firm24.com

Initial thoughts - disappointing

Hey. I wanted to share my preliminary experience with Firm24 as I go through the process of establishing a company in the Netherlands with their assistance. Although they committed to completing the process within 20 working days and still have six days left, my experience so far has been far from smooth.(I am writing this in English to reach a broader audience, in het Nederlands kan ook)Before choosing Firm24, I conducted extensive research and compared their services with other providers, including direct notaries. Their pricing structure and positive reviews seemed attractive, so I decided to proceed.The initial application process was straightforward and interactive, and I had no issues. However, at the final stage, an unexpected charge of €121 appeared for what they deemed “necessary additional services.” This was due to my previous nationality (Russian)—even though I am a Dutch citizen for ages —as Firm24 classified Russia as a FATF high-risk country.This claim was factually incorrect—Russia has never been listed as a high-risk country by FATF. If Firm24 had simply labeled it as a “high-risk country” based on their own internal risk assessment, that would have been understandable. But referencing FATF was misleading and inaccurate. (And expensive). Firm24’s website prominently displays MasterCard, PayPal, and iDEAL as accepted payment methods. However, when it came time to pay, MasterCard was not an option—only PayPal and iDEAL were available.Since I wasn’t familiar with Firm24’s reputation (despite the positive reviews, which I now question), I chose PayPal for the added buyer protection. To my surprise, there was an extra 2,5% charge for using PayPal, which was not clearly stated upfront.On top of that, the invoice they issued was incorrect—they charged the PayPal fee twice. I had to contact them for a correction, which took a full week because they had to “check with their notaries.” This was surprising—if they work with partner notaries, why did it take so long just to confirm that fact?After they finally corrected the invoice and refunded the €121 fee, I expected the process to move forward. However, nothing has progressed since then.Firm24 states that it can take the full 20 working days, and that’s understandable. But with only six days left, there have been no visible updates to my application. They also claim that I should be able to see a preliminary establishment date in their system (from their terms and conditions) but nothing has appeared so far. Not sure if it would. Communication has been extremely poor: • I sent an email on 3 February, which was only answered on 21 February—18 days later! • I called twice, and both times I was told, I called twice, and both times I was told, “My colleagues will contact you”—but nobody ever followed up.This lack of responsiveness does not inspire confidence, especially when dealing with something as important as company formation.Final ThoughtsAt this stage, to be fair, I’m still waiting as 20 working days have not expired yet, and I will update my review once the process is completed. However, based on my experience so far, I would advise caution before choosing Firm24.If you’re considering their services, it might be worth contacting notaries directly. I personally reached out to 10+ different notaries, and the price difference between their direct services and Firm24 was about €170–€200. While Firm24 may appear more affordable, with a direct notary, you have clear communication and direct access—which can save you a lot of frustration.

Date of experience: Feb 25, 2025