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Dealing with the Dutch includes concluding contracts. Although you are legally free to conclude a contract, there are certain rules you have to observe in order to make sure your contract is legally valid.

According to the Dutch Civil Code, a contract is concluded by an offer and the acceptance of that offer. Contrary to the Anglo-Saxon system, in the Netherlands an offer cannot be recalled once it has been accepted. An offer does not lapse by death or bankruptcy or when the offerer is placed under guardianship. The acceptance of an offer has no prescribed form and must be directed to the offerer. Both oral and written contracts are binding under Dutch law. However, difficulties may arise in case the existence of an oral agreement is argued…