A public partnership is a partnership that carries out a profession or business (or performs professional or business acts) and acts externally in a for third parties clearly identifiable manner under a name used by it as such. A public partnership is referred to as openbare vennootschap in Dutch.

The possibility exists to convert a public partnership into an N.V. or a B.V., in which case the partners of the public partnership will become shareholders of the N.V. or B.V. by law, proportionate to their former share in the public partnership.