Netherlands

• temperate;
• marine;
• cool summers and mild winters

agricultural land:

55.1%;

• arable land 29.8%;
• permanent crops 1.1%;
• permanent pasture 24.2%

forest:

10.8%

other:

34.1% (2011 est.)

• an area known as the Randstad, anchored by the cities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, the Hague, and Utrecht, is the most densely populated region;
• the north tends to be less dense, though sizeable communities can be found throughout the entire country

• water pollution in the form of heavy metals, organic compounds, and nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates;
• air pollution from vehicles and refining activities;
• acid rain

• located at mouths of three major European rivers (Rhine, Maas or Meuse, and Schelde);
• about a quarter of the country lies below sea level and only about half of the land exceeds one meter above sea level

noun:

Dutchman(men), Dutchwoman(women)

adjective:

Dutch

• an area known as the Randstad, anchored by the cities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, the Hague, and Utrecht, is the most densely populated region;
• the north tends to be less dense, though sizeable communities can be found throughout the entire country

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

1.01 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.99 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.82 male(s)/female

total population:

0.98 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

conventional long form:

Kingdom of the Netherlands

conventional short form:

Netherlands

local long form:

Koninkrijk der Nederlanden

local short form:

Nederland

etymology:

the country name literally means "the lowlands" and refers to the geographic features of the land being both flat and down river from higher areas (i.e., at the estuaries of the Scheldt, Meuse, and Rhine Rivers; only about half of the Netherlands is more than 1 meter above sea level)

name:

Amsterdam; note - The Hague is the seat of government

geographic coordinates:

52 21 N, 4 55 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

note: time descriptions apply to the continental Netherlands only, not to the constituent countries in the Caribbean

• King's Day (birthday of King WILLEM-ALEXANDER), 27 April (1967);
• note - King's or Queen's Day are observed on the ruling monarch's birthday;
• celebrated on 26 April if 27 April is a Sunday

history:

previous 1597, 1798; latest adopted 24 August 1815 (substantially revised in 1848)

amendments:

• proposed as an “Act of Parliament” by or on behalf of the king or by the Second Chamber of the States General;
• the Second Chamber is dissolved after its first reading of the “Act”;
• passage requires a second reading by both the First Chamber and newly elected Second Chamber, followed by at least two-thirds majority vote of both chambers, and ratification by the king;
• amended many times, last in 2010 (2016)

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a citizen of the Netherlands

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

5 years

chief of state:

King WILLEM-ALEXANDER (since 30 April 2013); Heir Apparent Princess Catharina-Amalia (since 30 April 2013)

head of government:

• Prime Minister Mark RUTTE (since 14 October 2010);
• Deputy Prime Ministers Hugo DE JONGE, Karin Kajsa OLLONGREN, and Carola SCHOUTEN (since 26 October 2017);
• note - Mark RUTTE heads his third cabinet since 26 October 2017

cabinet:

Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch

elections/appointments:

• the monarchy is hereditary;
• following Second Chamber elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the monarch;
• deputy prime ministers appointed by the monarch

description:

bicameral States General or Staten Generaal consists of the First Chamber or Eerste Kamer (75 seats; members indirectly elected by the country's 12 provincial council members by proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms) and the Second Chamber or Tweede Kamer (150 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote to serve up to 4-year terms)

elections:

First Chamber - last held on 26 May 2015 (next to be held in May 2019); Second Chamber - last held on 15 March 2017 (next to be held 15 March 2021)

election results:

• First Chamber - percent of vote by party - NA;
• seats by party - VVD 13, CDA 12, D66 10, PVV 9, SP 9, PvdA 8, GL 4, CU 3, other 7;
• Second Chamber - percent of vote by party - VVD 21.3%, PVV 13.1%, CDA 12.4%, D66 12.2%, GL 9.1%, SP 9.1%, PvdA 5.7%, CU 3.4%, PvdD 3.2%, 50 Plus 3.1%, other 7.4%;
• seats by party - VVD 33, PVV 20, CDA 19, D66 19, GL 14, SP 14, PvdA 9, CU 5, PvdD 5, 50 Plus 4, other 8

highest court(s):

