Last updated on 27 October 2026

A minor offence (overtreding) is a criminal offence that Dutch law treats as less serious than a serious offence (misdrijf). Minor offences in the Dutch Criminal Code (Wetboek van Strafrecht, Sr) are listed in Book Three, from article 424 Sr. The penalty is detention (hechtenis) or a fine. Attempting or aiding a minor offence is not punishable.

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Legal basis

The Criminal Code has two categories of offences. Serious offences are in Book Two and minor offences in Book Three. One example is public drunkenness that disturbs public order (article 453 Sr). Other Dutch statutes also create minor offences. Each statute states which of its offences are minor offences.

The category matters. A minor offence cannot lead to a prison sentence (gevangenisstraf), only to detention or a fine. Detention is limited to one year, or one year and four months where the sentence is increased (article 18 Sr). Many minor offences carry only a fine in one of the lower fine categories (article 23 Sr).

An attempt is only punishable for a serious offence (article 45 Sr). Article 52 Sr states that aiding (medeplichtigheid) a minor offence is not punishable. Committing a minor offence together with someone else (medeplegen) is punishable. The right to prosecute a minor offence lapses after three years (article 70(1) Sr). For a serious offence, the minimum is six years.

How it works in practice

Many minor offences are dealt with by a penal order (strafbeschikking). The Public Prosecution Service (Openbaar Ministerie, OM) can issue one, and for some offences an investigating officer or a public authority can too. If the case goes to court, it is usually heard by the sub-district judge (kantonrechter) under article 382 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (Wetboek van Strafvordering, Sv).

Police powers are also narrower. Pre-trial detention (voorlopige hechtenis) is in principle not available for a minor offence (article 67 Sv). Outside a situation where you are caught in the act, the police can only arrest you for offences that allow pre-trial detention (article 54 Sv).

Common pitfalls

Many people assume a minor offence has no lasting effect. In fact, a penal order or conviction for a minor offence is entered in the Dutch judicial records. These records are usually kept for five years, and sometimes ten (article 6 of the Judicial and Criminal Records Act, Wet justitiële en strafvorderlijke gegevens).

A second pitfall is missing deadlines. You can object (verzet) to a penal order within two weeks. If you do nothing, the penal order becomes final. You can then no longer argue that you did not commit the offence.

Also check how the charge is worded. The same conduct can be a minor offence under one statute and a serious offence under another, often depending on intent. That decides the penalty, the court and the limitation period.

Our criminal lawyers assist suspects and victims in cases involving minor offences.