Diploma evaluation in the Netherlands: what to do first

In Dutch guidance, this process is usually called a credential evaluation or diplomawaardering. It can help another body understand your level, but it does not grant admission, professional licensing, work or residence rights, or automatic recognition. Different Dutch bodies handle employment, education, integration-related use, and protected professions, so use the decision table below to choose the right route first.

Key takeaways

• Non-regulated work: start with your employer. Use IDW only if they ask for a formal comparison or you need one yourself.
• Study: contact the school first if you already know the program.
• Inburgering, naturalization, or permanent residence: check the specific IDW route and whether you qualify for a free evaluation.
• Regulated professions: start with the competent authority, such as BIG-register or DUO.
• Scope: a credential evaluation is advisory and does not grant admission, licensing, residence rights, or automatic recognition.

What diploma evaluation means in the Netherlands

A Dutch credential evaluation compares your foreign diploma with the Dutch education system. Nuffic explains that public applications usually go through IDW, while the expert evaluation behind the scenes is handled by Nuffic or SBB, depending on the qualification.

The result gives a Dutch level comparison in an official format. It can help employers, schools, and authorities understand your qualification, but it is not university admission, a professional license, a work or residence permit, or automatic recognition.

• Nuffic usually handles higher education and general secondary comparisons.
• SBB usually handles vocational comparisons.
• Universities, hogescholen, and ROCs decide admission and exemptions.
• Employers decide whether the evaluation is enough for hiring.
• Competent authorities decide access to regulated professions.

How to choose the right route first

Choose the route by purpose, not by the first portal you find. A wrong first step can cost money or delay the file.

Before you apply, check three things:

• whether an employer has asked for IDW
• whether you already know the target school or program
• whether the case involves a regulated profession, inburgering, naturalization, or permanent residence

For employment

For many non-regulated roles, a formal evaluation is optional. It helps when an employer wants a Dutch comparison level or when the diploma title is unfamiliar locally.

• Ask whether a diploma and transcript copy is enough.
• Check the EU database first if the role could be protected by law.
• If the employer has not asked for it, waiting can save the fee and time.

For further study

If you already know which program you want, contact the Dutch institution first. That could be a university, a hogeschool, which is a university of applied sciences, or an ROC, a regional training center. The institution may request advice itself and still decides admission, exemptions, and language requirements.

• Start with admissions if you are already studying in the Netherlands or comparing named programs.
• If admissions already has an internal route, you may not need to pay for a personal evaluation.

Higher Education

Studying in the Netherlands

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For immigration or integration-related use

Some people need diplomawaardering for inburgering, naturalization, or permanent residence. That route is separate from any IND decision, and the evaluation does not give you residence rights.

• One free evaluation may be available in some IDW routes for these purposes.
• Personal document rules can differ from work or study applications.
• Check live eligibility before you upload or pay.

For a regulated profession

If you need foreign qualifications recognition in the Netherlands for a protected profession, check the competent authority before assuming IDW is the right first stop. Business.gov.nl and the EU database show this clearly, and some professions use automatic recognition or another profession-specific procedure.

• Healthcare professions usually go through the BIG-register.
• Teaching recognition goes through DUO.
• Some EU and Swiss qualifications may follow automatic recognition or another legal route.
• Even if you also need Dutch work visas and permits, recognition and the right to work are separate issues.

Visas & Immigration

Work-related visas in the Netherlands

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Who does what: IDW, Nuffic, SBB, institutions, and authorities

The table below shows who to contact first.

What IDW, Nuffic, and SBB each handle

IDW is the public application portal for personal evaluations. People often search for an IDW diploma evaluation or Nuffic diploma recognition, but the application usually starts with IDW.

The expert body depends on the qualification type. On IDW’s “Who are we?” page, Nuffic covers havo and vwo, which are general secondary levels, plus hbo and wo, the main higher-education levels. SBB covers vmbo and mbo, the main vocational routes.

When a school or competent authority is the real decision-maker

A school may use evaluation advice, but it still decides admission, exemptions, and language rules. That is why the institution-first rule matters if you already have a target program.

DUO, the BIG-register, or another competent authority decides whether you may practice. That can involve registration, automatic recognition, adaptation requirements, or language checks.

• Schools decide admission and exemptions.
• Employers decide whether to hire you.
• DUO, the BIG-register, or another competent authority decides professional recognition.

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What you usually need before you apply

Only gather the documents required for your route. IDW, a school, and a competent authority may ask for similar paperwork, but not always at the same stage or in the same format.

Documents, translations, and country-specific checks

For a standard IDW application, the core documents are predictable. Delays usually start when scans are unclear, the transcript is missing, or a master’s or PhD file lacks earlier degrees.

If your documents are not in Dutch, English, German, French, or Afrikaans, IDW usually asks for certified translations. If the institution issued an English version itself, you can usually upload the original-language document and that English version. IDW also says not to upload apostilles or translations of apostilles.

• A valid passport, ID card, or residence permit, usually valid for at least another 3 months
• The diploma you want evaluated
• The matching transcript or full diploma supplement
• Name-change proof if your documents use different names
• Earlier-degree documents for master’s or PhD evaluations, plus any country-specific extras on IDW’s list

Fees, payment, and processing expectations

A standard personal IDW credential evaluation currently costs €148.83. IDW says payment follows in a separate link after you submit the application, and common methods include iDEAL and credit card.

Current public guidance splits timing into about 6 working weeks for the initial file check and about 10 working weeks for evaluation once the file is complete. NetherlandsWorldwide still says to allow up to 4 months overall, and missing documents can send a file back into the first queue. If a Dutch school requests study advice itself, the student may not be charged directly. If you are paying from abroad, you may compare payment options, including a Wise account, for the fee or translation costs, but that does not affect the result or speed.

Managing IDW fees internationally with Wise

Paying credential evaluation fees from abroad can incur high currency conversion markups. Using Wise allows you to pay international application and translation costs in euros with transparent exchange rates and low fees, ensuring your payment arrives accurately without unexpected intermediary charges.

Open a Wise account

Common mistakes that delay or misdirect your application

Most delays are preventable.

• Do not pay IDW before checking with your target school. If you already know the program, email admissions first.
• Protected professions use a different route. Check the EU database and the competent authority before you apply.
• Upload full-color scans with every page readable.
• Include transcripts, diploma supplements, and earlier degrees where the route asks for them.
• Submit one diploma per application.
• Check IDW’s extra country list before you send the file.
• Plan around the published timeline, because IDW does not prioritize applications.

Official details can change, so verify live fee, timing, translation, and document pages before you submit. If you later find a factual error, or want to challenge the evaluation itself, IDW uses My IDW for corrections and complaints.

What happens after you receive the evaluation

When the evaluation arrives, give it to the body that asked for it. It may support a job application, a school conversation, or a regulated-profession or integration file, but the final decision still sits with the employer, school, or competent authority.

Digital evaluations remain available in My IDW for 3 years, so download and save the file. If there is a factual error, such as your name or date of birth, you can request a correction through My IDW. Complaints about the evaluation itself must follow IDW’s stated deadline.

• Share the evaluation with the employer, school, or authority that asked for it.
• Save the PDF and keep your supporting documents together.
• If you are job hunting, pair the result with strong Dutch CV and interview tips.
• If the result seems wrong, use My IDW for corrections or the formal complaint route.