How to get a VOG (Certificate of Conduct) in NL

A Certificate of Conduct (Verklaring Omtrent het Gedrag, VOG) is issued by Justis, the screening authority of the Ministry of Justice and Security. Justis describes it as a document by which the Minister of Legal Protection declares that you have not been convicted of any offence relevant to the performance of your duties. It is not a general clean-record check: Justis screens your judicial data against a screening profile (screeningsprofiel) attached to the role, so the same conviction can block one job and not another. Having a criminal record does not automatically mean refusal.

In most cases you cannot start a VOG yourself: Justis states that you can only apply for a VOG if an employer, organisation or institution has asked for one. There are defined exceptions, covered in the branches below, for emigration, a visa or work abroad, for self-employed people (zzp'ers) in certain sectors, and for people who are not registered in the Personal Records Database (Basisregistratie Personen, BRP). If you are a volunteer, ask the organisation whether it is admitted to the Free VOG scheme (Regeling Gratis VOG), because volunteers at an admitted organisation pay nothing for the application. Before you pay, check with the organisation which purpose and screening profile they want, because the profile determines what Justis screens against and how far back it looks. The standard look-back period (terugkijktermijn) is 4 years, with an unlimited period for sexual offences and terrorist offences and longer periods for specific roles.

The route decides who starts the application, what you need to log in with, and what you pay.

• An employer or organisation asks for it

  This is the normal case, and it runs digitally or on paper. Digitally, the organisation logs in to MijnJustis with eHerkenning, enters its details and selects the screening profile for your role; Justis then emails you automatically with an application code, you check the details and pay €33.85 (2026) with iDEAL, and the VOG is delivered only to your Berichtenbox on MijnOverheid. On paper, the organisation completes chapter 2 of the application form with the purpose and screening profile and gives it to you; you fill in the first chapter and hand it in at the municipality (gemeente) where you are registered, with valid identification, and pay €41.35 (2026). The digital route needs DigiD, iDEAL and a working email address.

• You are a volunteer at an organisation in the Free VOG scheme

  Justis runs a separate route for volunteer organisations. The organisation registers through gratisvog.nl and the CIBG, part of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, assesses whether it meets the conditions. If the organisation is admitted, it sets up the application for you and you do not pay for the VOG application. If the organisation is not admitted, you fall back on the ordinary digital fee of €33.85 (2026) or the written fee of €41.35 (2026). Ask the organisation whether it is in the scheme before you pay anything.

• You need it for emigration, a visa or work abroad, or you are a zzp'er in certain sectors

  Justis states that if you need a VOG for a visa, immigration or working abroad, you can start the application yourself, in writing, through the municipality where you are registered. Separately, if you work or will work as a self-employed person without staff (zzp'er) in healthcare, financial services or legal services, you can apply digitally yourself via justis.nl for €33.85 (2026), using DigiD and iDEAL. Justis is offering this self-application route on a small scale first, so check on justis.nl that it is open to you before relying on it.

• You are not registered in the BRP (non-resident)

  If you are not in the Personal Records Database and have no Dutch postal address, or you have no fixed place of residence, Justis treats you as a non-resident (niet ingezetene). You apply directly to Justis by email to the RNI address, with the signed four-page form, proof of why the VOG is needed, a copy of a valid passport or identity card, and proof of payment. The fee is €41.35 (2026) and can only be paid by bank transfer. No DigiD is involved.

1. 1

   Confirm who has to start the application

   Justis states that you can only apply for a VOG if an employer, organisation or institution has asked for one, so in most cases the organisation starts it and you complete it. You can start it yourself if you need the VOG for a visa, immigration or working abroad, in which case you apply in writing through the municipality where you are registered, and self-employed people without staff (zzp'ers) in healthcare, financial services or legal services can apply digitally themselves via justis.nl. If you are volunteering, ask at the same time whether the organisation is admitted to the Free VOG scheme (Regeling Gratis VOG), because that changes both who sets up the application and whether you pay. Ask the organisation explicitly which of these applies before you do anything else.

   Do this: Ask the organisation requesting the VOG whether it will start the application for you, whether it is in the Free VOG scheme, and if neither, confirm which self-application route you fall under.

   Processing time

   Same day, once you have an answer from the organisation

   Common mistake: People often wait for an email from Justis that was never triggered, because nobody at the organisation actually started the application. Confirm in writing that it has been submitted.

