Europe
Student accommodation regulation in the Netherlands (2026)
The Netherlands has no student residence act: it has rules for students inside Book 7 of the Civil Code. The "campuscontract" in Article 7:274d lets the landlord recover the room when the tenant stops studying, and since the Wet vaste huurcontracten of 2024 a student can only have a fixed-term contract if they move municipality or come from abroad to study. The building is governed by a national decree; the data, by the GDPR and the UAVG. Here are the articles.
The short answer
There is no legal figure of a "residence": what there is sits in the Civil Code (Burgerlijk Wetboek, BW), in a national building decree and in the GDPR.
| What | Rule | Who applies it |
|---|---|---|
| Legal figure | Self-contained home or not (Art. 7:234 BW) | The kantonrechter, the subdistrict judge (Art. 93(c) Rv) |
| Contract | Book 7 BW: campuscontract (Art. 7:274d) or fixed-term (Art. 7:271(2)) | The kantonrechter |
| Building | Besluit bouwwerken leefomgeving and the Huisvestingswet 2014 | The municipality (burgemeester en wethouders) |
| Data | GDPR and the UAVG | The Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens |
| AI | Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Art. 50 | The market surveillance authority each State designates (Art. 70) |
| Whistleblowing channel | Wet bescherming klokkenluiders, Art. 2, with 50 or more workers | The employer, through its internal procedure |
Official sources consulted on 19 Oct 2026.
What they are called: kamer, studio and student housing
In everyday speech it is the studentenkamer, the student room. The law does not regulate the residence: it regulates the rented home, and separates the self-contained one —with "eigen toegang", its own entrance, and not depending on essential facilities outside (Art. 7:234 BW)— from the one that is not: a room sharing a kitchen or bathroom is onzelfstandige woonruimte; a complete studio is self-contained.
Whoever offers it —a housing association, an educational institution or a PBSA operator— signs the same BW tenancy; what changes the regime is the type of contract.
The contract: campus contract and fixed-term contract
The landlord can only terminate on the grounds in Article 7:274 BW (Art. 7:271(5)). For students there are two tools of their own.
The campuscontract (Art. 7:274d BW). The "own use" that justifies termination includes giving the home to another student:
Onder eigen gebruik in de zin van artikel 274 lid 1 onder c wordt mede begrepen het verstrekken van woonruimte aan een student indien aan de in de volgende leden vermelde voorwaarden is voldaan. ("Own use within the meaning of Article 274(1)(c) also includes providing housing to a student, if the conditions set out in the following paragraphs are met.")
- The contract assigns the home to students (para. 3) and says that, when it ends, it will be let to a student again (para. 5).
- A student is someone enrolled in vocational education, a university or a hogeschool (para. 2).
- The landlord can ask each year, in writing, for proof of enrolment; if it does not arrive within three months, there are grounds (para. 4).
Termination still goes through a judge, although the landlord does not have to prove that the student will find other housing (Art. 7:274(1)(c)). There are versions for people under 28 (Art. 7:274c) and PhD candidates (Art. 7:274e).
The fixed-term contract. Since 1 July 2024 (Wet vaste huurcontracten), a fixed-term tenancy does not end on its own, unless it lasts two years or less and the tenant is in a category set by decree (Art. 7:271(2) BW). The Besluit specifieke groepen tijdelijke huurovereenkomst includes students, but not all of them (Art. 1(a)): only whoever wants to live temporarily in another municipality to study or comes from abroad to study. The landlord gives written notice of the end between three months and one month before; otherwise the contract becomes open-ended.
The building: national decree and municipal permit
Here there is a national framework: the Besluit bouwwerken leefomgeving (Bbl), with its own category, the "woonfunctie voor studenten" (student dwelling). In new builds, student housing needs at least 15 m² of non-shared living area, against 18 m² for other homes (Art. 4.163 and table 4.162), and no private storeroom or outdoor space is required (tables 4.171 and 4.174). In an existing building with five or more units let room by room, the escape route has smoke detectors installed to standard NEN 2555 (Art. 3.117(2)).
What depends on the municipality is the use: if its housing bylaw (huisvestingsverordening) provides for it, converting a self-contained home into rooms requires a permit from burgemeester en wethouders, the mayor and aldermen (Art. 21(1)(c) Huisvestingswet 2014).
