, Rotterdam Airport and Maastricht Airport The NVWA lists these as the main points of entry for plants and plant products requiring a phytosanitary certificate. For airfreighted flowers, Schiphol is the one that matters, and KCB's Schiphol-Rijk office is the one that inspects there. Source read 26 September 2026
- Documentary check
- Part of every import inspection, with the additional declarations as its focus The NVWA states plainly that where the additional declarations on the phytosanitary certificate are incorrect - for instance no reference to the relevant EU position - the consignment is refused entry. For Kenyan roses that is the false codling moth statement. Source read 26 September 2026
- Identity and physical checks
- Identity check against the certificate and the CLIENT-import declaration; physical inspection by sampling, at the percentage the EU sets For Kenyan roses the EU minimum identity and physical check rate is 25%; for carnations 5%; for gypsophila 3%. The NVWA publishes the current percentages. KCB also assesses packing wood and dunnage during the inspection. Source read 26 September 2026
- Where the inspection happens
- At the point of entry, or at an NVWA-approved inspection location KCB's own guidance allows inspection at an approved warehouse provided the whole consignment is presented together and remains fully traceable. The NVWA's list of 26 August 2026 names nine inspection centres at the Schiphol border control post, TRACES code NL000432, and 535 control points, 460 of them for plants. Counts are ours, from the sheet. Source read 26 September 2026
- Released without a physical check
- The original phytosanitary certificate must still be sent to KCB A consignment that falls for documentary check only is released on the documents, and KCB requires the original certificate to be posted to it afterwards. Source read 26 September 2026
- KCB charges — phytosanitary import inspection, from 1 August 2026
- EUR 66.56 start fee, plus EUR 2.08 per minute of inspection; documentary check EUR 4.16 per consignment The 2026 tariff sheet, approved by the ministry. The 2025 sheet was EUR 64.32, EUR 2.01 per minute and EUR 4.02. The documentary-check line includes the check of the additional declarations. These are KCB's charges; any NVWA charge of its own is an open question below. Source read 26 September 2026
- Protected zones
- None in the Netherlands The NVWA states that the Netherlands has no protected zones, so no protected-zone requirements apply on entry. They apply only if a consignment is moved on to a member state that has them. Source read 26 September 2026
- Plant passport for onward movement
- Not required for cut flowers Established on the European Union page from the consolidated Regulation 2019/2072 - cut flowers are on neither the Union list nor the protected-zone list. Source read 25 September 2026
- False codling moth statement on cut roses
- Required since 26 April 2025 under the EU rule One of four routes, evidenced in advance to the Commission by KEPHIS. It is the additional declaration the Dutch documentary check looks for first. Source read 25 September 2026
- NVWA's own charges
- Not established The NVWA sets its own tariffs for official controls in addition to what KCB charges. We have not read that regulation and publish no figure. Source read 26 September 2026
- KCB inspection lead time
- Not established KCB plans inspections according to a published service level. The page exists; its content did not render to our reader, so no time is stated here. Source read 26 September 2026
These are published requirements, not a landed cost and not a quotation.
What this page is, and what it is not
It is the Dutch execution of the EU regime, from the authorities that execute it. The NVWA's import pages, KCB's import pages and tariff sheet, the Dutch tax authority and the government's business portal, and Kenya's own export declarations as held by the World Bank's WITS — all read on the dates stated. It is not a guide to the Dutch auction — that has its own page — and it does not repeat the Union-level rules on duty, origin, inspection frequency or the false codling moth statement, which are on the European Union page with their instruments. Where a figure here depends on one of those, it says so and links.
Why the Netherlands is not just another member state
In 2024 Kenya declared USD 290.1m of fresh cut-flower exports to the Netherlands — 40.3% of everything it declared, to anywhere. The United Kingdom, second, took 17.5%. The destination page sets out the four-year pattern; the point for this page is that the Netherlands is where the largest share of Kenyan flowers meets an EU border, and therefore where the Dutch way of running that border matters most.
And a large part of what lands there does not stay there. The Netherlands is the location of the auction and of the largest importers, and consignments cleared at Schiphol are sold on across Europe. So the Dutch inspection is, for many Kenyan consignments, the EU inspection: once released in the Netherlands, no plant passport travels with cut flowers to Germany or France.
Who sets the rules, and who opens the boxes
Two bodies, and it is worth knowing which is which. The NVWA — the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority — is responsible for keeping the EU's phytosanitary import requirements current: which products need a certificate, the inspection percentages, the quarantine organisms, the import bans. The KCB — the Kwaliteits-Controle-Bureau, an independent administrative body directed by the ministry and the NVWA — carries out the import inspections on the NVWA's behalf for cut flowers and pot plants, fresh fruit and vegetables, and packing wood.