   Official source

   Justis · Can I apply for a VOG myself?
2. 2

   Check the purpose and screening profile before you pay

   Justis does not test whether you have a clean record in general. It assesses your judicial data against the screening profile (screeningsprofiel) the organisation selects, which sets out which aspects create a risk in the role you are taking on. The profile also sets the look-back period: the standard is 4 years, sexual offences and terrorist offences carry an unlimited look-back, and specific roles carry longer periods, for example 5 years for taxi drivers and driving instructors (rijinstructeur WRM), 8 years for membership of a shooting association, 10 years for roles with high integrity requirements and 30 years for judicial roles and staff in detention facilities. If the organisation entered the wrong purpose or profile, the resulting VOG may not be accepted.

   Do this: Ask the organisation which purpose and screening profile it entered, and check that it matches the work you will actually do.

   Processing time

   Before you complete or pay for the application

   Common mistake: Paying first and checking later is the expensive order. A VOG issued under the wrong profile is not refunded and the organisation can refuse it, so you pay a second fee.

   Official source

   Justis · Look-back periods for the VOG
3. 3

   Set up MijnOverheid and DigiD for the digital route

   On the digital route the VOG is sent only to your Berichtenbox on MijnOverheid.nl and is not emailed to you, so it has to be switched on before the decision is made. Justis lists three preparations: activate the Berichtenbox, tick the box to receive digital post from Justis, and make sure the email address on file is current and working. You also need DigiD and iDEAL to complete and pay for the application. Skip this step if you are using the paper route via the municipality or the non-resident route.

   Do this: Log in to MijnOverheid with DigiD, activate the Berichtenbox, switch on digital post from Justis and confirm your email address.

   Documents needed

   • DigiD login details
   • A working email address

   Processing time

   About 10 minutes, longer if you still have to apply for DigiD

   Common mistake: If the Berichtenbox is not activated or Justis is not ticked, the finished VOG has nowhere to be delivered on the digital route and you will be chasing a document that was already issued.

   Official source

   Justis · Applying for a digital VOG via MijnOverheid
4. 4

   Complete and pay the digital application with DigiD

   Once the organisation has submitted the request in MijnJustis using eHerkenning, Justis emails you automatically with an application code. You log in with that code, check the details the organisation entered about you and about the purpose, and pay the handling fee online. Justis describes the applicant as the one who pays, and issues no invoice; the exception is the Free VOG scheme for volunteers, where the applicant pays nothing. Zzp'ers in healthcare, financial services or legal services start this same digital application themselves on justis.nl and pay the same fee.

   Do this: Open the email from Justis, log in with the application code and DigiD, check your details and pay with iDEAL.

   Documents needed

   • The Justis email with your application code
   • DigiD login details

   Cost

   €33.85 digital VOG application fee (2026)

   Processing time

   About 15 to 20 minutes

   Common mistake: The application only reaches Justis once payment has gone through. An application left unpaid sits in limbo and no screening starts.

   Official source

   Justis · Information on the VOG for employers and organisations
5. 5

   Use the paper or non-resident route if the digital route is closed to you

   On the paper route, the organisation completes chapter 2 of the application form with the purpose and the screening profile and hands it to you. You complete the first chapter with your own details and submit the form at the municipality (gemeente) where you are registered, taking valid identification, and the municipality forwards it to Justis. If you are not in the Personal Records Database and have no Dutch postal address, or have no fixed place of residence, you are a non-resident (niet ingezetene) and apply directly to Justis by email to [email protected], one application per email and no more than 10 MB. Both of these routes cost more than the digital one, and you take one of them instead of the digital route, not as well as it.

   Do this: Hand the completed form in at your municipality with valid identification, or email the signed four-page form and supporting documents to Justis if you are a non-resident.

   Documents needed

   • The application form with chapter 2 completed by the organisation
   • Valid passport, Dutch identity card, EEA identity card or passport, or Dutch residence document
   • Proof of why the VOG is needed, such as a letter or email from the organisation (non-resident route)
   • Proof of the bank transfer (non-resident route)

   Cost

   The fee varies by route: €41.35 (2026) via the municipality or as a non-resident, in place of the digital fee rather than on top of it

   Processing time

   One municipality appointment, or one email, plus bank transfer time for the non-resident route

   Common mistake: On the non-resident route Justis only processes the application once it has received the full amount, so an international transfer that arrives short because of bank charges stalls the whole application.

   Official source

   Justis · Applying for a VOG as a non-resident
6. 6

   Wait for the decision, and respond if refusal is proposed

   Justis states that you usually receive the VOG, or a message that further information is needed, within 1 to 4 weeks, and that in some cases processing can take up to 8 weeks. If Justis finds judicial data that could block the VOG, it does not refuse straight away: it sends a proposed refusal (voornemen tot afwijzen) explaining the grounds. You then have 2 weeks from the date on that letter to send your view (zienswijze), for example about your circumstances since the offence. If the VOG is still refused, Justis states the reasons and you can file an objection (bezwaarschrift) within 6 weeks of the decision date.

