Tuition fees loan
Loan or contribution
If you are not eligible for Dutch study finance and you are a national of one of the countries which belong to the European Union (EU) or the European Economic Area (EEA) or you come from Switzerland, you can apply for a loan or a contribution towards the payment of your tuition fees or course fees. There are three possible situations:
Are you going to study in the Netherlands and did you not receive a contribution for your tuition fees for studies in the Netherlands in the 2006-2007 academic year? In that case you fall under a new regulation: you can apply for ‘loan tuition fees' to pay your tuition fees (in Dutch: collegegeldkrediet). This is a loan which you have to pay back after your studies.
Did you receive a contribution from the Dienst Uitvoering Onderwijs in the 2006-2007 academic year to pay your tuition fees for a course in higher education? And did you not interrupt your degree programme at any point? In that case you can simply submit another application for the contribution of tuition fees for the 2012-2013 academic year. If you comply with all the conditions, you do not have to repay this contribution.
Are you going to do a course in vocational education or adult education in the Netherlands or are you already doing a Dutch course in that sector? In that case, you can apply for a contribution to the course fees. If you comply with all the conditions, you do not have to repay this contribution.
Conditions for tuition fees loan
You must:
be under the age of 30 when you apply for loan tuition fees for the first time
be enrolled as a full-time student for an accredited course at a funded or recognized institute of higher education or university. Take a course in the Netherlands that qualifies for an allowance or a grant.
have a citizen service number (in Dutch: burgerservicenummer) in the Netherlands
have a bank account, other than a savings account.
Amount of tuition fees loan
Students from EU/EEA countries and Switzerland who are under 30 pay the legal tuition fees for a full-time study at an institute of higher education or university funded by the Dutch government. However, the full-time study must be recognised by the Dutch-Flemish accreditation organization (NVAO) on the basis of a set criteria.
Students from EU/EEA countries and Switzerland who are under the age of 30 and follow full-time studies at an institute of higher education or a university which is not funded by the Dutch government must pay the so-called ‘institute’s tuition fees’. Usually these are higher than the legal tuition fees.
If you comply with the conditions for tuition fees loan, you can always borrow the sum of the legal college fees in the form of a tuition fees loan. If you want a higher tuition fees loan, this is possible if you pay an institute’s tuition fees which are higher than the legal fees. In that case you can apply for tuition fees loan for the amount of tuition fees that you pay, up to a maximum of five times the sum of legal tuition fees. If you want a lower tuition fees loan, this is also possible. You indicate on the application form how much you want to borrow per month.
Pay back
You always have to pay back the tuition fees loan, also if you do not finish your course or if you leave the Netherlands. Make sure you inform DUO of your new address.
Interest is calculated on the tuition fees loan. In 2013, the interest rate is 0.6 percent. As long as you are entitled to student finance, the interest rate on your loan or performance grant is altered every year. After you finish your study (counting from the 1st of January after you are no longer entitled to student finance), the interest rate is determined for a period of five years.
Two years after terminating your study, you have to start paying back. You are allowed to pay back over a period of time of 15 years, and the minimum amount is € 45.41 per month.
If you do not have sufficient income to pay your monthly term, you can apply for a reduction of your monthly term. Or you can ask DUO to temporarily stop collecting your study debt (for a maximum of five years).