Health Insurance: I have received a letter from CAK. What should I do now?
(Last edited: Wednesday, 5 April 2023, 12:36 PM)
Answer:
If you have received a letter from the CAK (CAK - Centraal Administratiekantoor, is the government organisation that administers Dutch health insurance) that say that you are ‘not
insured’, it means that you do not have health insurance with a Dutch health
insurer.
Dutch basic/public health insurance is compulsory for people who work in the
Netherlands. This health insurance is different from the International Insurance that international students have.
If you have a part-time job or if you are doing an internship for which you are paid at least as much as the Dutch minimum wage (click here for more information on the minimum wage), you are required to take out a Dutch basic/public health insurance. Even if you have not received a letter from CAK, you are strongly advised to take out the health insurance or risk getting a fine of hundreds of euros. If you do receive the letter from CAK, please take action within the 3 months or any given period indicated in the letter.
However, if you work on a self-employed basis or if you have received the letter from CAK incorrectly (because you don't have a part-time job or paid internship), or if you are in doubt whether you really need to arrange for a Dutch basic/public health insurance for yourself, you can contact SVB and start the Wlz assessment (also called the SVB investigation). You can do so by following the instructions below: Keep in mind that it might take 6-8 weeks before you
receive the outcome of the Wlz assessment. Therefore, take action immediately
after receiving the letter from the CAK.
1) Contact the Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB) to request (free
of charge) an investigation of your insurance position under the Wlz scheme. For this request, you can either do (A) or (B):
(A) Send by post: Complete the pdf document attached below Assessment of Wlz Insurance Position form (pdf) and send it together with all necessary documentary evidence to: SVB, Postbus 18607, 3501 CR Utrecht.
2) Make a copy of the completed and signed 'Assessment of Wlz insurance position' form and send it immediately to the CAK as this proves that you have taken the necessary action.
3) If the SVB decision is that you are not to be
insured (that means you don’t have to take the Dutch Health Insurance), send a
copy of the decision from SVB to the CAK. Use this Contact Form and
choose the option ‘regeling onverzekerden’. CAK will then close your file and
you can continue with your international health insurance (AON ICS).
4) If the outcome of the
Wlz assessment states that you are to be insured with a Dutch public health
insurance, do so immediately within the time frame given by the CAK.