Accountantsregister

The Dutch NBA register in which every AA or RA accountant must be enrolled before using that protected professional title.

The Accountantsregister is the register, maintained by the Koninklijke Nederlandse Beroepsorganisatie van Accountants (NBA), in which every accountant entitled to practise in the Netherlands is enrolled. It is what makes the country's two legally protected accountancy titles usable: nobody may call themselves an Accountant-Administratieconsulent (AA) or a Registeraccountant (RA) without first being listed in it, under the Wet op het accountantsberoep, the law that governs the accountancy profession.

A holder does not choose to register as a courtesy; without the entry, using either title is unlawful. To become and remain registered, someone must be an NBA member and meet the association's ongoing requirements - a break in membership, non-payment of dues, or a disciplinary measure can all lead to removal.

For Cleverbase, the register matters as an authentic source: before a professional certificate such as an AA professional certificate or RA professional certificate states someone's title, that title has to be checked against this register, not taken on the applicant's word.

Note: the register lists accountants by title, not by job. Many people who do accounting, bookkeeping or tax work in the Netherlands are not AA or RA and will not appear in it - and appearing in it does not by itself say what kind of engagements someone currently carries out.