# SnelStart — Accounting API: connection

> Canonical URL: https://developers.apideck.com/apis/accounting/snelstart/connection

# How to connect to SnelStart

Connecting SnelStart takes one credential: a **Connection Key** (in Dutch, *maatwerksleutel*) for the
SnelStart administration you want to connect. Paste it into Apideck Vault and you are done: there is
no OAuth screen to authorize, no second key to look up, and no token for you to refresh.

SnelStart is a Netherlands-only accounting platform, so this connector applies to Dutch SnelStart
administrations.

- [Prerequisites](#prerequisites)
- [Get your Connection Key](#1-get-your-connection-key)
- [Connect in Apideck Vault](#2-connect-in-apideck-vault)
- [Notes](#notes)
- [Troubleshooting](#troubleshooting)

## Prerequisites

- An online SnelStart administration on the **inZicht** or **inControle** package. These are the
  packages that include the **Maatwerk** (custom connection) tile, which is what issues a Connection
  Key: SnelStart states the tile can be used with those two packages. The lower packages (inStap,
  inKaart, inBalans, inOrde) do not offer custom connection access; SnelStart's own wording confirms
  only the inclusion list above, so this exclusion is our inference from it rather than a
  vendor-quoted list. If your administration is on one of those lower packages, ask your SnelStart
  administrator or accountant about moving to inZicht or inControle.
- **A confirmed subscription, not a free trial.** SnelStart does not allow setting up a coupling while
  the administration is still in its free trial period ("Je kunt tijdens de gratis proefperiode nog
  geen koppeling maken"). Confirm the subscription first; the Maatwerk connection can be set up right
  after that.
- The Connection Key itself, from whoever manages your SnelStart account, typically your bookkeeper,
  accountant, or in-house SnelStart administrator (see step 1).

> **If your accountant sets this up for you:** SnelStart notes that *some* of its connection tiles can
> only be set up from an accountant's own (office) administration, rather than from a client
> administration they manage. SnelStart does not list that condition for the Maatwerk tile
> specifically, so treat it as SnelStart behavior to be aware of rather than a known limit on the
> Connection Key path. Go ahead and generate the key from the administration you want to connect. If
> SnelStart does block it for your account, your accountant or SnelStart support can confirm which
> administration the key has to come from.

You do **not** need to apply to SnelStart, register on their developer portal, or go through their
certification process yourself. That one-time approval is handled by the provider of the application
you are connecting; they also supply the integration-level subscription key, which is never collected
from you.

## 1. Get your Connection Key

The Connection Key is generated inside SnelStart by someone with access to the administration. If that
is not you, forward this section to your accountant or SnelStart administrator.

1. Sign in to **SnelStart Web** and open the online administration you want to connect.
2. Go to **Koppelingen** (Connections).
3. Open the **Maatwerk** tile, the tile for custom connections, as opposed to the tiles for named
   software partners.
4. Choose **koppeling instellen** (set up connection). SnelStart generates the Connection Key. This
   option appears only on an administration that does not have a Maatwerk coupling yet. See the
   warning below if the tile already shows the coupling as active.
5. Copy the generated key and share it securely with whoever is setting up the connection.

> **If the Maatwerk tile already shows an active coupling:** it offers only **Generate new key** and
> **Disable connection**: there is no *koppeling instellen* step, and the key currently in use is
> never shown again. The only way to obtain a key on an already-active tile is to generate a new one,
> which is a rotation: it silently invalidates whatever key is in use right now, wherever it is in
> use. On an administration more than one person or integration works against (a shared sandbox, or a
> customer running two integrations against the same administration), that takes the other integration
> offline with no warning. **Confirm who is using the current key before clicking Generate new key**,
> and plan to paste the new key everywhere the old one was stored.

SnelStart's own instructions for this flow, including the exact clicks and the conditions under which
a connection can be set up, are on their knowledge base:
[Koppelen met SnelStart via de API](https://kennisplein.snelstart.nl/klanten/s/article/koppelen-via-de-web-api)
(Dutch).

Treat the Connection Key like a password: it grants access to the administration's accounting data.

## 2. Connect in Apideck Vault

In Apideck Vault, open the SnelStart connection and fill in the one field:

- **Connection Key (maatwerksleutel)**: paste the key from step 1, with no leading or trailing spaces.

Save the form. Apideck validates the key by reading the administration's company information, so a
success message means the key works and is pointed at a real administration.