• Supreme Court or Hoge Raad (consists of 41 judges: the president, 6 vice presidents, 31 justices or raadsheren, and 3 justices in exceptional service, referred to as buitengewone dienst);
• the court is divided into criminal, civil, tax, and ombuds chambers

judge selection and term of office:

• justices appointed by the monarch from a list provided by the Second Chamber of the States General;
• justices appointed for life or until mandatory retirement at age 70

subordinate courts:

• courts of appeal;
• district courts, each with up to 5 subdistrict courts;
• note in mid-July 2017, legislation was proposed to establish a new commericial court for international trade disputes with the Netherlands

• Christian Trade Union Federation or CNV [Maurice LIMMEN]
• Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers or VNO-NCW [Hans DE BOER]
• Federation for Small and Medium-sized Businesses or MKB [Michael VAN STRAALEN]
• Netherlands Trade Union Federation or FNV [Han BUSKER]
• Social Economic Council or SER [Mariette HAMER]
• Trade Union Professionals or VDP [Nic VAN HOLSTEIN]

chief of mission:

Ambassador Hendrik Jan Jurriaan SCHUWER (since 17 September 2015)

chancery:

4200 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 244-5300, [1] 877-388-2443

FAX:

[1] (202) 362-3430

consulate(s) general:

Chicago, Miami, New York, San Francisco

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Shawn CROWLEY (since 29 July 2016)

embassy:

Lange Voorhout 102, 2514 EJ, The Hague

mailing address:

PSC 71, Box 1000, APO AE 09715

telephone:

[31] (70) 310-2209

FAX:

[31] (70) 310-2207

consulate(s) general:

Amsterdam

• three equal horizontal bands of red (bright vermilion; top), white, and blue (cobalt);
• similar to the flag of Luxembourg, which uses a lighter blue and is longer;
• the colors were derived from those of WILLIAM I, Prince of Orange, who led the Dutch Revolt against Spanish sovereignty in the latter half of the 16th century;
• originally the upper band was orange, but because its dye tended to turn red over time, the red shade was eventually made the permanent color;
• the banner is perhaps the oldest tricolor in continuous use

agriculture:

1.6%

industry:

17.9%

services:

70.2% (2016 est.)

agriculture:

1.2%

industry:

17.2%

services:

81.6% (2015 est.)

lowest 10%:

2.3%

highest 10%:

24.9% (2014 est.)

general assessment:

highly developed and well maintained

domestic:

• extensive fixed-line, fiber-optic network;
• large cellular telephone system with five major operators utilizing the third generation of the Global System for Mobile Communications technology;
• one in five households now use Voice over the Internet Protocol services

international:

• country code - 31;
• submarine cables provide links to the US and Europe;
• satellite earth stations - 5 (3 Intelsat - 1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean, 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (2011)

• more than 90% of households are connected to cable or satellite TV systems that provide a wide range of domestic and foreign channels;
• public service broadcast system includes multiple broadcasters, 3 with a national reach and the remainder operating in regional and local markets;
• 2 major nationwide commercial television companies, each with 3 or more stations, and many commercial TV stations in regional and local markets;
• nearly 600 radio stations with a mix of public and private stations providing national or regional coverage (2008)

number of registered air carriers:

8; inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 244

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

34,870,204

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

5,292,794,685 mt-km (2015)

total:

3,058 km

standard gauge:

3,058 km 1.435-m gauge (2,314 km electrified) (2016)

country comparison to the world: 56

major seaport(s):

IJmuiden, Vlissingen

river port(s):

• Amsterdam (Nordsee Kanaal);
• Moerdijk (Hollands Diep River);
• Rotterdam (Rhine River);
• Terneuzen (Western Scheldt River)

container port(s) (TEUs):

Rotterdam (12,235,000) (2015)

LNG terminal(s) (import):

Rotterdam

refugees (country of origin):

• 28,394 (Syria);
• 16,512 (Somalia);
• 13,488 (Eritrea);
• 12,740 (Iraq);
• 5,791 (Afghanistan) (2016)

stateless persons:

1,951 (2016)

• major European producer of synthetic drugs, including ecstasy, and cannabis cultivator;
• important gateway for cocaine, heroin, and hashish entering Europe;
• major source of US-bound ecstasy and a significant consumer of ecstasy;
• a large financial sector vulnerable to money laundering