Netherlands - Apply for Dutch Nationality by Birth Or Family Ties

ProcedureEdit

Dutch father or motherEdit

Every child who is born to a married Dutch father or mother automatically acquires Dutch nationality at birth, even if that child is born outside the Netherlands or one of the parents is not a Dutch national. This rule has applied since 1985. A child born before 1 January 1985 to a Dutch mother and a non-Dutch father may opt for Dutch nationality. The child of an unmarried Dutch mother automatically acquires Dutch nationality at birth. This rule applied even before 1985.

Dutch nationality through the fathers acknowledgment of paternityEdit

The child of an unmarried non-Dutch mother does not acquire Dutch nationality. Until a man acknowledges the child, it has (as far as the law is concerned) no father. The child acquires Dutch nationality if:

a Dutch man acknowledges the child before its birth or before it reaches seven years of age. This acknowledgment may take place at the town hall in the Netherlands, or in a foreign country. Once the child has been acknowledged, it acquires Dutch nationality. This rule has applied since March 2009;
the child is acknowledged by a Dutch man after its seventh birthday, and the father provides DNA proof of his paternity within a year of that acknowledgment. If the father does not possess any DNA proof, he can apply for his child to be given Dutch nationality through the option procedure. In this case he must first raise and care for the child for three years without interruption.

Not every Dutch man can acknowledge a child. A married man cannot acknowledge a child without obtaining permission from a court of law.

Acknowledgment of an unborn childEdit

A child born to an unmarried mother who is a foreign national is automatically Dutch by birth if the childs unmarried Dutch father has acknowledged his child before its birth. In most countries it is not possible to acknowledge an unborn child. In that case, you can acknowledge the unborn child by having an affidavit of paternity drawn up by a Dutch municipality or a Dutch notary. In externe link: some countries (in Dutch) the Dutch embassy or consulate can have a special affidavit of paternity of an unborn child drawn up.

Acquiring Dutch nationality through ones parents marriageEdit

In some countries, the child of an unmarried woman who later marries automatically becomes the child of the mothers husband in the eyes of the law. This is called legitimation. If the husband possesses Dutch nationality at the time of the legitimation, the child who has thus been legitimated acquires Dutch nationality at the same time. But if the child already has a father, in a legal sense, when the mother marries the Dutch man, there is no legitimation. This applies, for instance, if the mother had been married to another man when the minor child was born, or if another man had acknowledged the minor child at some point in the past.

Nationality in cases of adoptionEdit

If a non-Dutch minor child is adopted by decision of a court in the Netherlands, Aruba, Curaao or St Maarten, it acquires Dutch nationality if one or both of the adoptive parents are Dutch nationals. The same applies in the event of a single-parent adoption by a Dutch national of a non-Dutch minor child.

If the adoption took place outside the Netherlands, Aruba, Curaao or St Maarten, other rules apply. Each case must be looked at separately, to determine whether the foreign adoption procedure was furnished with sufficient safeguards, and whether or not it can be recognised within the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. For cases of this kind, the Netherlands Nationality Act lays down rules determining whether or not the minor child has acquired Dutch nationality.

The naturalisation of childrenEdit

A former Dutch national or a foreign national with a Dutch partner who applies for Dutch nationality from abroad can apply for Dutch nationality for his or her minor children at the same time. Children of 16 or 17 years of age must give their consent to acquiring Dutch nationality along with their parent(s).

Similarly, if you are a foreign national living in the Netherlands, Aruba, Curaao or St Maarten and your minor children live there too, you can apply for your minor children to be naturalised at the same time as submitting your own application for naturalisation.

Dual nationalityEdit

Some countries apply the rule that any child born within that countrys territory automatically acquires its nationality. A child who is born in such a country and who has one or two Dutch parents will acquire Dutch nationality as well as that of the country in which it was born. If a childs parents are of different nationalities, it may acquire the nationalities of both parents at birth.

Required DocumentsEdit

List down the documents required for successfully completing the procedure.

e.g.
1. Proof of child birth from the Hospital.

Office Locations & ContactsEdit

By telephone

Inside the Netherlands:

1400 (local rates)

Outside the Netherlands:

Please call +31 77 4656767 (regular call charges apply.)

The Public Information Service line is open on weekdays from 08.00 to 20.00 hrs. In case your question cannot be answered immediately, you will be referred to another government agency.

By email

Please follow the link

https://www.government.nl/contact/contact-form

EligibilityEdit

Provide eligibility criteria's for going through this procedure.

FeesEdit

Explain the fees structure which is required for obtaining the certificate/document.

ValidityEdit

Explain the time until which the certificate/document is valid.
e.g. Birth Certificate Valid Forever

Documents to UseEdit

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Sample DocumentsEdit

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Processing TimeEdit

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InstructionsEdit

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e.g. The state office holds birth records since january 1908.

Required InformationEdit

A list which displays the kind of information which is required to complete the procedure.
e.g.
1. Date of Birth.
2. City or County of Birth.

Need for the DocumentEdit

Not every child who is born in the Netherlands automatically acquires Dutch nationality.

Information which might helpEdit

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External LinksEdit

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OthersEdit

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