There is nothing else to pick or approve in the Apideck connect flow: no scope checkboxes to tick, no
environment to choose, and no separate subscription key on your side. SnelStart's API *is* scope-based:
the read and write permissions the coupling carries are shown and set on the SnelStart side when the
Maatwerk connection is created, but none of that is something you manage in Vault.

## Notes

- **One key per administration.** A Connection Key is bound to exactly one SnelStart administration:
  each administration has its own unique coupling key. If you manage several administrations, ask for a
  separate key for each one and create a separate Apideck Vault connection per administration: one
  connection cannot serve two administrations, and there is no administration picker after connecting.
- **After restoring a backup, you need a brand-new Connection Key.** If you restore a restore point or
  backup and carry on working in that administration, SnelStart treats it as a *new* administration,
  and a new administration gets its own new, different coupling key ("Bij een nieuwe administratie
  hoort namelijk een andere unieke koppeling sleutel"). The old key is dead rather than paused:
  reactivating the coupling does not bring it back. Set the coupling up again under **Koppelingen** in
  SnelStart, and paste the newly generated key into the Vault connection, replacing the old one.
- **Nothing to pick or approve in Vault.** There are no permission checkboxes in the Apideck connect
  flow. SnelStart's API operations do each require named scopes, but those are granted on the SnelStart
  side as part of the Maatwerk coupling (the tile lists the read/write access it grants when the
  coupling is set up), not chosen here. Access is bound to the single administration the key belongs
  to, so you control what the integration can reach by choosing which administration's key you share.
- **No token for you to manage.** Apideck exchanges your Connection Key for a short-lived access token
  behind the scenes on each request and refreshes it automatically, so there is nothing for you to
  renew or rotate on a schedule.
- **The application side has its own subscription to maintain.** Every request also carries an
  integration-level subscription key that belongs to the provider of the application you are
  connecting, not to you. If the connection stops working and nothing changed on your side, contact
  that provider: the fix may be on their SnelStart integration rather than with your key.

## Troubleshooting

**The connection fails validation right after saving**

- Re-copy the key. A partially selected key, or one with a trailing space or line break, is the most
  common cause.
- Confirm the Maatwerk connection is still active in SnelStart under **Koppelingen**: if it was
  removed, reset, or rotated, the old key stops working and a newly generated one must be pasted in.
- If the administration was restored from a backup or restore point, the old key is gone for good:
  SnelStart treats the restored administration as a new one, which gets a new unique key. Set the
  coupling up again in SnelStart, generate a new Connection Key, and paste that into Vault.
- Confirm the key was generated from the administration you intend to connect, and that the
  administration is on inZicht or inControle.

**The Maatwerk tile only offers "Generate new key" and "Disable connection"**

That administration already has an active Maatwerk coupling, and SnelStart never shows an existing key
a second time. See the warning in [Get your Connection Key](#1-get-your-connection-key) before
generating a new key: it invalidates the key currently in use, so confirm who relies on it and paste
the new key everywhere the old one was stored.

**SnelStart won't let me set up the coupling**

- If the administration is still in its free trial, confirm the subscription first: SnelStart blocks
  coupling setup during the trial period, and allows it once the subscription is confirmed.
- If an accountant is setting this up, note that some SnelStart connection tiles can only be set up
  from the accountant's own (office) administration rather than from a client administration they
  manage. SnelStart does not list that condition for the Maatwerk tile, so try it from the client
  administration first; if SnelStart refuses, SnelStart support can confirm which administration the
  key must be generated from for your account.

**I can't find the Maatwerk tile in SnelStart**

The tile is available on the inZicht and inControle packages: SnelStart's own wording confirms only
this inclusion list, so we infer from it that the lower packages don't offer it. If your administration
is on a lower package, ask your SnelStart administrator or accountant about moving to inZicht or
inControle. If you are on one of those packages and the tile still is not there, SnelStart's
[Koppelen met SnelStart via de API](https://kennisplein.snelstart.nl/klanten/s/article/koppelen-via-de-web-api)
article covers the conditions for setting up a connection; your SnelStart administrator or SnelStart
support can confirm your account's status.

**The connection works but shows data from the wrong company**

The key belongs to a different administration than you expected. Ask for the key generated from within
the administration you want, and note that each administration needs its own connection.

**Something else**

For questions about your SnelStart account, packages, or a key that SnelStart refuses to generate,
contact your accountant, SnelStart administrator, or SnelStart support. For problems with the Apideck
connection itself, reach out to [Apideck Support](https://help.apideck.com/en/articles/7774658).


[API reference](https://developers.apideck.com/apis/accounting/reference.md) · [Coverage matrix](https://developers.apideck.com/apis/accounting/coverage)