Naturalisation in the Netherlands: conditions, five-year rule and costs

You can apply for Dutch nationality through naturalisation after five years of uninterrupted lawful residence in the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Article 8 of the Kingdom Act on Dutch Nationality, Rijkswet op het Nederlanderschap, RWN). The proposal to extend that period to ten years has not become law; shorter periods apply to partners of Dutch nationals and some other groups, and certain people can use the quicker and cheaper option procedure instead. Americans who came here under the Dutch-American Friendship Treaty follow the same rules. Whether you can keep your current nationality is explained in our article on dual citizenship in the Netherlands.

Has the naturalisation period been extended to ten years?

No. The five-year period in Article 8 RWN still applies, so anyone who meets the conditions today can apply today.

In September 2025 the cabinet put a draft bill out for consultation that would raise the period to ten years, the maximum the European Convention on Nationality allows. It would also have introduced a five-year residence requirement for spouses of Dutch nationals. As far as we can establish, no such bill has been passed or entered into force after the October 2025 elections.

History calls for caution. The Senate (Eerste Kamer) rejected an earlier bill to extend the period from five to seven years in October 2017. The 2025 draft linked the old rules to the date of application, so if you already meet the five-year requirement, there is little reason to wait.

What are the two routes to Dutch nationality?

The RWN has two routes: naturalisation (Article 8 RWN), open to anyone who meets the general conditions, and option (Article 6 RWN), available only to specific groups with a close link to the Netherlands. You do not choose freely: either you fall within an option category or you do not. Our overview of the Dutch citizenship process sets out both routes step by step.

What are the conditions for naturalisation?

You must be 18 or older, have five years of uninterrupted lawful residence, have passed the civic integration exam at level A2, pose no danger to public order and, in principle, renounce your current nationality (Articles 8 and 9 RWN). Each condition has its own details.

How long must you have lived here?

You need five years of uninterrupted lawful residence immediately before your application. At the time of the application and the decision, you must hold a permit for a non-temporary purpose, such as a permanent residence permit, an EU long-term resident permit, an indefinite asylum permit or a family reunification permit. A study permit does not count at the moment of application, and the counting of temporary-permit periods is a common source of refusals.

Shorter periods apply under Article 8 RWN:

• Spouses and registered partners of a Dutch national: no five-year period, provided you have been married or registered and have lived together for at least three years.
• Unmarried partners of a Dutch national in a lasting relationship: three years of residence.
• Stateless persons: three years.
• People who have lived in the Kingdom for at least ten years in total: two years of uninterrupted residence immediately before the application.
• Former Dutch nationals: a shorter period, though the option procedure is often more suitable.

What civic integration exam must you pass?

You must pass the civic integration exam or the naturalisation test at language level A2, covering reading, listening, speaking, writing and knowledge of Dutch society. Certain Dutch diplomas exempt you. A move to level B1 has been discussed since 2020 but has not entered into force for naturalisation.

An exemption from the civic integration obligation under the Civic Integration Act, for example an inburgering exemption, does not automatically mean you meet the naturalisation requirement. The municipality checks this separately at the counter.

What if you have a criminal record?

Naturalisation is refused if there are serious suspicions that you pose a danger to public order or national security (Article 9 RWN). The IND looks at convictions in the five years before your application and keeps assessing until the decision.

Under the IND’s public order policy, the following in principle lead to refusal:

• a single fine, penalty order (strafbeschikking) or out-of-court settlement of €900 or more;
• several such sanctions of €450 or more each, together amounting to €1,350 or more;
• a single community service order of 36 hours or more, or several of 18 hours or more each totalling 54 hours or more;
• a driving ban of two months or more;
• a custodial sentence, whether suspended or not.

Pending criminal proceedings, including a case where an appeal is still possible, also block naturalisation. The same policy applies to option, so a conviction during the procedure can still lead to refusal of an application that was sound when you filed it.

What other conditions apply?

You must prove your identity and nationality with a valid passport and a legalised birth certificate, with limited exemptions, for example for recognised refugees. You may not be married to more than one person, and you must make the declaration of allegiance at the ceremony.

When can you use the option procedure instead?

If you belong to a category in Article 6 RWN and meet its conditions, the mayor confirms that you have acquired Dutch nationality. There is no civic integration exam, the fee is €241 instead of €1,139, and the decision usually comes within about three months.

Option is a declaration rather than an application: the municipality checks the conditions and does not weigh other interests. Categories include:

• adults born in the Kingdom who have lived there since birth;
• adults who have lived in the Kingdom since the age of four;
• former Dutch nationals who live in the Kingdom with a residence permit for a non-temporary purpose;
• spouses or registered partners of a Dutch national, and people aged 65 or over, after fifteen years of residence in the Kingdom;
• people born before 1 January 1985 to a Dutch mother and a foreign father who did not acquire Dutch nationality at birth;
• certain minors and stateless persons.

