Temporary Rental Contracts in the Netherlands: When a Fixed Term Is Still Allowed

Since 1 July 2024 a new rental contract in the Netherlands is for an indefinite period. A fixed term is the exception, and only certain groups of tenants can be offered one. If you are not in one of those groups, a contract that simply ends on a set date is not what the law expects, and you should ask why before you sign. A temporary contract that is allowed lasts at most 2 years and always has an end date.

This guide explains the rule, lists the groups that can still get a temporary contract in plain English, shows what happens when the term ends, and gives you a checklist for reading the term in an offer. It is general information based on official pages, not legal advice. For your own contract, the Huurcommissie and the Juridisch Loket are the places to ask.

The Rule: Permanent by Default

The Wet vaste huurcontracten (the Act on permanent rental contracts) took effect on 1 July 2024. Rijksoverheid puts it simply: "Vaste huurcontracten zijn per 1 juli 2024 weer de norm." It adds that all new rental contracts that landlords sign from that moment are for an indefinite period.

Two points are easy to miss:

• It applies to every landlord. Rijksoverheid states that the rule applies to housing corporations and private landlords alike. There is no separate, looser regime for a private landlord who rents out a single flat.
• It is about the term, not the price. The act does not set a rent. How much rent is allowed is a separate subject, covered in our guides to rent increase rules and, for the contract itself, how to read a Dutch rental contract.

Before the act, a landlord could offer a fixed term more freely, which is why many tenants who arrived in recent years still expect a one year contract to be normal. For new contracts it no longer is.

Who Can Still Get a Temporary Contract

Rijksoverheid lists the situations in which a landlord may offer a temporary contract. The page introduces the list with the words that you can only get a temporary contract if you fall into one of these groups:

1. A student who rents temporarily for their studies in a municipality other than the one where they live.
2. A person living elsewhere for a while because of works or renovation of their own home.
3. A person leaving social shelter or in a social emergency.
4. A person given a second chance after an earlier rental contract was ended, for example because of nuisance.
5. A surviving household member of a deceased tenant, who lived with the tenant at the time of death.
6. A person who is divorcing, no longer demonstrably lives with their partner, and rents temporarily, including to live close to their children.
7. A person working temporarily on a Wadden island while living in a municipality on the mainland.
8. A status holder who comes directly from a COA reception location and waits for permanent housing.

If your situation is not on that list, the landlord has no basis to offer you a fixed term under these rules. If it is on the list, the landlord may offer one, but is not required to. A landlord can still choose a permanent contract.

Read the list carefully against your own facts. "I am an international employee who will probably leave in a year" is not one of the groups, however natural a short contract may feel to both sides. "I am a student renting a room in another city for my studies" is.

How Long a Temporary Contract Can Last

Rijksoverheid is direct: a temporary contract always has an end date, and it lasts at most 2 years. Three practical consequences follow.

The end date must be written in the contract. A temporary contract without a clear end date is a warning sign. Compare the dates in the offer with your own plans before you sign.

Extending it makes it permanent. According to Rijksoverheid, if the rental contract is extended, it is a permanent contract. A landlord who wants flexibility therefore cannot simply prolong a temporary contract again and again.

Ending it is not the same as being asked to leave tomorrow. When the term runs out there are two options, as Rijksoverheid describes: the tenant moves out, or the landlord offers a new contract that is, this time, for an indefinite period. Plan for the first option from the first day, and keep your search going in the background. The tools in our housing search workflow guide help here.

Contracts Signed Before 1 July 2024

The act is not retroactive. The Huurcommissie states that temporary contracts that started before 1 July 2024 are unchanged and end automatically after the agreed period. If you hold one of those, your end date stands.

The Huurcommissie also points out one right that tenants of those older contracts still have. You can have the starting rent of a temporary contract signed before 1 July 2024 assessed during the term or up to six months after it ends, whether you rent social housing or in the free sector. That deadline is short, so act soon after you move out if you think the starting rent was too high.

What to Check Before You Sign a Fixed Term

Use this checklist when an offer includes an end date.

1. Find the term. Is the contract indefinite, or does it have an end date? The first page or the "duration" clause usually says.
2. Match yourself to the list. If there is an end date, ask which of the groups above the landlord relies on. A landlord who can name the ground in writing is easier to trust than one who cannot.
3. Check the length. More than 2 years is not what the rule describes for a temporary contract.
4. Ask what happens at the end. Does the landlord expect you to leave, and do you agree that you will? Remember the options: move out, or a new contract for an indefinite period.
5. Keep proof of your situation. If you rely on a student, divorce, or renovation ground, keep the papers that show it.
6. Do not pay before you understand the term. Rental scams often rely on speed. Our guide to rental scams and how to stay safe covers the other warning signs.

If the contract seems not to match the rules, do not argue it out by message with the landlord alone. Ask the Huurcommissie or the Juridisch Loket for a view on your specific contract before you sign or before you give notice.

A Proposal That Could Change the Student Rule

The government has put forward a bill on "passende huurcontracten" (suitable rental contracts). According to Rijksoverheid, it says that for students the minister wants to make a temporary contract possible, and that short stay rental would be limited to 30 days at most. The public consultation took place in summer 2026.

This is a proposal, not law. Until Parliament passes a bill and it enters into force, the rules in this guide apply as they stand. If you are a student, check the Rijksoverheid page again before relying on any change.

How Huisly Fits In

Huisly helps you find current homes for rent across the Netherlands and open the original listing source. Use the rental search to compare homes, save the ones you like, and set up alerts so you can respond quickly. The contract terms are set by the landlord or agent in the listing source and the contract itself. Huisly does not review contracts or advise on your legal position, so read the term in the original source before you commit.

Sources

• Rijksoverheid, Mag mijn verhuurder mij een tijdelijk huurcontract aanbieden?: the groups that can get a temporary contract and the 2 year limit.
• Rijksoverheid, Wet vaste huurcontracten vanaf 1 juli 2024 van kracht: the start date and the permanent default.
• Huurcommissie, 1 juli: Wet vaste huurcontracten gaat in: contracts before the act and the starting rent check.
• Rijksoverheid, Consultatie start voor wetsvoorstel passende huurcontracten: the student and short stay proposal.