PCI DSS compliance in the Netherlands

PCI DSS compliance in the Netherlands at a glance

Card payments run through Dutch web shops, payment service providers, contact centres and hospitality chains, and every organisation that stores, processes or transmits cardholder data is expected by the card brands to meet PCI DSS. The standard is owned by the PCI Security Standards Council; it is not a law, and there is no certificate in the ISO sense. Compliance is validated either by a Qualified Security Assessor through a Report on Compliance or through a self-assessment questionnaire, depending on what the payment brands and the acquirer require for the merchant or service provider level. Card data is also personal data, so the security duties of the AVG apply in parallel, with the Autoriteit persoonsgegevens supervising that side. Sterling's Enschede office defines the cardholder data environment, reduces scope, prepares policies and evidence for each requirement and supports the QSA assessment or self-assessment, with Effivity software and Sterling Academy training included in the engagement. Local questions follow.

Who needs PCI DSS in the Netherlands, and what happens without it

These are the organisations in the Netherlands that most often need to show PCI DSS.

• E-commerce merchants and web shopsCard brands and acquirers require PCI DSS validation for card acceptance.
• Payment service providers and fintechsService providers handling cardholder data validate compliance for their customers and the card brands.
• Contact centres and BPO operations taking card paymentsCard data handled by phone or chat is in scope.
• Any organisation processing card dataCard data is personal data, so GDPR security duties apply in parallel.

PCI DSS requirements in the Netherlands

Strip away the vocabulary and PCI DSS asks any business that stores, processes or transmits card data to comply in six areas.

In the Netherlands these six sit alongside the local laws and regulations listed under drivers below; one system can evidence both. The detail is on the global hub: PCI DSS explained →

• PCI DSS requirements, clause by clause in plain language
• The documents PCI DSS expects
• PCI DSS checklist

How to achieve PCI DSS compliance in the Netherlands

One team from the Enschede office carries the work from scoping to sign-off. All twelve provinces, on-site from Enschede; remote delivery for distributed teams.

1. Discovery call and scopeEntities, locations, regulators and target date, agreed before any proposal.
2. Gap assessment against PCI DSS and the Dutch requirements that apply to youControls you already run for your regulators and customers are reused, not rebuilt.
3. Your system built with your team in EffivityRisks, controls, evidence, incidents and reviews in one live system the auditor can see.
4. Internal audit, management review and corrective actionsYour internal auditors trained by Sterling; the evidence proven before any external review.
5. Reviews by regulators, customers and auditorsSterling supports the reviews your regulators, customers and auditors run.

The Sterling Promise: 100% on-time completion, 100% success, 8,100+ client engagements.Sterling does not certify. Certification decisions stay with independent bodies.

• PCI DSS gap analysis
• PCI DSS implementation plan
• PCI DSS internal audit

How long does PCI DSS compliance take in the Netherlands?

There is no standard duration: it depends on your scope and on how much of the system already runs. In the Netherlands these are the factors that set the timeline.

• Size and segmentation of the cardholder data environment
• Merchant or service provider level and validation type
• Remediation of technical controls
• Scheduling with the QSA

Sterling agrees a dated plan with you on the discovery call, once the scope is known.

• What drives the PCI DSS timeline
• Scope and timeline estimator

How much does PCI DSS compliance cost in the Netherlands?

The cost has two parts: the consulting work to build and prove the system, and any external assessor’s fees, which are quoted separately. In the Netherlands these factors move both.

• Scope of the cardholder data environment
• QSA fees quoted separately from consulting
• Technical remediation and tooling
• Number of payment channels

Sterling gives one customised, all-inclusive proposal after the discovery call, never before the scope is agreed.

• What makes up the cost of PCI DSS

PCI DSS consultants and assessors in the Netherlands

Two different organisations are involved. A consultant helps you build the system and prove it works; your regulators, customers and auditors then audits or assesses it and decides. Keeping the two separate is what makes the result credible to buyers and regulators.

• Check that the body’s accreditation or approval covers PCI DSS and your sector, and that its certificates can be verified online.
• Ask the consultant how the local requirements in the Netherlands are mapped into the same system, so nothing runs twice.
• Ask for client references in your sector; Sterling’s client letters are available on request.
• Agree who owns the evidence and the tool after the engagement; with Sterling the system stays yours, in Effivity.

PCI DSS in the Netherlands: questions clients ask

More on PCI DSS for Dutch organisations

• PCI DSS: the complete guide
• Watch: How to implement PCI DSS
• Banking and financial services: PCI DSS for the sector
• BPO and contact centres: PCI DSS for the sector
• E-commerce and retail: PCI DSS for the sector
• Fintech and payment facilitators: PCI DSS for the sector
• Healthcare providers and insurers: PCI DSS for the sector
• Hospitality and travel: PCI DSS for the sector
• Software and hosting: PCI DSS for the sector
• Sterling in Enschede
• PCI DSS compliance in the Netherlands and every other standard Sterling delivers there

Other standards Dutch businesses ask Sterling for

Organisations in the Netherlands often combine PCI DSS with one of these, under one management system where the scopes allow.

All 22 standards Sterling delivers in the Netherlands →