How Dutch healthcare works: the huisarts, eigen risico and what newcomers need to know

If you've just moved to the Netherlands, the healthcare system can feel unfamiliar — especially the central role of the GP and the idea of paying the first part of your own costs. Here's how it actually works, in plain English.

Everyone needs basic health insurance

Health insurance in the Netherlands is run by private insurers but tightly regulated by the government. If you live or work here, you are legally required to take out basic health insurance (basisverzekering). The coverage of the basic package is set by the government, so it is identical at every insurer — only the price and service differ.

In 2026 the average basic-insurance premium is about €159 per month (roughly €1,900 a year), with most policies falling between €142 and €185 depending on the insurer and policy type.

Newcomer deadline: once you become insurable (usually when you start living or working here), you generally have four months to arrange Dutch basic insurance. Cover is backdated to that start date, so don't wait — you'd still owe the premium for those months.

The huisarts is your gateway to all other care

The single biggest surprise for newcomers is the role of the huisarts (GP). You register with one huisarts practice near your home, and they are the first point of contact for almost everything. You normally cannot go straight to a hospital or a specialist — the huisarts assesses you first and gives a referral (verwijzing) when specialist care is needed.

This gatekeeper model keeps costs down and is why hospitals can feel hard to reach at first. Good to know: a visit to your huisarts is free — it does not count towards your deductible (see below). Outside office hours you call the huisartsenpost (GP out-of-hours service), not the hospital, unless it's a life-threatening emergency (call 112).

The eigen risico (mandatory deductible)

Alongside your monthly premium, you pay the first part of certain costs yourself each year. This is the eigen risico. In 2026 it is €385 per adult.

That means the first €385 of covered care in a calendar year is at your own expense; after that, your insurer pays. It resets every 1 January. Some care is exempt and does not count towards it, most importantly:

• visits to your huisarts
• maternity care and midwife care
• care for children under 18 (children have no deductible at all)

A hospital treatment, prescription medication, or a trip to the emergency department generally does count towards the €385.

The €385 amount has been unchanged for years. There is ongoing political debate about changing it from 2027, but for 2026 it is fixed at €385.

Eigen risico vs eigen bijdrage — not the same thing

These two get confused. The eigen risico is the €385 deductible across most basic-package care. An eigen bijdrage (personal contribution) is a separate, fixed share you pay for specific things — for example a per-hour contribution for maternity care at home. You can owe an eigen bijdrage even after your €385 deductible is used up.

What this means for your budget

As a newcomer you'll typically have three healthcare costs: the monthly premium (~€159), the deductible (up to €385/year if you use covered care), and any personal contributions. People on a lower income may be able to recover part of the premium through zorgtoeslag (healthcare allowance) — but the income limit is around €40,000 for a single person, so most knowledge migrants earn too much to qualify. We cover this in the insurance guide below.

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Next: Choosing Dutch health insurance as a newcomer — basic vs supplementary, policy types, and how to pick. The monthly premium also feeds into your take-home pay — see the net salary calculator.

Rates: 2026 — last verified June 2026. Sources: Rijksoverheid, Zorginstituut Nederland, Belastingdienst.

DutchNewcomer provides healthcare information, not medical or financial advice. Figures are indicative and change yearly; check the official source for your situation.