They write that I need a Dutch bank account to get a personal OV-Chipkaart in the Netherlands for public transport, but I can't find if Revolut or N26 which are online banks accepted in the Netherlands also count.
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1It might, IIRC they use iDEAL, which is why a credit card or foreign bank accounts are not enough but Revolut does support iDEAL (possibly only for Dutch domiciled account with a Maestro card). N26 is not listed.– RelaxedCommented Aug 23, 2022 at 10:36
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As @Relaxed says, Revolut will probably work for the initial iDEAL payment to order the card. However, I doubt you will be able to set up automated credit recharging or post-payment (NS Flex; a mode where you get a bill for all your trips at the end of every month) as those use SEPA direct debits, not card transactions/iDEAL. Or does Revolut come with an IBAN usable for direct debits?– TooTeaCommented Aug 23, 2022 at 12:52
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1 Answer
The requirement for a Dutch bank account is not quite the case:
Ordering an personal/personalised "OV chipkaart" requires:
- a good quality photo in JPEG format
- a shipping address in The Netherlands, Belgium Germany or Luxembourg
- the ability to make an iDeal payment (when shipping the personalised OV chipcard to the Netherlands)
- alternatively: PayPal payments are supported (for people with an address in Belgium, Germany or Luxembourg).
- 2023 update the signup page currently explicitly states: Do you have a foreign IBAN but do you not live in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany or Luxembourg? Please fill in our contact form and we will help you further. You can apply for an OV-chipkaart with any valid IBAN
Now iDeal is an online payment solution that uses your own banks online banking platform to make payments (rather than a third party payment provider). It is the most popular online payment method in The Netherlands and is currently licensed to and supported by 12 different banks, nearly all of them from The Netherlands. See https://www.ideal.nl/en/partners/issuers/
Revolut is one of the iDeal licensed banks and supports making iDeal payments. The Dutch version of the support pages says that requires that your registered address is the Netherlands, but the english version says that a registered address must be in the EEA: https://www.revolut.com/en-NL/help/transfers/outbound-transfers/can-i-pay-with-ideal/how-can-i-pay-with-ideal .
So your mileage may vary.
Automated reloading, topping up the credit charged on your personal OV chipkaart, currently still also offers "When you don't have a Dutch bank account, please fill out this form" which allows you to set up a SEPA authorization (automatically debited from your account) when you don't have a Dutch bank account.
Most travellers don't apply for an personalised OV chipkaart and get an anonymous OV chipkaart instead.
2023 Update: Although a bit limited compared to a personal OV chipkaart (valid only for second class train fares, no support for senior citizen and/or other discount rates, only full-fare rates for example) OVpay has been introduced as a much more convenient alternative to a pre-paid anonymous OV chipkaart.
As a traveller you don't have buy an anonymous OV-chipkaart anymore, which needs to be topped off and have sufficient credit added in advance of your public transport & train trips, nor will you have to reclaim left-over credit from the card when you leave the Netherlands. You will get complete pay per use with your existing contactless debit/credit-card or mobile payment device.
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I do wonder how they get around the EU regulation that mandates for all physical goods to be available for shipping to any address within the EU.– JonathanReez ♦Commented Jul 31, 2023 at 16:08
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@JonathanReez-onstrike I get the impression that personalised OV chipkaart does get shipped to all EU countries, but decided to make the barrier for ordering one somewhat higher (possibly because the demand from countries that do not directly border the Netherlands is much lower?)– HBruijnCommented Aug 3, 2023 at 15:01