Market research
The Netherlands
“Think Twice, debt is a serious issue”
DEBTLESS
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The Think Twice project is part-funded by the European Commission. This market research is the work of Peter
de Winter and Ritske Jan Merkus and do not represent an official document nor the views of the European
Commission nor of the Executive Agency
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Market research
Chapter 1 Population
The Dutch population is ageing. Furthermore, the life expectancy has increased because of
developments in medicine, and in addition to this, the Netherlands has seen increasing
immigration. These developments combined with the population boom after the Second World
War has created extremely low population growth: in 2005 saw the lowest absolute population
growth since 1900.
This has created a demographic problem with consequences for health care and social security
policy. As the Dutch population ages, the number of people able to work, as a percentage of the
entire population, decreases. Important policy advisors like the CBS and the CPB have predicted
that this makes the current system of old age pensions problematic: fewer people will work to
pay for old age pensions, while there will be more people receiving those pensions. Furthermore
the costs of health care are also projected to increase. These developments have caused several
cabinets, most notably the recent Second cabinet Balkenende to reform the system of health
care and social security: increasing participation in the labour market and making people more
conscious of the money they spend on health care.
Densitiy
Most people live in the city, 40% of the population live in the 5 big cities in The Netherlands.
Rank
City
1
Amsterdam
2
3
4
5
Province
North
Holland
South
Rotterdam
Holland
South
Holland
Utrecht
Utrecht
North
Eindhoven
Brabant
Den Haag
Population (Urban Area)
2,788,276 (2,871,870)
1,854,645 (1,904,051)
850,373 (940,631)
622,684 (670,484)
612,265 (730,480)
Migration and ethnicity
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According to Eurostat, in 2010 there were 1.8 million foreign-born residents in
the Netherlands, corresponding to 11.1% of the total population. Of these, 1.4 million (8.5%)
were born outside the EU and 0.428 million (2.6%) were born in another EU Member State.
As the result of immigration, the Netherlands has a sizeable minority of non-indigenous peoples.
There is also considerable emigration. In 2005 some 121,000 people left the country, while
94,000 entered it. Out of a total of 101,150 people immigrating to Netherlands in 2006, 66,658
were from Europe, Oceania, Americas or Japan, and 34,492 were from other (mostly developing)
countries. Out of a total of 132,470 emigrants, 94,834 were going to Europe, Oceania, Americas
or Japan and 37,636 to other countries.
A large number of immigrants come from countries in Western Europe, mostly from the
bordering countries of Germany and Belgium. There were five subsequent waves of immigration
from other countries in recent history.
 After World War II in the 1940s and the 1950s people from the newly independent
Indonesian republic repatriated or migrated to the Netherlands - mainly Indo-European
(people of mixed European and Indonesian ancestry with Dutch passports) and supporters
of the Republic of South Maluku.
 In the 1960s and 1970s migrants from Southern Europe, West Asia, and northern Africa
(i.e. Italy, Portugal and Spain), Turkey and Morocco came to work in the Netherlands as
guest workers. They were expected to return to their own country and many did, but
others remained and in the 1980s and 1990s were joined by their families. In the 2000s
their children usually marry people from their home country.[citation needed]
 In the 1970s and 1980s people migrated from the newly independent Surinam and from
the Netherlands Antilles, which remained part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. These
people migrated because these people still held a Dutch passport and saw a better future
in the Netherlands.
 In the 1990s the Netherlands saw increasing migration of asylum seekers. Most notably
are Iraqis, Iranians, Thais, Burmese, Chileans and Argentines fleeing from political
oppression and/or persecution.
 And in the 2000s, migrant workers from new EU member states in Eastern Europe like
Poland, Romania and Bulgaria, and non-EU states Moldova, Ukraine and former Yugoslavia
in Southern Europe.
 The remigration or return migration from the Netherlands. An increasing number of Turks,
the Netherlands’ largest ethnic minority, are beginning to return to Turkey, taking with
them the education and skills they have acquired abroad, as the Netherlands faces
challenges from economic difficulties, social tension and increasingly powerful far-right
parties. At the same time Turkey’s political, social and economic conditions have been
improving, making returning home all the more appealing for Turks at large.
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Chapter 2 Iniatives and Sites with solutions
National programs are iniated bij the NVVK and NIBUD. NVVK the Dutch organisation for Banks
and organisations who can execute the legal regulations.
NIBUD (Nationaal Instituut voor Budgetvoorlichting) is an independent Dutch
foundation which is financed by the revenues acquired from its products, the
national government, and the private financial sector (banks, insurance
companies). Its goal is to promote the rational planning of family finances, since
this is considered to be an important aspect of family welfare.
Nibud pursues its goal by offering advice and information and providing
education to the general public both directly and indirectly through their financial
advisers. The latter, who are in this respect 'intermediaries' for Nibud, include
public servants, teachers and all other consultants in the fields of mortgages,
insurance, savings and loans.
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Sites:
http://www.zelfjeschuldenregelen.nl/index.html
http://www.schuldoplossen.nl/
Television shows
There are a dozen programs on tv where a team of specialists help a family or person to clean up
their financial situation, this helps other people to recognize their own problems and see
solutions.
