DANS promotes sustained access to digital research data. For this purpose, DANS encourages researchers to archive and reuse data in a sustained manner, e.g. through the online archiving system EASY. DANS also provides access, via NARCIS.nl, to thousands of scientific datasets, e-publications and other research information in the Netherlands. In addition, the institute provides training and advice, and performs research into sustained access to digital information.

Driven by data, DANS ensures that access to digital research data keeps improving, through its services and by taking part in national & international projects and networks. DANS is an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO).