# Does the Netherlands have a data retention law for hosting providers?

> Does the Netherlands have a data retention law for hosting providers? Not since a 2015 court ruling. Ravenquay: Amsterdam servers, no KYC, paid in crypto.

- URL: https://ravenquay.com/netherlands-data-retention-law/
- Last updated: 2026-11-02
- Publisher: Ravenquay (https://ravenquay.com)

The 2015 Hague ruling, the stalled bill 34537, the Dutch orders that still reach a host, and what Ravenquay keeps in Amsterdam.

**Quick answer — Does the Netherlands have a data retention law for hosting providers?**

No. The Netherlands has had no general data retention law since 11 March 2015, when a Hague court switched off the telecom retention act. The 2016 bill to replace it is still pending, and it covers telecom providers, not hosting providers. Prosecutors can still order data that already exists. At **Ravenquay**, an Amsterdam server starts at $72.62 for 30 days, with no KYC and payment in crypto.

## Dutch data retention law: the facts, read on 1 November 2026

| Attribute | Value |
| --- | --- |
| General retention duty in force | None since 11 March 2015 |
| Act switched off | Wet bewaarplicht telecommunicatiegegevens (Telecommunications Data Retention Act) |
| Ruling | District Court of The Hague, summary proceedings, ECLI:NL:RBDHA:2015:2498 |
| Replacement bill | 34537, filed on 12 September 2016, still awaiting the government's reply to the House report |
| Periods in the bill | 6 months for internet data, 12 months for telephony |
| Dutch preservation order | Up to 90 days, only for data stored when the order arrives (Article 126ni, Code of Criminal Procedure) |
| Ravenquay in Amsterdam | We keep no logs at all: no connection records, no traffic records and no IP addresses of visitors or customers, whether on the website, in the dashboard or on the servers |

## What did the Dutch court decide on 11 March 2015?

The judge in summary proceedings at the District Court of The Hague put the Telecommunications Data Retention Act out of force. Privacy First and six other claimants had sued the State.

The act made providers of telephone and internet services store traffic and location data on every user. Telephony data stayed 12 months. Internet access, email and internet telephony data stayed 6 months.

The judge applied the Court of Justice ruling of 8 April 2014, which voided the EU directive behind the act. Three flaws decided the case:

- It covered everyone, with no link to serious crime.
- Prosecutors could open the data without prior review by a court or an independent body. The judge held that the public prosecutor is not such a body.
- Nothing required the data to stay inside the EU.

**The 2015 ruling removed the Dutch duty to keep everyone's telecom traffic data in advance, and no law has replaced it.**

## Where does Dutch bill 34537 stand?

Bill 34537, "aanpassing bewaarplicht telecommunicatiegegevens", reached the House of Representatives on 12 September 2016. It keeps the old periods: 6 months for internet data, 12 months for telephony. A prosecutor would need the approval of an examining judge (rechter-commissaris). Providers would have to store and process the data inside the EU.

MPs filed their written report on 3 November 2016. The House page, read on 1 November 2026, still lists the bill as awaiting the government's memorandum in reply. Debate and vote have not happened.

The justice committee declared it controversial in 2017 and 2021, then chose not to on 19 June 2025. Whether the government will revive it or wait for EU rules is unclear.

## Does a Dutch hosting provider have to keep logs?

No statute requires it. Bill 34537 would cover providers of public telecommunications networks and services only. Renting a server is a hosting service.

EU law also sets a ceiling. The Court of Justice settled it in *La Quadrature du Net* on 6 October 2020. Under Article 23(1) of the GDPR, no national law may make hosting service providers retain personal data generally and indiscriminately. That ruling binds the Netherlands as an EU member state.

Many search results answer another question: how long a company must keep its books. That is tax law, not traffic data.

This page explains published law and court rulings; it is not legal advice.

## Which Dutch orders can still reach a host?

Orders that reach data a provider already holds. The Code of Criminal Procedure, in the version in force since 1 July 2026, gives prosecutors and police these tools:

- **Article 126n:** for serious offences, a prosecutor can order any provider of a communication service to supply data on a user and their traffic. The order covers data held now, or processed over the next 3 months at most.
- **Article 138g** defines that provider widely. It includes anyone who processes or stores data for such a service or its users, so a host can receive the order.
- **Article 126na:** for any crime, an officer can ask for a user's name, address, number and type of service.
- **Article 126nd:** a prosecutor can order anyone believed to have access to stored data to hand it over.
- **Article 126ni:** a prosecutor can order stored data kept and available for up to 90 days when it risks loss or change.

