Frequently asked questions

Your bicycle may have been stolen. You can file a report with the police or call 0900-8844 (for all non-emergency questions or problems; local rate).

More and more municipalities are clearing bicycles from public spaces such as near stations or shopping areas, creating more parking space. These bicycles end up at a bicycle depot and on verlorenofgevonden.nl. You can search for your bicycle on this website, and once found, you will also find instructions on how to reclaim it.

Would you like your organisation to join this website and participate in this initiative? Click here

Verlorenofgevonden.nl is the first official large-scale government initiative in the Netherlands to create a single central website where lost and found items are publicly published. This website was developed in collaboration with all municipalities in the province of Utrecht, the Utrecht Police Region and the municipality of Vlaardingen. It is continuously improved based on feedback from visitors, police, partners and more than 250 municipalities.

You may not expect it, but the Dutch Civil Code devotes 8 articles to the rights and obligations of citizens regarding lost and found items. If you find something, there are legal consequences attached, even if you lose something. The Civil Code stipulates that the municipality (not the police) is responsible for the task of 'duty of care for unattended property', meaning the registration and management of lost and found items. Below is a clarified version of Civil Code Book 5, Articles 5 to 12, which shows exactly what your rights and obligations are regarding lost and found items:

Article 5

Anyone who finds and takes an unattended item is obliged to: report the find promptly. Where this must be done is described below under point 2. No report needs to be made if the finder immediately notified the person they believed to be the owner or who they were entitled to consider authorised to receive the item; report the find promptly if it was made in a dwelling, building or vehicle. With whom this report must be made is described below under point 2. This notification need not be made if the finder immediately notified the person they believed to be the owner or who they were entitled to consider authorised to receive the item; hand over the item to the municipality if required under the General Local Ordinance. The report as described under a) can be made at any municipality with the designated official. The notification as described under b) must be made with the resident of the dwelling or the person who uses or operates the building or vehicle, or with a supervisor. The finder may always deposit the item with any municipality. If they do not, they must take good care of the item themselves. The finder may demand a receipt of the report or deposit from the official.

Article 6

If the finder has complied with Article 5.1, they become the owner of the found item if: one year has passed since the moment of report or notification (see 5.1 a) and the item is still with the municipality or the finder. This one-year period does not apply to items voluntarily deposited with the municipality that belong to the category of non-valuable items (worth less than €450), as established by General Administrative Order. In such cases the mayor may, after three months from deposit, sell them at the municipality's expense, give them away free of charge or destroy them. If the item is deposited with the municipality and the above does not apply, the mayor may, after one year from deposit, sell them at the municipality's expense, give them away free of charge or destroy them.

Article 7

The finder may transfer their rights and obligations to the resident of the dwelling or to the operator or supervisor of the space where the item was found by immediately handing over the item, except that no right to a reward arises.

Article 8

The mayor may decide to sell an item deposited with the municipality that deteriorates quickly or incurs high storage costs or other disadvantages. If the item cannot be sold, the mayor may give it away or destroy it. If the found item is an animal, the mayor may, after two weeks from deposit, sell it if possible or otherwise give it away. If that is also not possible, the mayor may have the animal euthanised. The two-week period does not apply if storage costs are disproportionately high or if the animal must be euthanised earlier for medical reasons. The proceeds replace the found item.

Article 9

If the found item is money, the municipality is only obliged to pay an equal amount to the person entitled to claim it. This obligation expires when the periods have elapsed after which the mayor may decide to sell (see art. 6.2 and 6.3).

Article 10

Anyone who claims the found item from the municipality or from a compliant finder must reimburse costs incurred for storage, maintenance and tracing of the owner. The municipality or finder may withhold the item until these costs are paid. If the claimant has not paid within one month of being informed, it may be assumed they have waived their rights. The finder who has fulfilled their obligations has the right to a reasonable reward.

Article 11

If a finder has become owner of an item that was deposited with the municipality and does not collect it within one month of becoming owner, the mayor may sell it at the municipality's expense, give it away free of charge or destroy it.

Article 12

It is possible by general administrative order to set additional rules regarding Article 11 powers; designate groups of non-valuable items (see Article 6.2); set additional rules regarding the designation of persons and institutions that are exempt from reporting (see art 5.1a) or equated with municipalities; and to equate groups of uncollected or found items for the purposes of settlement.

Click here for the full text of the Dutch Civil Code.

The Dutch Civil Code stipulates that all Dutch municipalities (not the police) are responsible for carrying out the task of Duty of Care for Unattended Property, meaning the registration and management of found (and lost) items.

You are obliged to report your find to a municipality as soon as possible. This can be done via verlorenofgevonden.nl; the report will then be processed by the municipality. You may keep the item at home or hand it in to the municipality. After one year you may potentially become the owner of the item.

Yes, you may keep an item at home. You are obliged to take good care of it and report it to a municipality.

If you have found an ID document (passport, driving licence, identity card), you are required to hand it in to a municipality. It is state property and may not be kept at home. You can also file a report via verlorenofgevonden.nl.

Report it to Stichting AMIVEDI, a national volunteer organisation that provides free registration of missing and found pets in the Netherlands. AMIVEDI-Nederland has existed for over 80 years and has built up extensive experience and contacts, greatly increasing the chance that a missing or found pet is reunited with its owner.

Your personal details will not appear on the website. They are only known to the municipality where you filed the report.

You can report the loss of an item via the verlorenofgevonden.nl website. The report will be registered with the municipality. After reporting the loss of your item you will receive a confirmation with the municipality's contact details.

Check verlorenofgevonden.nl to see whether your item has already been found. Do this regularly — your item may be found only a few days later. The website verlorenofgevonden.nl processes new reports of found items every day.

View our privacy statement here.