In practice: the NVWA is the rule, the KCB is the inspector. The certificate your exporter obtains from KEPHIS is checked by a KCB inspector against requirements the NVWA maintains. If the two names appear on different documents in your chain, that is why.
The route through the border, step by step
- Registration and declaration. The importer, or their agent, must be registered with KCB and have access to CLIENT-import, the national IT system. The consignment is declared there; the declaration is what generates the Common Health Entry Document and, after inspection, feeds TRACES automatically.
- Documentary check. Every import inspection begins with it: the phytosanitary certificate is checked and taken in, with the focus on the additional declarations. The NVWA's wording is unambiguous — an incorrect additional declaration, such as no reference to the relevant EU position, means the consignment is refused entry. For Kenyan roses the declaration in question is the false codling moth statement.
- Identity check. The contents are checked against the certificate and against the CLIENT-import declaration.
- Physical inspection, by sampling, at the EU rate. The KCB inspector takes a sample to establish that the product meets the EU's requirements — and looks at the packing wood and dunnage while doing so. The rate is the Union's: for Kenyan roses 25%, carnations 5%, gypsophila 3%, as set out with the regulation on the EU page.
- Where. At the point of entry — for airfreight, Schiphol, where KCB has an office at Schiphol-Rijk — or at an NVWA-approved inspection location, which can be a warehouse, provided the whole consignment is presented together and remains traceable.
- Release. A consignment released on the documentary check alone still has one obligation left: the original phytosanitary certificate must be sent to KCB.
Where the boxes are actually opened
The NVWA's English guidance says most import inspections in the Netherlands are carried out at the place of destination, at an approved place of inspection. Its list of border control posts and inspection locations, published on 26 August 2026, shows what that means. The Schiphol border control post, TRACES code NL000432, has nine inspection centres of its own, at the airport and nearby. The list's control-point section then names 535 locations, 460 of them for plants. They sit mostly where the flower and horticulture trade is: Poeldijk, Barendrecht, Honselersdijk, De Lier, Aalsmeer, Rijnsburg. The counts are ours, made from the sheet; the names are the NVWA's. The EU rules for moving a consignment from the border post to one of these locations are on the CHED-PP page. Control points, condition by condition →
A location has to be recognised by the NVWA before phytosanitary import inspections may be carried out there. The requirements differ by type of product and are set out in a separate NVWA document. The location must also be known to customs as a place where goods not yet cleared may be stored temporarily. An NVWA inspector visits before recognition. If the location meets the requirements, the NVWA says the procedure takes about a week. Recognition lasts two years and can be suspended after repeated failures to meet the requirements.
Arriving at Schiphol, inspected elsewhere in the Union. KCB calls this verleggen. The consignment is declared where it first enters the Union, and the documentary check happens there. Only if it passes does the consignment receive a CHED-PP authorising the transfer. For a Dutch documentary check before a transfer, KCB charged EUR 20.10 per declaration until the end of 2025. For 2026 it charges a start fee, a per-minute rate and the documentary check under its tariff list.
The step that decides most outcomes is the second. Nothing in this sequence tests the flowers before it tests the paperwork, and the paperwork test is a refusal test, not a fine. What each document must carry, field by field →
What KCB charges, and the shape of the charge
| KCB phytosanitary import inspection | From 1 August 2026 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Start fee | EUR 66.56 | EUR 64.32 |
| Inspection, per minute | EUR 2.08 | EUR 2.01 |
| Documentary check per consignment, including the additional declarations | EUR 4.16 | EUR 4.02 |
Source: KCB, Tarieven KCB 2026 (applying from 1 August 2026) and Tarieven KCB 2025, section 1.2, read 26 September 2026.
This is a time-based structure, and it is the one structure the border-costs page had not yet met at an EU entry point. Great Britain charges a flat sum per consignment; the EU's Annex IV sets per-check amounts; Australia bills inspection in time units; Saudi Arabia and the UAE charge on value. KCB charges a start fee and then the minutes the inspector spends. So a consignment that is well prepared and presented together — one consignment, one certificate, everything where the inspector expects it — is cheaper at the border than one that is not, and the difference is on the invoice. How the destinations compare, structure by structure →
Two limits. These are KCB's charges. The NVWA sets tariffs of its own for official controls, and we have not read that regulation — it is an open question below, not a zero. And the sheet is annual: the 2026 version applied from 1 August, so expect a 2027 sheet.