In the option procedure you generally keep your current nationality; the main exception is the category of residents since the age of four. The public order condition and the ceremony apply as they do for naturalisation.

How does the procedure work, and what does it cost?

Both routes start with an appointment at the municipality where you are registered in the Personal Records Database (BRP). You hand in your documents and pay the fee there; you cannot apply to the IND directly or online.

For naturalisation, the municipality checks your documents and forwards the file to the IND with its advice. Dutch nationality is then granted by royal decree, and the decision period is 12 months. Files with disputed identity, incomplete civil status documents or an open criminal matter often take longer.

The IND fees for 2026 are:

• naturalisation, single applicant: €1,139; with a partner: €1,454
• naturalisation, reduced rate for stateless persons and asylum permit holders: €847 single, €1,163 with a partner
• minor child naturalising with a parent: €168
• option, single applicant: €241; with a partner: €412
• minor child included in an option declaration: €27

The IND adjusts the fees every year on 1 January, and they are not refunded if your application is refused.

What happens at the ceremony?

A positive decision does not make you Dutch by itself. You must attend the naturalisation ceremony and make the declaration of allegiance in person within one year of the decision; otherwise the decision lapses and you must start again and pay again.

Can you keep your current nationality?

Sometimes. If you naturalise, you must in principle do everything you can to renounce your current nationality (Article 9 RWN), but the exemptions are broad. You do not have to renounce it if, among other cases:

• you are married to or the registered partner of a Dutch national;
• you were born in the Kingdom and live there at the time of your application;
• you hold an asylum residence permit or are a recognised refugee;
• the law or practice of your country of origin does not allow renunciation;
• renunciation would cause serious financial loss, for example in inheritance rights, or would cost a disproportionate amount;
• you would first have to complete military service in order to renounce, or you are a minor.

Whether an exemption applies depends on your nationality and circumstances, so establish this before you apply.

Can you lose Dutch nationality?

Yes. Under Article 15 RWN, an adult Dutch national who voluntarily acquires another nationality in principle loses Dutch nationality automatically. Exceptions apply, for example if you were born in the other country and live there, lived there for five uninterrupted years before turning 18, or are married to a national of that country.

A Dutch national with dual nationality also loses Dutch nationality after thirteen years of uninterrupted principal residence outside the Netherlands and the European Union (Article 15 RWN); the period was ten years until 1 April 2022. The period restarts if you live in the Netherlands or the EU for one uninterrupted year, or are issued with a Dutch passport, identity card or declaration of Dutch nationality.

Automatic loss is not always final. In Tjebbes (CJEU 12 March 2019, C-221/17), the Court of Justice held that where loss of Dutch nationality also means loss of EU citizenship, the consequences must be assessed for proportionality in the individual case. The RWN was amended in response, and some people who lost Dutch nationality by operation of law can now recover it.

What about children?

Minor children can be included in a parent’s naturalisation application or option declaration at a reduced fee of €168 or €27, and do not take the civic integration exam. Children under 16 become Dutch when the parent makes the declaration at the ceremony; children of 16 and 17 must attend, make the declaration themselves and consent to the application.

Children can also lose Dutch nationality when a parent loses it (Article 16 RWN). Exceptions apply, for example where the other parent remains Dutch, or where the child was born in, or has lived for at least five years in, the country whose nationality is acquired.

What should you check before you apply?

Most refusals come from facts that could have been checked at home. Go through these points before you book the appointment at the town hall:

• Count your five years on permits and check that your current permit has a non-temporary purpose.
• Check for fines, penalty orders or community service in the past five years against the €900 and 36-hour thresholds.
• Collect a valid passport and a legalised birth certificate, or check whether an exemption applies.
• Find out whether you must renounce your current nationality and what that costs in your country of origin.
• Check whether you fall within an option category under Article 6 RWN, which is cheaper and faster.

What can we do for you with naturalisation?

Our immigration lawyers assist with naturalisation, option and loss of Dutch nationality:

• We check your permit history and calculate whether you meet the five-year or a shorter residence period.
• We assess whether you qualify for option under Article 6 RWN instead of naturalisation.
• We review criminal records and pending cases against the IND’s public order policy.
• We establish whether a renunciation exemption under Article 9 RWN applies to you.
• We file an objection (bezwaar) against a refusal within the six-week deadline.

Summary

• Naturalisation still requires five years of uninterrupted lawful residence; the ten-year proposal has not become law.
• Partners of Dutch nationals, stateless persons and some other groups qualify sooner.
• The option procedure is faster and cheaper, but only available to specific categories.
• A fine of €900 or more, or comparable sanctions in the five years before your application, will in principle lead to refusal.
• The 2026 fee for a single applicant is €1,139 for naturalisation and €241 for option; you must attend the ceremony within one year of the decision.

Frequently asked questions