Amsterdam's expat only zone

A new twist on the local-tourist debate in Amsterdam is marked by this ironic sticker appearing in the city centre. Tensions around the growing number of ex-pats in the city have been rising as housing shortages have sharpened and populist anti-migrant sentiment has grown. Amsterdam is particularly popular as an ex-pat destination because of the widespread use of English, the open and tolerant nature of the city and the varied cultural scene.

Officially, the city is still openly inviting more ex-pats to join the party, with the marketing organisation I Amsterdam providing “a one-stop-shop service for international newcomers in the Amsterdam Area.” As we found in our study for the UCLG, the Municipality of Amsterdam sees ex-pats as a source of international talent, helping to skill shortages, increasing diversity and bringing knowledge and other resources.

But now it seems that ex-pats are still “Invited But Not Always Welcome” as a recent analysis argued. Issues related to the increasing number of new arrivals include rising prices of housing and the growing use of English in universities, the workplace and in daily life.

It is not surprising that landlords prefer to rent to ex-pats, given that they usually pay more. However, the Dutch government is also stimulating this trend through rental legislation aimed to increase security for tenants. Rather than be stuck with difficult to remove locals, landlords have therefore been aiming at short-stay ex-pats.   

If this trend continues, then it won’t be long before areas of Amsterdam really do become effective no-go zones for locals. The problem is, in such an open, multi-cultural city as Amsterdam, it becomes difficult who the ‘locals’ are. If Amsterdam had implemented a ‘locals only’ policy in the 17^th Century, the Golden Age might have been a bit less shiny.