Yes, the country is safe for international students. It regularly features on the list of the safest countries in the world.

Generally, PhD students aren’t charged tuition fees in the Netherlands. They are usually treated as university employees but they have to pay statutory fees. However, doctoral candidates who are termed as contract doctoral research associates and external doctoral candidates are not treated as university employees. Contract doctoral research candidates are funded by an external source and external doctoral candidates are self-funded. They have to pay some tuition fees at the university. The statutory fees cover costs of examination, administration, supervision, and university access. These fees may vary across universities as well as disciplines. The students can seek university scholarships to cover their statutory fees and other living costs. This Dutch funding is offered by Nuffic, Study in Holland, and Euraxes. 

Yes, there are many big companies in the country. The companies like Tesla, Netflix, Nike, Panasonic Europe, IKEA, and Adidas have their regional headquarters in the country. Other big companies like Aegon, Unilever, Royal Dutch Cell, and Heineken also have offices in this country.