**A Dutch order can freeze or copy what a host holds; it cannot produce records the host never kept.**

## What changed with the EU e-Evidence rules in 2026?

Regulation (EU) 2023/1543 applies from 18 August 2026. A judicial authority in one member state can now order a service provider in another to produce or preserve electronic evidence.

The regulation defines that evidence as data stored when the order is received. It creates no duty to collect data in advance.

- **Subscriber data and IP addresses** needed to identify a user can be ordered for any criminal offence.
- **Traffic and content data** need an offence punishable by at least three years, or a listed offence committed through an information system.
- **Deadlines:** 10 days to produce the data, or 8 hours in an emergency.

How the regulation reaches a provider based outside the EU is covered on [can police seize my server in another country](https://ravenquay.com/can-police-seize-my-server-abroad/ "Cross-border seizure of servers, step by step").

## Will the Netherlands bring data retention back?

No date exists. The European Commission's data retention page, read on 1 November 2026, says no EU-wide framework is in place. The Commission began an impact assessment on new EU rules in May 2025.

A European Parliament briefing of July 2025 says the Netherlands backs a new EU-wide regime, despite inaction at home. Neither gives a Dutch timetable.

The court limits that any new law must respect, country by country, are on [which European countries still have data retention laws](https://ravenquay.com/data-retention-laws-europe/ "Data retention laws in Europe, country by country").

## What does Ravenquay keep about an Amsterdam server?

Only what billing and running the server need. No logs: neither connection nor traffic records, no IP address of any visitor or customer, and no trace of how you found the site apart from a referral code if your link had one. We hold only what billing and operating your server need: the account number and an email if you add one; every top-up and order (amount, coin, network, transaction ID, date); and per server its name, plan, term, location, system, SSH public key, IP addresses and dates, as well as the temporary root password we set when you gave no key, which no longer opens the server once you change it. We have no control over the datacenter’s network equipment. We hand over records only when a Panamanian court orders it.

Ravenquay belongs to DomaineGoat LLC, a company incorporated in Panama that answers to Panamanian law alone. The datacenter holding each server operates under the law of its own country. In Amsterdam, that means Dutch law governs the datacenter, its network and its building.

**In Ravenquay's survey of 34 dedicated-server hosts on 30 October 2026, 19 offered machines in the Netherlands: the largest count of the four Ravenquay countries.** Compare the Swiss rules on [does Switzerland have a data retention law for hosting providers](https://ravenquay.com/switzerland-data-retention-law/ "Swiss data retention rules for hosts").

## Which Ravenquay berth fits an Amsterdam server?

Each berth costs the same in all four ports of call. Terms and the price rule are on [how much a Ravenquay unmetered server costs](https://ravenquay.com/pricing/ "Ravenquay berths and prices").

| Plan | Quantity | 30 days | 3 months | 6 months | 1 year |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Harbor 8 | 8 cores · unmetered 1 Gbit/s | $72.62 | $196.07 (−10%) | $348.57 (−20%) | $610 (−30%) |
| Harbor 16 | 16 cores · unmetered 1 Gbit/s | $205.27 | $554.22 (−10%) | $985.29 (−20%) | $1,724.26 (−30%) |
| Harbor 10G | 24 cores · unmetered 10 Gbit/s | $356.25 | $961.87 (−10%) | $1,710 (−20%) | $2,992.50 (−30%) |

In every plan: Unmetered port · Tor exits allowed · RAID 1 · Dedicated IPv4 · No logs · No KYC

**Before you pay**

- Minimum top-up $1. Top up once in crypto, then buy any plan from your balance.
- Credit on your balance does not expire and renews any of your servers. When a top-up is only made to reach the minimum, the unspent part comes back on request within 30 days of payment, in USDT or USDC. The rest of a balance is not paid out unless the law requires it.
- Credited once your payment is checked on the blockchain. Typical network confirmation time: BTC ≈ 20 min · USDT TRC-20 ≈ 1 min · USDT ERC-20 ≈ 5 min · USDC ERC-20 ≈ 5 min · ETH ≈ 5 min · SOL ≈ 1 min · LTC ≈ 15 min · XMR ≈ 20 min

## Dutch data retention for hosts: common questions

### Is the Dutch data retention law still in force?

No. The District Court of The Hague put the Telecommunications Data Retention Act out of force on 11 March 2015. Bill 34537, filed in 2016 to replace it, had not been debated or voted by 1 November 2026.

