Statistics Netherlands

The Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS; German: Central Statistical Office) is the Dutch counterpart to the Federal Statistical Office. The official English name of the authority is Statistics Netherlands.

Seat and task

The Authority has two seats: One in the city of Heerlen ( Limburg ) and in Voorburg near The Hague. The CBS collects data on the production of statistics on almost any area of ​​the Dutch society. In part, it collects data by using Gemeentelijke basisadministraties, population and civil registry offices of the individual communities, working together, to some extent, by company sends forms on sales, expenses, balance sheet data, investment and so on. This is done since 2007 on the Internet. The sampled companies are legally obliged to complete and return the forms. For violation of this rule, the CBS has the right to impose fines. Until 2006, this was an unpopular task for the companies concerned, because the numbers sometimes had to be calculated as it determine the rules of accounting in the Netherlands quite different.

The very insightful website (also in English ) and the publications of the CBS are the main source of many statistical data on the Netherlands. Most of these data are freely accessible through the website.

History

The CBS was established in January 1899. It was subordinate to 2004 the Ministerie voor Economische Zaken, the Ministry of Economic Affairs of the Netherlands, then an independent authority was.