Start a life science company in the Netherlands

If you would like to invest time and money in the life science sector, the Netherlands offers a very innovative and stimulating base to expand your knowledge and expertise. The life science sector is continually growing and evolving in the country, due to numerous interesting interdepartmental collaborations, as well as many other sectors benefiting from any innovative ideas that come from the life science branch. In this article, we will outline more about the life science sector and possible ways for you to invest in this highly active sector.

What exactly are life sciences?

Life science is a very broad sector that also encompasses many other fields, such as pharmaceuticals, life systems technologies, biotechnology, nutraceuticals, biomedical technologies, food processing, biomedical devices, environmental companies, life systems technologies and other institutions and organizations that devote a large amount of time and effort into technology transfer and research and development within various fields. In general, life science can be defined as all interwoven sciences that deal with living organisms. This entails plants, humans and animals right now. The following scientific fields are currently included:

• Agrotechnology
• Animal Science
• Biochemistry
• Biocontrol
• Biodynamics
• Bio-engineering
• Bioinformatics and biocomputing
• Biology
• Biomaterials
• Biotechnology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Biomedical Imaging
• Biomedical Systems
• Biomolecular Engineering
• Biomonitoring
• Biophysics
• Biotechnology
• Cell Biology
• Ecology
• Environmental Sciences
• Food Sciences
• Genetics and Genomics
• Medical Imaging Techniques
• Molecular Biology
• Nanotechnology
• Neuroscience
• Plant Science
• Proteome and Proteomics
• Smart BioPolymers
• Tissue Engineering[1]

More about the Dutch life science sector

Since the life science industry deals with living organisms, there is no other industry as tightly regulated as the sector that develops, tests and distributes vital drugs and medical devices. The life sciences industry in the Netherlands is growing rapidly. Innovation, R&D and production within this field have acquired a strong reputation worldwide. The development of new products within the life science sector takes much time and is very complex. The chances of success depend on many factors. The pressure for fast time to market is enormous due to the expectations and requirements on the global market. This is also made more difficult by the increasing power of insurance companies, tightening the rules.

Invest in a sector that matters now more than ever

Global health is a very current issue, that involves many overlapping sector working together. This encompasses important questions, such as which new medical devices, medicines or therapies should be invested in? And for which R&D projects is the success rate high enough to invest in? Is it an ethical investment? Does securing a fast time-to-market of a continuous flow of promising products appeal to you? The life science sector is a very rapidly evolving business, that definitely requires a stable form of commitment to succeed. There are regularly challenging projects and permanent incentives at leading life science companies, in which you can make your contribution to a healthier society.

Interdisciplinary collaboration

Within a constantly evolving field such as life sciences, it is very important to collaborate with adjoining sectors and other innovative companies. The Dutch Life Sciences & Health top sector stimulates innovation in this regard. It plays a connecting role between the business community, government, knowledge institutions, patients and social organizations. The separate organization Health~Holland initiates and stimulates multidisciplinary public-private partnerships in order to accelerate innovation. In addition, it gives this vibrant and productive sector a boost by attracting financing, sharing best practices, and a strong positioning. In this way, they aim to strengthen the (international) position of the Dutch LSH sector in tackling the social challenges surrounding prevention, care and welfare.

Vitally functioning citizens in a healthy economy

The top Life Sciences sector encompasses a wide range of disciplines: from pharmaceuticals to medtech, from healthcare infrastructure to vaccination. The Netherlands is committed to ensure the outcome of vitally functioning citizens in a healthy economy. To realize this mission, the country and the top sector build on the strengths of Dutch Life Sciences to tackle the biggest societal challenges in the field of prevention, cure and care: improving the quality of life (vitality). Whilst at the same time aiming to limit health care costs for its citizens. If you would like to contribute to this goal with your unique knowledge and resources, the Netherlands provides for a very healthy economic and competitive business climate.

Life sciences innovation stimulation and special subsidies

If you would like to work with others on innovation projects as an entrepreneur, then the Dutch MIT scheme may be something for you. This scheme stimulates innovation among businesses and entrepreneurs across regional borders. In addition, MIT encourages business projects to align better with the innovation agendas of the top sectors. Next to that, there is a so-called PPP surcharge. Private-public partnerships and TKI’s can submit an application for a PPP project allowance. Read more about how it works and how you can join a TKI.

Evolution in the healthcare sector

The Dutch government also wants to accelerate the broad application of effective healthcare innovations. That is why 'Health Deals' between the government and (private) partners have been created, in order to help these healthcare innovations further on their way. It concerns concrete healthcare innovations in which it is not possible to get the application further than, for example, the local hospital, the healthcare institution or the region. This is because a company might experience obstacles which may be solved with the help of the Dutch government.

Would you like to know more about possibilities for your company in the Life Science sector?

Intercompany Solutions has assisted a wide plethora of foreign companies and investors with making sustainable and logical choices. We can help you with the entire process of setting up your company in the Netherlands, with accounting services and many other practical extras. We can also inform you about your chances of success within a certain sector, if you can possibly partner up with someone else and how you might be able to start your business in a profitable way. Feel free to contact us anytime for more information and advice.

[1] https://www.fractal.org/Life-Science-Technology/Definition.htm