All the people who are in the Netherlands must have insurance for health spending.

Health insurance you need depends on your personal situation.

There are several types of protection: public health care insurance Netherlands, the EU Health Insurance Card, or private insurance. If you answer the following questions, you will know which option is appropriate for you.

1. Whether you are in the Netherlands for study purposes only?

Note - 'for study purposes only' means that you are not going to work part-time while you follow the study.

• Yes: see question 2
• Not: You need to take care of the general health insurance Netherlands

2. Are you aged 30 years or more?

• Yes: see question 3
• No: see question 4

3. Are you going to stay permanently in the Netherlands?

• Yes: You need to take the health care insurance in the Netherlands
• No: see question 4

4. Do you come from the EU, EEA or Swiss?

• Yes: You can use the EU Health Insurance Card.
• Not: You need to take out private health care insurance.
   

Dutch public health care insurance

If you are obliged to take the Dutch public health care insurance (zorgverzekering), you are free to buy insurance from public health care insurance company Holland anywhere. Ask your school, company that employs, or internship or apprenticeship providers if they can refer you to the insurance companies give a discount.

Note that Dutch public health care insurance only protects your health expenses. You need to take a separate repatriation insurance and liability insurance (liability insurance).

Read more about other insurance.

If you take the Dutch public health care insurance, you may be entitled to compensation for the cost of insurance. This compensation is called with health care benefits (zorgtoeslag).

Note: if you are required to take the public health insurance but failed to do so, you can be fined.

EU Health Insurance

The Netherlands has a health insurance agreement with a number of countries. This agreement covers all EU countries and Switzerland. So if you are a citizen of EU / EEA or Switzerland who are studying in the Netherlands, but it does not work or take an internship or apprenticeship here, a national health insurance policy in force in the country of origin also protects you while in the Netherlands.

The insurance company may issue a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) for you. Throughout the work you do not know take internships or paid internships in the Netherlands, you are not obliged to take out additional insurance in the Netherlands.

Further information about the EHIC is available on the website of the European Commission.

Private health care insurance

If you are not a citizen of the EU / EEA or Switzerland and will not work or do an internship or an internship while studying in the Netherlands, you need to find out if your current insurance protects you stay in the Netherlands. You can also find out if your state has a treaty with the Netherlands as described above.

If the answer to both questions is no, you need to take out a new insurance policy or policies specifically during his stay in the Netherlands.