   Do this: Watch your Berichtenbox or post, and if a proposed refusal arrives, send your zienswijze to Justis within 2 weeks of the date on the letter.

   Processing time

   1 to 4 weeks in most cases, up to 8 weeks where further investigation is needed

   Common mistake: A long wait is read as bad news and people give up. Processing time says nothing about the outcome, and letting the 2-week zienswijze window pass means Justis decides on the file as it stands, without your side of the story.

   Official source

   Justis · Assessment and decision on a VOG
7. 7

   Hand the VOG over and check what your sector requires afterwards

   A VOG has no validity period of its own, because the assessment is a snapshot of one moment. When you need a new one depends on the employer or on the ministry responsible for the rules in that sector, so ask how recent the document has to be rather than assuming it lasts a fixed number of years. In childcare and the taxi sector the VOG is not the only check: both fall under continuous screening (continue screening), and if relevant new information is added to your judicial record, Justis reviews it again and can trigger a signal that leads to you being asked for a new VOG.

   Do this: Send the VOG to the organisation that asked for it, keep your own copy, and ask how recent a VOG it requires in future.

   Documents needed

   • The issued VOG

   Processing time

   Same day

   Common mistake: In childcare and taxi work, ignoring a request for a fresh VOG after a continuous screening signal has direct consequences: without a new VOG Kiwa withdraws the taxi driver card (chauffeurskaart) and you may no longer work as a taxi driver, and in childcare DUO informs the GGD and sets you to inactive, so you cannot keep working.

   Official source

   Justis · Continuous screening: taxi sector and childcare

• The email from Justis with your application code (digital route)
• DigiD login details and a working email address (digital route)
• An activated Berichtenbox on MijnOverheid, set to receive digital post from Justis (digital route)
• Confirmation from the organisation that it is admitted to the Free VOG scheme (Regeling Gratis VOG), if you are a volunteer
• The application form with the purpose and screening profile completed by the organisation (paper route)
• A valid passport, Dutch identity card, EEA identity card or passport, or Dutch residence document
• A letter, email or web page from the organisation showing why the VOG is required (non-resident route)
• Proof of the bank transfer (non-resident route)
• A signed authorisation form and a copy of the authorised person's identity document, if someone applies on your behalf

• No fee at all if you are a volunteer and the organisation is admitted to the Free VOG scheme (Regeling Gratis VOG): Justis states you then do not pay for the VOG application
• Digital VOG application via Justis: €33.85 (2026), exempt from VAT, unless the organisation is in the Regeling Gratis VOG
• Written VOG application via the municipality: €41.35 (2026), exempt from VAT, unless the organisation is in the Regeling Gratis VOG
• VOG application as a non-resident, sent directly to Justis: €41.35 (2026), which Justis must receive in full, so any international transfer charges are yours to cover
• Justis publishes these amounts without a year against them, so confirm the current amount on the Justis cost page before you pay.

Justis states that you usually receive the VOG, or a message that further information is needed, within 1 to 4 weeks. In some cases processing can run to a maximum of 8 weeks. How long it takes says nothing about whether the VOG will be issued.

Requirements depend on your situation. Check the latest requirements with the relevant authority.

• Assuming you can start the application yourself. Unless it is for emigration, a visa, work abroad, or you are a zzp'er in one of the sectors Justis names, the organisation has to start it, and waiting for an email that was never sent costs weeks.
• Paying before checking two things: the purpose and screening profile the organisation entered, and whether the organisation is in the Free VOG scheme (Regeling Gratis VOG). A wrong profile produces a VOG the organisation will not accept and a second fee, and volunteers at an admitted organisation pay nothing at all.
• Not activating the Berichtenbox on MijnOverheid, or not switching on digital post from Justis, so the finished VOG has nowhere to arrive on the digital route.
• Treating a proposed refusal (voornemen tot afwijzen) as the final answer. It is an invitation to respond within 2 weeks, and doing nothing in that window means Justis decides without hearing your side.
• Assuming a criminal record means automatic refusal and not applying. Justis weighs whether the offence is relevant to the specific role and then weighs your interest against the risk to society.

• Download the VOG from your Berichtenbox on MijnOverheid, or keep the paper original, and send a copy to the organisation that asked for it.
• Ask the organisation how recent it requires the VOG to be, because a VOG has no validity period of its own and renewal is set by the employer or by the ministry responsible for the rules in that sector.
• If you work in childcare or the taxi sector, expect continuous screening (continue screening) on top of the VOG, and act quickly if you are asked to apply for a new one.
• If you received a refusal, file the objection (bezwaarschrift) with Justis within 6 weeks of the decision date.