Data: AVG, UAVG and the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens
The GDPR —AVG in Dutch— is supplemented by the Uitvoeringswet AVG (UAVG), and the authority is the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (Art. 6(2) UAVG). Two Dutch rules reach a residence: an identification number prescribed by law, such as the BSN, may only be used to carry out that law or for purposes a law sets (Art. 46), so it is not collected "just in case"; and if processing relies on the consent of someone under 16, their legal representative consents (Art. 5).
On WhatsApp, the same as on any channel: the information in GDPR Art. 13, a processor contract with every supplier (Art. 28) and Standard Contractual Clauses if messages go through an AI model in the US (Art. 46(2)(c)). Since 2 August 2026, residents have to know an AI is answering, unless it is obvious (Art. 50(1) of the AI Act; detail in the guide).
What the rule does not say
Worth knowing
The law does not say how long "short" is. Art. 7:232(2) BW takes out of tenancy protection any use that "naar zijn aard slechts van korte duur is", short by its nature, without setting months: calling the contract "short stay" is not enough.
Nor does it say every student fits a fixed-term contract: the Besluit only names those who change municipality or come from abroad to study.
Where Bedel fits
Bedel answers the residence's WhatsApp in the language of whoever writes —Dutch, English or any other— and leaves on the phone of a person on the team what a machine should not decide. The data lives in the European Union, in Ireland, and the AI model runs in the US under Standard Contractual Clauses. What changes under Dutch law in the contract and the processing is discussed before signing.
Frequently asked questions
Can I sign fixed-term contracts with students in the Netherlands?
Yes, within limits. Since 1 July 2024, Article 7:271(2) of the BW only lets a contract of two years or less end on its own if the tenant is in a category set by decree, and the Besluit specifieke groepen names those who move municipality or come from abroad to study. The landlord has to give written notice of the end between three months and one month before.
What is a campuscontract?
A tenancy of a home assigned to students in which, under Article 7:274d of the BW, the landlord can seek termination for own use if the tenant does not provide proof of enrolment within three months of a written request. The contract has to say that the home is for students and will be let to a student again. If the tenant does not agree, a judge decides.
How many square metres does a student room need?
In new builds, the Besluit bouwwerken leefomgeving requires for student housing at least fifteen square metres of non-shared living area, against eighteen for other homes, under table 4.162 and Article 4.163. Other rules of the same decree apply to existing buildings, and the municipality can require a permit to split a home into rooms.
Can a residence ask residents for their BSN on WhatsApp?
Only if a law requires it for that purpose. Article 46 of the UAVG says an identification number prescribed by law may only be used to carry out that law or for purposes a law sets. Asking for it just in case, or keeping it in a chat, does not fit. Whatever the residence does process has to be explained in the information required by Article 13 of the GDPR.
Which authority supervises a residence's data in the Netherlands?
The Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens, which Article 6 of the UAVG designates as the GDPR supervisory authority. It supervises a public residence and a private one alike. If the residence uses an AI assistant, Article 50 of the EU AI Act adds, from 2 August 2026, that residents must know an AI is answering, unless it is obvious.
Other countries
- United KingdomFour systems in one country: in England, membership of an approved management code weighs on whether a student building is an HMO and on which contract is signed; data follows UK GDPR.
- IrelandA figure of its own: student specific accommodation, within tenancy law and under the RTB since 2019, whether signed as a lease or as a licence.
- PortugalRules of its own for the building since January 2022 (Decree-Law 14/2022 and Ordinance 35-A/2022); the contract is a Civil Code tenancy and data goes through the GDPR and Law 58/2019.
- FranceThe résidence universitaire has a legal definition (Art. L631-12 of the Code de la construction et de l'habitation); the rest of student accommodation is let under the 1989 Act, as a furnished let or a bail mobilité.
- ItalyThe "struttura residenziale universitaria" has a legal definition (Legislative Decree 68/2012, Art. 13), split into collegi and residenze; letting a flat to students comes under Art. 5 of Law 431/1998.
- GermanyNo residence act: section 549(3) of the BGB cuts back tenant protection in a Studenten- oder Jugendwohnheim, and building rules and the data authority depend on each Land.
- BelgiumThree student tenancy regimes, one per region, with different terms, deposits and exits; data protection and whistleblowing, by contrast, are federal.
- SpainThe starting point in Spain: which rule governs the legal figure, the contract, the building, the data and the AI of a student residence, with the guide for each.