Huisuitzetting: How Eviction Works in the Netherlands (2026)

Huisuitzetting is the Dutch word for eviction, and the single most important thing to understand about it is procedural: a landlord in the Netherlands cannot do it alone. Ending a tenancy against the tenant's wishes is a court process, and clearing the home is a task reserved to one official. That does not make eviction impossible, but it does make it a controlled, multi-step procedure rather than something a landlord can carry out over a weekend.

This page explains how a lawful eviction actually works, from the notice through the court judgment to the enforcement, who is allowed to carry it out, and what it costs. It also corrects a common misconception about winter. It is written for the tenant (huurder) facing the prospect of losing a home.

The honest position sits between two myths. A tenant cannot be thrown out at a landlord's whim, but a tenant with, for example, long rent arrears is not immune from ever being evicted either. The barrier is a court judgment and an enforcement officer, which is real but surmountable. The text is stated as the Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7 was consolidated on 1 July 2026.

Information last verified on 22 July 2026. This page provides general legal information about Netherlands law and does not constitute legal advice in an individual case.

A landlord cannot evict you themselves

The rule that governs everything else on this page is that a landlord may not take the law into their own hands. A landlord who changes the locks, removes a tenant's belongings, or cuts off gas, water or electricity to force a tenant out is acting unlawfully, and a court can order access restored and damages paid. Dutch law calls this prohibited self-help eigenrichting.

The statutory anchor is artikel 7:272 BW. An opzegged lease that the tenant has not accepted stays in force by operation of law after the day it was terminated, until the court has irrevocably decided on the landlord's claim (lid 1). So even a validly terminated lease does not simply end on the notice date; it continues until a judge says otherwise.

A landlord in the Netherlands cannot evict a tenant on their own: under artikel 7:272 BW the lease stays in force until the kantonrechter has ruled, the court fixes the eviction date under artikel 7:273 lid 3 BW, and only a gerechtsdeurwaarder may carry the eviction out.

That single sentence contains the whole architecture. There must be a court decision, the court, not the landlord, fixes the eviction date, and a specific officer does the clearing.

How a lawful eviction works, step by step

An eviction that respects the law moves through three stages, and a tenant can contest it at the middle one.

First, the landlord gives notice (opzegging) on one of the grounds the law allows, or relies on a serious breach such as substantial rent arrears. The grounds a landlord may use, and the requirement that the notice state its ground on pain of nullity, are set out on the tenant protection page.

Second, if the tenant does not consent within six weeks, the landlord asks the subdistrict court (kantonrechter) to set the date on which the lease ends (artikel 7:272 lid 2 BW). The court considers only the grounds stated in the notice. If it rejects the claim, the lease is extended by operation of law (artikel 7:273 lid 2 BW). If it grants the claim, it also fixes the date of eviction (ontruiming), and that grant counts as an eviction order against that date (artikel 7:273 lid 3 BW).

Third, the eviction is carried out. This is where the enforcement officer comes in, and it cannot happen before the date the court set.

Only a gerechtsdeurwaarder carries it out

Even with a judgment in hand, a landlord still cannot physically evict a tenant. The clearing of the home is executed by a court-appointed enforcement officer (gerechtsdeurwaarder) whose office is regulated by the Gerechtsdeurwaarderswet.

Acting on the court's judgment, the deurwaarder serves the eviction order, sets the day for the clearing, and oversees it, and may call on the police to assist. The landlord is a bystander to this stage, and the police do not act on a landlord's request without a judgment. This is the same enforcement machinery that carries out wage attachment and other civil judgments in the Netherlands.

For the tenant, the practical takeaway is that an eviction announced by anyone other than a gerechtsdeurwaarder, or without a court judgment behind it, is not a lawful eviction and does not have to be obeyed.

There is no winter eviction ban

A widespread belief is that evictions cannot take place in winter. In the Netherlands that is not the law. Nothing in the tenancy articles of Book 7 BW, and no general statute, suspends eviction during cold months or over a fixed winter period.

Some countries do have such a rule. The Netherlands does not, and a tenant should not count on one. What does exist is voluntary: individual housing associations (woningcorporaties) and some municipalities apply their own winter policies or local agreements aimed at preventing people ending up on the street, but these are matters of practice, not a legal right the tenant can invoke.