Chapter 3 figures
Numbers of Debt forgiveness since 2000
Number of debt forgiveness per Province since 2000
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Late Payments per area
Late Payment origin Rent/Mortgage/Energy or Installment purchase
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Chapter 4 Origin of debt
In this chapter the most common origins of debt are described.
Survival Liabilities
The debtor has enough income relative to its fixed costs. This type of debt is most common in
people who live around the social minimum. Liabilities that are part of a survival strategy are an
accumulation of debts due to the not (can not) meet the monthly housing costs, which tend to
create "one hole to another stop. Because a timely solution / solution is found bags households
away in a debt situation. These debtors will have to learn within their small budget to continue
or to increase revenues by accepting such work or move to a cheaper house.
Amounts overThe debtor has enough money in principle, but has too many loans closed and is therefore in
financial trouble. Liabilities due to overspending, the debts usually a result of poor financial
management, poor planning and insufficient knowledge temperance, and interest in the form
and terms of credit offered
Adjustment payable
The debts are a result of significant changes to the expenditure and income or lace. Think of
situations like divorce, unemployment, disability and so on. These people will have to learn to
adapt to their new situation to adapt. In the Netherlands this group will grow substantially next
year, for the 5 year period of fixed interest on their mortgage will expire, therefor they have to
pay more money to the bank for staying in the same home. There are specialists who expect at
least 300.000 families to be in this situation.
Compensation Liabilities
These debts caused by psychological problems such as drug addiction or buy. Compensation
liabilities are debts that may arise from a sense of deprivation and social exclusion and the
result of overspending on the basis of compensatory behavior. Particularly among young people,
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this is the case. These problems will form the basis of problematic debt situation
must be resolved.
A study of IVA / NIPO 'View of the invisible "in the Ministry of Social Affairs in 1999, indicates that
about 7.6 percent of households in a risky debt situation. For the Netherlands is about 502,000
households. Risky arrears come to 5.5 percent of Dutch households. Debt settlement, mediation
and / or fittings come in 3.5% of Dutch households. A quarter of households with risky debt get
debt help from official bodies (125,000) and are thus visible to the policy. The remaining 377,000
households remain invisible.
The platform integrated debt indicates that the action on debt indicates that in 2003 increased
by 31% to 137,000 households. In 2003 there occurred a dramatic rise in the use of the WSNP:
the number of bankruptcies in private with just over 30% to over 3500 [1].
Chapter 5 Legal regulations
If an individual does not succeed in reaching an agreement with the creditors, the debtor may
make a request to the Court for a legal process, Law debt restructuring natural persons. Hereby
decides the Court about the rehabilitation of the debt and not the creditors.
Petition
To qualify, there must be sent a petition to the Court.
Court decides
The Court treated the matter as quickly as possible, on condition that the pieces are complete
... On the basis of the documents and possibly an oral explanation of the debtor himself,
assesses the judge whether there is indeed no amicable agreement is possible. Also research the
judge how the debts have been incurred.
If there is irresponsible purchasing behaviour or fraud or a criminal offence, the Court may
reject the application. There Is already a rather than through debt restructuring, the Court will
reject the request in the line.
Administrator checks
At the start of the legal debt restructuring the court appoints a trustee and a judge. The judge is
on behalf of the Court responsible for the dossier. This oversees the administrator and decides
on the income that may keep for example, the application of the postal blockade duty, duration
and on the duration of the debt restructuring. The administrator shall ensure that the debtor
the game rules of the WSNP follows. He shall examine the situation and informs the creditors
and the court-appointed receiver. The debtor must inform the administrator about everything
that may be of interest for debt restructuring.
Pay and save for the creditors
During the plan pays the debtor themselves are fixed charges and normal accounts. The receiver
calculates an amount for which the debtor monthly must come around. All income above this
amount go to a special account controlled by the administrator, the estate account. It may be
that the Court decides that another to do this. Then get the debtor only a fixed amount for
livelihood.
The debtor should strive for as much money as possible to the administrator. This could mean
that the debtor must move to a cheaper House, better paid work should look or work more hours
should go.
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Clean slate
Procede through the rules, then the Court shall provide the debtor after a clean slate. The
remainder of the debts no longer have to be paid. This applies to virtually all debts that existed
at the beginning of the debt restructuring. Exceptions are long-term study debts, fines from
crimes and damages. This after obtaining a clean slate must still be paid in full. If the debtor
does not comply with the rules, or if it has withheld information, then the Court may terminate
the interim debt restructuring. The debtor runs the risk to be declared bankrupt. In that case,
creditor to seize in length of days in a part of the income of the debtor and any possessions.
Creditors
Creditors have in the WSNP hardly a role. The creditor does not affect the application of the
WSNP and certainly not about the clean slate. The Court will be the interests of the creditor to
keep an eye on the ion. Creditors are informed by the administrator and have the ability to bring
information in. He can also do a request to the Court for interim debt restructuring to end, for
example, if earnings are concealed. The Court decides.
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