The maximum penalty for participating in a terrorist organisation is to be increased from 15 to 20 years, child support debts are soon to be given priority over other debts and licensed providers of online gambling are no longer to be allowed to sponsor sports clubs or competitions. Various laws in the field of Justice and Security are set to come into force on 1 July 2025. The following is an overview.
Changes to the Dutch Criminal Code (Wetboek van Strafrecht) and expansion of victims’ rights
A key amendment to the Criminal Code is coming into force on 1 July 2025. The maximum penalty for participating in a terrorist organisation with the aim of committing the most serious terrorist crimes is to be increased from 15 to 20 years in a move which further strengthens the way serious terrorist threats are tackled.
The rights of victims of crime are being expanded at the same time. On the same date, for example, the Order in Council to protect victim data in procedural documents is coming into force as part of the Victims’ Rights Extension Act (Wet Uitbreiding Slachtofferrechten). This measure will ensure that the personal data of victims, such as home addresses and phone numbers, will from now on be included in criminal case records only when necessary for a court decision, thereby preventing suspects, convicted persons or other trial participants from gaining unnecessary access to sensitive information. From 1 July 2025 onwards, the Public Prosecution Service and the police will be required to comply with this amendment to protect victim data when drafting police reports and other procedural documents and this will further protect the privacy and legal status of victims during criminal proceedings.
Ban on sports sponsorship by online gambling providers
Licensed providers of online gambling will no longer be allowed to sponsor sports clubs or competitions in the Netherlands from 1 July onwards. Sports shirts, billboards or banners bearing the name, logo or trademark of the gaming provider are therefore a thing of the past. This is the final part of the Remote Gambling Untargeted Advertising Decree (Besluit orka) to be implemented. The aim is to protect people, and especially children and young adults, more effectively from the risks of online gambling. Untargeted advertising in public spaces, such as on television, radio and billboards, has already been banned, as has sponsorship of events such as festivals and radio and television programmes. The ban on sports sponsorship is now being implemented as the final step in the process because sports sponsorship often involves longer-term contracts and the delay has given the sports sector the opportunity to find other sponsors. The Netherlands Gambling Authority (Kansspelautoriteit) is responsible for monitoring online gambling providers and compliance with these bans and their efforts will be intensified during the summer.
Ban on designer drugs in force
The ban on designer drugs, also known as ‘new psychoactive substances’, is also coming into force on 1 July 2025. An amendment to the Opium Act allows whole groups of these substances to be banned at once, rather than individually for each substance. As a result, the government and investigative agencies will be able to take action more quickly against the production, trafficking and possession of these dangerous substances, which often have very similar effects to drugs which are already banned, such as ecstasy or amphetamine. The aim is to combat subversive crime and protect public health, especially that of young people who use these substances under the misconception that they are ‘legal’ and therefore safe.
Legal basis for a person-centred approach to radicalisation
The Act on data processing in the context of the person-centred approach to radicalisation and terrorist activities (Wet gegevensverwerking Persoonsgerichte aanpak radicalisering en terroristische activiteiten) requires mayors to organise case consultations on (suspected) radicalised persons from 1 July onwards and provides a clear legal basis for the exchange of data between the organisations concerned. The Act puts existing practice into law, makes it GDPR-proof and provides additional safeguards for careful data processing.
Discrimination as a ground for an increase in penalty now laid down in law
The Act that started life as a private member’s bill by MPs Timmermans and Bikker enters into force on 1 July 2025 and introduces the discriminatory aspect as a statutory general ground for an increase in penalty. This means that when an offence is committed and the motive was discriminatory, the maximum penalty can be increased by one third. The law also modernises the terminology used in discrimination law by replacing ‘heterosexual or homosexual orientation’ with ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘physical, mental or intellectual disability’ with ‘disability’. These changes enhance the level of protection against discrimination and ensure better alignment with current social and legal norms.
Child support debts given preferential status
As from 1 July 2025, child support debts are to be given preferential status. This means that child support debts will take precedence over other ordinary debts, such as debts with online shops or phone providers. The aim is to ensure that children receive more and earlier child support if the party required to pay child support has debts with multiple creditors. In such instances the money to pay the debts will be used to pay the preferential debts first. The remainder will be distributed among the other creditors (the ordinary creditors). Research by the National Child Support Recovery Agency (Landelijk Bureau Innings Onderhoudsbijdragen, LBIO) has shown that prioritising child support payments will increase the amount of child support collected and also speed up the process which, in turn, will increase the amount of money that becomes available for the care and upbringing of children.
Prohibition on pledging lifted
Another law which is coming into effect on 1 July is the Act on the Abolition of the Prohibition of Pledging (Wet opheffing verpandingsverboden). Small and medium-sized businesses often have outstanding claims against debtors, such as unpaid bills. As things stand at the moment, they are regularly unable to use these receivables as collateral for loans because their debtors, often large companies, do not allow them to do so. The Act on the Abolition of the Prohibition of Pledging amends Book 3 of the Dutch Civil Code in such a way that these monetary claims in rem can indeed be used as collateral for financing. This increases the credit leeway for SMEs and therefore their scope for investment. The new law prescribes that debtors have to be informed in writing if the claim is transferred or pledged by one company to another. In that way they will always know when their debt is owed to someone else. New agreements which exclude the transferability of claims will be null and void from 1 July onwards. Existing agreements are subject to a transition period and those agreements will become null and void after a period of three months, in other words on 1 October 2025.
New rules for assessing a Certificate of Conduct
How an application for a Certificate of Good Conduct (VOG) is assessed is governed by administrative rules. On 1 July 2025, these rules are going to be amended because of the so-called end-of-case statement. This statement is a new type of final judgment by the court which demonstrates that a criminal case has been closed. Since 1 October 2022 it has been possible – after the court hearing has started – for mediation to take place between the accused and the victim, under the guidance of a mediator, with the aim being to reach a solution. If the mediation is successful, the judge may decide to end the criminal case by making an end-of-case statement. In such instances no conviction is imposed. The new policy rules lay down how end-of-case statements should be taken into account when assessing an application for a Certificate of Conduct.