Stating this plainly is more protective than repeating the myth, because a tenant who wrongly assumes evictions stop in winter may fail to act, defend, or seek help in time.

Where an eviction case is decided, and what it costs

An eviction claim is a tenancy case, and one rule fixes the court regardless of how much money is at stake.

Dutch tenancy cases are heard by the kantonrechter whatever the amount at stake, because artikel 93 sub c Rv assigns huur cases to the kantonrechter regardless of the value of the claim, so the EUR 25,000 threshold that applies to ordinary money claims does not apply here.

The cost of defending is modest by design. Most tenancy matters are treated as claims of undetermined value, so a natural-person tenant usually pays a court fee (griffierecht) of EUR 93 in 2026, and all court-fee amounts are re-set each 1 January. A lawyer is not compulsory in a kantonzaak, so a tenant may appear in person, and a tenant on a low income may qualify for subsidised legal aid (gesubsidieerde rechtsbijstand) and can turn to Het Juridisch Loket for free initial guidance.

For how the grounds and notice periods work before it ever reaches this stage, see the tenant protection page; for the wider structure of Dutch tenancy law, see the tenancy law page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a landlord evict me without going to court in the Netherlands?

No. A landlord cannot lawfully evict a tenant on their own. Under artikel 7:272 BW the lease stays in force until the kantonrechter has ruled, and only then, on the date the court sets, can the home be cleared. A landlord who changes the locks, removes belongings or cuts off gas, water or electricity to drive a tenant out is committing unlawful self-help and can be ordered to restore access and to pay damages.

What are the steps in a lawful eviction?

There are three. First, the landlord gives notice (opzegging) on one of the statutory grounds, or relies on serious default such as long rent arrears. Second, if the tenant does not agree, the landlord asks the kantonrechter to end the lease and set an eviction date; under artikel 7:273 lid 3 BW a granted claim counts as an eviction order. Third, a gerechtsdeurwaarder carries out the eviction on the strength of that judgment. The tenant can raise a defence at the court stage.

How long does an eviction take?

There is no fixed period, because the lease continues by operation of law until the court has ruled (artikel 7:272 lid 1 BW), and the court proceeding itself takes time. The tenant lives in the home lawfully throughout and keeps paying rent. Once the kantonrechter grants the claim it sets the eviction date, and the gerechtsdeurwaarder can act from that date. This is a real process with a real end, but it is not something that happens overnight.

Is there a winter eviction ban in the Netherlands?

No. Dutch law contains no statutory winter eviction ban or cold-weather suspension of the kind some other countries have. Nothing in the tenancy articles of Book 7 BW pauses eviction in winter. Some housing associations and some municipalities do apply a voluntary winter policy, but that is a matter of practice and local agreement, not a legal right a tenant can rely on.

Who actually carries out an eviction?

A gerechtsdeurwaarder, the court-appointed enforcement officer, and only a gerechtsdeurwaarder. Acting on the court judgment, the deurwaarder serves the order, sets the day and oversees the clearing of the home, and may call on the police to assist. The landlord has no power to remove a tenant or their possessions, and the police do not evict on a landlord's request without a judgment.

Can I be evicted for rent arrears?

Yes, but still only through the court. Serious rent arrears fall under the ground that the tenant has not behaved as a good tenant, and a landlord can ask the kantonrechter both to end the lease and to order payment. The court weighs how large and how persistent the arrears are, and can in some cases give the tenant a short period to put things right before granting the claim. Even here the landlord cannot evict without the judgment and a gerechtsdeurwaarder.

What does it cost to fight an eviction in court?

The case goes to the kantonrechter, where a natural-person tenant usually pays a court fee (griffierecht) of EUR 93 in 2026 for a claim of undetermined value, the common category for a tenancy dispute. A lawyer is not compulsory in a kantonzaak, so a tenant may appear in person, and those on a low income may qualify for subsidised legal aid and can turn to Het Juridisch Loket. All court-fee amounts are re-set each 1 January.

What happens to my lease while the court case runs?

It continues. Artikel 7:272 lid 1 BW keeps an opposed, opzegged lease in force by operation of law until the court has irrevocably decided, so the tenant remains a lawful occupant and must keep paying the rent. If the court rejects the landlord's claim, the lease is extended by operation of law under artikel 7:273 lid 2 BW. If it grants the claim, it fixes the end date and the eviction date.