VAT: 9% now, 21% proposed for 2028
Ornamental horticulture products carry the reduced 9% rate — the Dutch tax authority names bulbs, flowers, plants and nursery stock. On Prinsjesdag 2026 the government proposed abolishing that reduced rate from 1 January 2028, after which 21% would apply, expressly including imported ornamental products and expressly excluding onward supplies abroad. The government's own business portal states the status: a plan; both chambers of parliament still have to decide. A buyer entering and selling in the Netherlands should plan around 9% now and watch the 2028 date. The EU page carries the sources and the German comparison →
The rules that are the Union's, stated once
Duty at 0% under the EU–Kenya EPA, conditional on origin and claimed under borrowed rules; the third-country rate of 12%; the inspection percentages; the false codling moth statement on roses; the absence of any plant passport requirement for cut flowers moving on inside the Union. All of these apply in the Netherlands because they apply in the Union, and they are set out — with the regulations, consolidated and dated — on the European Union page and the proof-of-origin page. This page does not restate them because a Dutch page that restated Union law would go stale twice as fast.
The CHED-PP and the Union's prior-notification rule, which every member state applies →
What to ask
- Who is the importer of record in CLIENT-import, and are they registered with KCB? If you are buying airport-to-airport, it may be you.
- Which additional declaration does the certificate carry, and does it reference the EU position? The documentary check refuses on this, before anything is opened.
- Will the consignment be inspected at Schiphol or at an approved warehouse, and is it presented as one consignment? Both decide the minutes on the KCB invoice.
- Is the consignment staying in the Netherlands or being sold on? Nothing further travels with it if it is — but VAT, and the customs question of whether a preference survives a sale in free circulation, do not follow it either.
What we have not been able to establish
Published sources do not answer everything. Rather than fill the gaps with an estimate, here is what is still open on this market and why each one matters to you.
- What the NVWA itself charges for official controls, on top of KCB KCB's tariff sheet is public and is stated above. The NVWA sets separate tariffs for its own work under a regulation we have not read. Until we have, the border cost stated here is a floor, not the whole.
- How quickly KCB schedules an inspection once a consignment falls for one KCB publishes a service level and plans inspections against it. The page did not render to our reader. For a product with a working life measured in days, the interval between declaration and inspection is the number that matters, and we will not guess it.
- Whether a consignment sold on from the Netherlands keeps the EPA preference The plant health half is settled - nothing further is required. The customs half - whether a preference claimed at entry survives a sale in free circulation - is a question for a customs adviser, and this site does not answer it from silence in the protocol.
Sourcing Kenyan flowers for the Netherlands?
Tell us the flower, stem length, head size, quantity, frequency and whether the consignment stays in the Netherlands or moves on, and we will come back to you. If a requirement above is one you need confirmed for your consignments, say so on the form.
Questions buyers ask about the Netherlands
Do I deal with the NVWA or with KCB?
Both, in different roles. The NVWA sets and maintains the import requirements and runs the registers - approved inspection locations, TRACES. KCB carries out the inspection on the NVWA's behalf, receives the certificate, plans the inspection, and sends the invoice. Registration to request an inspection is with KCB, and the declaration is made in CLIENT-import.
Is the inspection cheaper in the Netherlands than in Great Britain?
It is differently shaped, which matters more than which is cheaper. Great Britain's £7.64 is flat per consignment. KCB charges EUR 4.16 for the documentary check, then - if the consignment is one of the 25% of Kenyan rose consignments that is physically inspected - a EUR 66.56 start fee plus EUR 2.08 for every minute the inspector spends. An uninspected consignment is cheap; an inspected one depends on how it is presented. The structures compared →
Can my consignment be inspected at my own warehouse?
At an NVWA-approved inspection location, yes - KCB's guidance allows it where the whole consignment is presented together and remains fully traceable. Approval of the location is the NVWA's, held in its register. The NVWA recognises a location after an inspector's visit, for two years, and the location must also be known to customs as a temporary storage place. Whether your premises qualify is a question for the NVWA, not for this site.
If my flowers are released in the Netherlands and sold to Germany, what else is needed?
No plant health document. Cut flowers are on neither the Union plant passport list nor the protected-zone list, and the Netherlands has no protected zones of its own. German VAT applies to the German sale. Whether the tariff preference survives a sale in free circulation is a customs question this site leaves open, on this page and on the UK page.
Will the VAT really go to 21%?
It is a proposal with a date, not a decision. The government proposed abolishing the reduced rate for ornamental horticulture from 1 January 2028; both chambers of parliament still have to vote. This page will be updated when they do. Until then the rate is 9%.
Last verified 26 September 2026
Sources
-
NVWA — Import regulations of the Netherlands on plant health
What we read
Cited for CLIENT-import as the national system for handling Common Health Entry Documents, the automatic transfer to TRACES after inspection, and the requirement to use specific software to file.
-
NVWA — Additional declarations; documentary checks of plant products at import
What we read
Cited for the statement that the documentary check at the point of entry focuses on the additional declarations on the phytosanitary certificate, and that a consignment with incorrect additional declarations - for instance no reference to the relevant position - is refused entry.
