Some people do not have to take some or all of the inburgering exams. There are two ways. An exemption (vrijstelling) is for people who already meet the standard, for example after years of school in the Netherlands. A dispensation (ontheffing) is for people who cannot meet it, because of a lasting illness or disability or very exceptional circumstances.
An article cannot tell you whether you qualify. That is decided on your own papers, so ask your gemeente or DUO, and read their letters and Mijn Inburgering. DUO's page less or no exams is the place to start. What follows explains the rules, so you know what to ask.
Exemption or dispensation
| Exemption (vrijstelling) | Dispensation (ontheffing) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it means | You already meet the standard, so you do not need the exams | You cannot integrate, so you are excused |
| Typical reasons | Years of school, a diploma, years of living and working here | A lasting illness or disability, or very exceptional circumstances |
Some people are not obliged to integrate at all. People who have reached state-pension age (AOW) no longer have to, and neither do EU, EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members under the 2021 law.
Exemption under the 2021 law
The 2021 law lists when you can be exempt. One of these must be true:
- you have had at least eight years of compulsory schooling in the Netherlands
- you have a diploma that the rules designate for this
- you are still of compulsory school age
- you are following a course that qualifies
- you can show that you are sufficiently integrated
"Sufficiently integrated" is spelled out in the rules. It means ten years in the Netherlands without a break in your registration, at least five years of paid or voluntary work here, and an interview that shows your speaking and listening are at B1 or higher.
After you pass parts of the state exam
The B1 and B2 language exams are the state exam Dutch as a second language (NT2). Passing a part can excuse you from the matching exam.
Under the 2021 law, NT2 parts passed at the level of your PIP, or higher, count automatically. You do not need to apply. Under the older law you must apply for the exemption.
Dispensation: when you cannot integrate
Illness or disability
The 2021 law allows dispensation if you are permanently unable to integrate because of a physical or mental limitation or an intellectual disability. You are examined by a doctor from Argonaut. This costs €225. You cannot borrow that money, and you get it back if dispensation is granted.
If the doctor decides that you could integrate within five years, you get no dispensation and no refund.
If your illness is not permanent, DUO points to extra time instead, and that is free. See deadline extension and fines.
Very exceptional circumstances
The law has a second kind of dispensation, for special individual circumstances (bijzondere individuele omstandigheden, BIO). It is for very exceptional cases only: nothing else is possible, you have tried, you cannot integrate, and that will not change.
If you fall under the older law
Which law applies to you is shown in Mijn Inburgering. The older law has its own exemptions:
- ten years in the Netherlands, with at least five years of work
- a Dutch diploma
- for ONA, an exam that is not part of the 2021 law: an exemption after six months of work in the past year
ONA is also not required if you became obliged before 1 January 2015, or if you have an mbo level 1 (entry level) diploma in Dutch. People who became obliged before 1 January 2015 and have an NT2 diploma may need no exams at all.
The older law also has a dispensation for people who have shown real effort (ontheffing wegens aantoonbaar geleverde inspanningen, AGI). DUO lists these conditions:
- at least 600 hours of lessons
- a term that started at least two and a half years ago
- at least three attempts at every exam (for NT2, at most two sittings count for each exam)
This route is not open to people under the 2021 law.
Who decides, and how to prepare
Under the 2021 law your gemeente sets your route in your PIP, and DUO runs the A2 exams and KNM. For medical dispensation a doctor from Argonaut examines you. Start with the letters you have and with Mijn Inburgering, and ask your gemeente when something is unclear.
Until a decision says otherwise, prepare for the exams you still have to take. A partial exemption only removes some of them, so you may still need the rest. The inburgering exam page shows what each part asks.