DAFT is DIY-friendly. The friction is not the treaty. The friction is the real-world sequence: forms, deadlines, payment letters, municipal appointments, and business registration windows. When those are out of order, even smart people start second-guessing themselves.
If you are an American moving to the Netherlands, DAFT can be one of the most approachable ways to get residence as a self-employed person. The problem is not that the process is impossible. The problem is that it is easy to feel lost, and it is easy for the wrong people to monetize that feeling.
This article is a practical, sourced walkthrough of what is actually required, what is optional, and what you should treat as a red flag. My goal is simple: you should be able to DIY this with confidence, using official sources and a clean checklist.
DAFT (Dutch-American Friendship Treaty route) is one of the most accessible paths for U.S. citizens applying as self-employed in the Netherlands.
Most people can DIY DAFT successfully if they have the right sequence, a clean file, and a calm checklist built from official sources.
I kept seeing people pay premium fees and still do the paperwork themselves. That is not real support.
The real friction is usually sequencing (IND, municipality registration, KvK, banking) and keeping documentation clean.
Expat Advisory exists to organize that reality into steps you can execute and verify.