-
NVWA — Protected zones and points of entry
What we read
Cited for the absence of protected zones in the Netherlands, the applicability of protected-zone requirements only on onward movement, and the main points of entry in use - the Rotterdam harbour area, Amsterdam Schiphol, Rotterdam Airport and Maastricht Airport.
-
KCB — Import, eisen en voorwaarden (import requirements and conditions)
What we read
Cited for the division of roles - the NVWA keeps the EU phytosanitary import requirements current, including which products need a certificate, the inspection percentages, quarantine organisms and import bans; KCB carries out the import inspections of cut flowers and pot plants, fresh fruit and vegetables and other products on that basis - and for the requirement to be registered with KCB and have access to CLIENT-import before requesting an inspection. Read in Dutch.
-
KCB — Import, uitvoering inspectie fytosanitair (how a phytosanitary import inspection is carried out)
What we read
Cited for the components of an inspection - documentary check with the certificate checked and taken in, identity check against the certificate and the CLIENT-import declaration, physical inspection by sampling - for the assessment of packing wood and dunnage, and for inspection at an approved location where the consignment is presented together and remains traceable. Read in Dutch.
-
KCB — Import, reduced checks
What we read
Cited for the statement that the current reduced-check percentages are published by the NVWA and that for consignments released on documentary check the original phytosanitary certificate must be sent to KCB. Read in Dutch.
-
KCB — Tarieven KCB 2026 (tariff sheet applying from 1 August 2026)
What we read
Section 1.2, phytosanitary import inspections - start fee EUR 66.56, inspection EUR 2.08 per minute, documentary check per consignment including the check of additional declarations EUR 4.16. Tariffs are set annually by the KCB board and approved by the ministry. Read in Dutch.
-
KCB — Tarieven KCB 2025 (tariff sheet applying from 1 January 2025)
What we read
Section 1.2 - start fee EUR 64.32, inspection EUR 2.01 per minute, documentary check EUR 4.02 per consignment. Cited for the year-on-year comparison. Read in Dutch.
-
KCB — Import (contact and locations)
What we read
Cited for the KCB office at Schiphol-Rijk (Beechavenue 3) and the Naaldwijk and Barendrecht inspection contacts. Read in Dutch.
-
WITS (World Bank) — Kenya exports of 060310 Fresh cut flowers and buds to all partners, 2024
What we read
Netherlands USD 290,137.87K of a total USD 720,037.76K - 40.3%; United Kingdom USD 125,757.42K - 17.5%. Exporter-declared, gross exports.
-
Belastingdienst — Btw-tarief sierteeltproducten
What we read
Ornamental horticulture products - bulbs, flowers, plants and nursery stock - under the 9% rate. Read in Dutch.
-
Ondernemersplein (RVO) — Afschaffing laag btw-tarief (9%) op bloemen en planten
What we read
Prinsjesdag 2026 proposal to abolish the reduced rate for ornamental horticulture from 1 January 2028; standard 21% to apply, imported products included, onward supplies abroad excluded; status - a plan, both chambers still to decide. Read in Dutch.
-
NVWA — Overzicht Nederlandse fytosanitaire grenscontroleposten en inspectielocaties (list of Dutch phytosanitary border control posts and inspection locations), 26 August 2026
What we read
OpenDocument spreadsheet published 26 August 2026. Schiphol Airport border control post, TRACES code NL000432, transport type A, nine inspection centres. Control-points section - 535 locations, 460 with category P (plants); the largest clusters for plants are Poeldijk 25, Barendrecht 19, Honselersdijk 18, De Lier 15, Aalsmeer 10, Rijnsburg 9. Counts are ours, made from the sheet.
-
NVWA — Erkenning voor locatie importinspecties aanvragen of veranderen (recognition of a location for import inspections)
What we read
A location must be recognised by the NVWA before phytosanitary import inspections are carried out there; requirements differ by product and are in a separate document; the location must be known to customs as a temporary storage place for uncleared goods; an inspector visits; about one week where the location meets the requirements; recognition for two years; temporary withdrawal after repeated non-compliance. Read in Dutch.
-
NVWA — Import regulations of the Netherlands on plant health, protected zones and points of entry
What we read
Inspections are carried out at an approved place of inspection; in the Netherlands most are carried out at the place of destination, approved by the plant protection service.
-
KCB — Import, verleggen (moving a consignment to an inspection location in another member state)
What we read
The consignment is declared at the first point of entry into the Union, where the documentary check is done; if it is in order the transfer is approved and a CHED-PP is created. Documentary check for a transfer - EUR 20.10 per declaration until 1 January 2026, thereafter a start fee, a per-minute inspection rate and the documentary check under the tariff list. Read in Dutch.