Change health insurance

When Can You Change Your Health Insurance in the Netherlands? 

Claire LangenhoffExpert Zorgverzekeringen

12-04-2018

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22-07-2026

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6 min leestijd

Wouter Heuvelink

Gecontroleerd door onze zorgexpert

Dutch health insurance runs on a calendar year, so in most cases you can only switch providers once a year, around the turn of the year. Insurers publish next year's basic insurance premiums by 12 November, and on ZorgKiezer you can usually start comparing them the following day, 13 November. Do you need supplementary insurance, or want to compare it? It's often worth waiting until around 19 November, when insurers must have those packages published in full. There are a handful of legal exceptions that let you switch mid-year instead, tied to specific life events rather than things like a general change of mind. Below you'll find the exact deadlines, how switching actually works in practice, and the situations where you don't have to wait for the new year. 

When is the annual switching period? 

Every year, insurers must publish their new basic insurance premiums by 12 November, typically right around midnight. On ZorgKiezer, that means you can usually start comparing basic insurance plans for the new year during the course of 13 November.  Insurers have a bit longer for supplementary insurance: by law, until 19 November to publish the full details of those packages. Only need basic insurance? Compare as soon as 13 November. Do you need supplementary insurance, or want to compare it, for example for dental care, physiotherapy, or glasses? Then it can be worth waiting those extra few days and keeping an eye on ZorgKiezer, so you're comparing complete packages rather than an incomplete lineup. 

Once you've compared, you have two ways to actually switch: 

• Sign up with a new insurer by 23:59:59 on 31 December. Switch through ZorgKiezer and we arrange the sign-up for you; your new insurer then cancels your old policy on your behalf, with a 100% cancellation guarantee, so you don't have to contact your old insurer yourself. Your new policy starts on 1 January. This is the deadline that matters most: apply in time, or you're too late for a switch at the start of the new year. We'd always recommend not leaving it until the very last moment: switch a few days early rather than risking a busy final evening. 

• Prefer to cancel your own policy first? You then have until 31 January to sign up with a new insurer, backdated to 1 January. We'd generally recommend just switching within the normal period instead: it's simpler, and you always get 14 days of cooling-off time after receiving your new policy documents anyway. 

Miss both deadlines? Your current policy renews automatically for another calendar year, and you're stuck with it until the next switching period. 

What happens to your deductible (eigen risico) if you switch? 

If you switch at the start of the year, this isn't an issue: your deductible simply resets on 1 January like everyone else's. It only becomes relevant in the rare cases where you switch mid-year under one of the exceptions below. Insurers settle this pro rata between themselves, so you never pay your annual deductible (€ 385 in 2026) twice in the same year just because you changed insurer partway through. 

When can you switch outside the annual period? 

Ending your policy mid-year is the exception, not the rule, and Dutch law only allows it in a specific set of situations: 

• Turning 18. If you or your child turns 18, you're allowed to become your own policyholder and choose your own insurance from the month after your birthday, instead of waiting for the new year. 

• A new employer's collective scheme. If you switch jobs and your new employer offers a collective health insurance deal, you can move to it mid-year, but only if you were already insured through an employer's collective scheme before. Switching from an individual policy (without a collective) to a new one doesn't qualify on its own. 

• Divorce or separation. If you're insured as a dependent on your partner's policy and you separate, the policyholder can remove you from it, which lets you take out your own policy. The policyholder themselves doesn't get a mid-year switching right from this alone. 

• Unfavourable changes to your policy. If your insurer changes your premium or policy conditions during the year in a way that's disadvantageous to you, you're allowed to switch. Insurers are required to notify you when this happens and to inform you of your right to switch. In practice this is rare. 

• No longer legally required to be insured in the Netherlands. For example, if you move abroad and deregister from your municipality, your obligation to hold Dutch insurance ends and you can cancel your policy. 

Outside of these situations, an insurer is legally required to accept you for basic insurance regardless of your health, and can't cancel your basic policy mid-year either, even if you end up needing a lot of care. 

Can you have payment arrears and still switch? 

Generally, no: if you owe premium payments to your current insurer, you usually can't switch until that's resolved. There's one exception, though: owing money purely on your deductible (rather than on your monthly premium) doesn't block a switch in most cases. If you're behind on payments, it's worth contacting your insurer directly to understand your options before assuming you're stuck. 

How do I actually compare and switch? 

1. Wait for basic insurance premiums to be published, right around 12 November. On ZorgKiezer you can usually compare during the course of 13 November. Do you need supplementary insurance, or want to compare it? Consider waiting until around 19 November, when insurers must have published those packages in full. 

2. Compare health insurance plans based on premium, coverage, and whether your GP, dentist, or hospital is contracted with the insurer you're considering. 

3. Sign up with your new insurer before 23:59:59 on 31 December. This is the deadline that really matters: apply in time, or you've missed the switch for the new year. Switch through ZorgKiezer and we arrange the sign-up for you, with a 100% cancellation guarantee on your old policy, so you don't need to contact your old insurer yourself. Don't leave it until the very last moment: aim to switch a few days before the deadline rather than on 31 December itself. 

4. Changed your mind after signing up? You always have 14 days of cooling-off time after receiving your new policy documents from the insurer, so there's no need to rush a final decision within the switching period itself. But make sure your old policy has been cancelled before January 1st.

Want to know more about the situations expats specifically run into when they first arrive, rather than switching later on? See the application process for expats and the different types of health insurance available.