### Can Dutch police get data from a host without a retention law?

Yes, if the data exists. Articles 126n, 126na and 126nd of the Code of Criminal Procedure let police and prosecutors order stored data. Article 126ni can freeze it for up to 90 days.

### Does the EU e-Evidence Regulation apply in the Netherlands?

Yes. Regulation (EU) 2023/1543 applies from 18 August 2026 in every member state except Denmark, which does not take part. It covers data stored when an order arrives.

### What does Ravenquay record about my Amsterdam server?

Billing and server records only: your account, top-ups and orders, plus the server's plan, IP addresses and dates. We keep no logs at all: no connection records, no traffic records and no IP addresses of visitors or customers, whether on the website, in the dashboard or on the servers.

**Rent an Amsterdam server with no logs** Harbor 8 in Amsterdam costs $72.62 for 30 days, on an unmetered 1 Gbit/s port. Top up in crypto; no KYC, no ID. [Order Harbor 8 in Amsterdam](https://ravenquay.com/app/checkout/?plan=harbor-8&location=nl-ams&lang=en) · [See every berth](https://ravenquay.com/pricing/ "How much does a Ravenquay unmetered server cost?")

## Sources

1. [ECLI:NL:RBDHA:2015:2498, Rechtbank Den Haag, 11 March 2015 (C/09/480009 / KG ZA 14/1575)](https://uitspraken.rechtspraak.nl/details?id=ECLI:NL:RBDHA:2015:2498) — Rechtspraak.nl (read 2026-11-01)
2. [Wetsvoorstel 34537: Aanpassing bewaarplicht telecommunicatiegegevens](https://www.tweedekamer.nl/kamerstukken/wetsvoorstellen/detail?cfg=wetsvoorsteldetails&qry=wetsvoorstel%3A34537) — Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal (read 2026-11-01)
3. [Wetboek van Strafvordering, articles 126n, 126na, 126nd, 126ni and 138g (version in force from 1 July 2026)](https://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0001903/) — Overheid.nl (read 2026-11-01)
4. [Judgment of 6 October 2020, La Quadrature du Net and Others, C-511/18, C-512/18 and C-520/18](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:62018CJ0511) — Court of Justice of the European Union (EUR-Lex) (read 2026-11-01)
5. [Judgment of 8 April 2014, Digital Rights Ireland and Seitlinger, C-293/12 and C-594/12](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:62012CJ0293) — Court of Justice of the European Union (EUR-Lex) (read 2026-11-01)
6. [Regulation (EU) 2023/1543 on European Production Orders and European Preservation Orders for electronic evidence](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1543/oj) — Official Journal of the European Union (EUR-Lex) (read 2026-11-01)
7. [Data retention](https://home-affairs.ec.europa.eu/policies/internal-security/lawful-access-data/data-retention_en) — European Commission, Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs (read 2026-11-01)
8. [Mapping CJEU limits on data retention frameworks (PE 775.878, July 2025)](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2025/775878/EPRS_BRI(2025)775878_EN.pdf) — European Parliamentary Research Service (read 2026-11-01)

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Ravenquay: Ravenquay rents offshore dedicated servers with unmetered 1 and 10 Gbit/s ports in Reykjavik, Zurich, Bucharest and Amsterdam: each one a whole physical machine with root access and no monthly traffic quota, paid in crypto with no KYC (no ID, no selfie, no documents). It is run by DomaineGoat LLC, a company registered in Panama, and each server also falls under the data-protection law of its datacenter's country. On the 30-day term, each berth is priced at least 25% under a named comparable unmetered server from 10 no-KYC crypto hosts, read on 30 October 2026.