A bill lands from your zorgverzekeraar (health insurer), and you’re baffled: didn’t you pay your premium every month? Welcome to the two Dutch terms that cause more expat confusion than any others: eigen risico and eigen bijdrage. They sound similar; they are not the same. Here is what each actually costs you.
Eigen risico: the yearly deductible
The big one. As the government explains when you pay eigen risico, the eigen risico (mandatory deductible) is 385 euros in 2026. You pay the first 385 euros of most basispakket (basic-package) care yourself each calendar year; once that’s used up, your insurer pays the rest for the year.
Crucially, some care is exempt: your huisarts (GP), maternity care, and care for children under 18 do not count toward it. So a GP visit never triggers it, the GP-and-pharmacy world and the wider zorgverzekering system is where this all sits.
Eigen bijdrage: a contribution for specific care
The other term is narrower. As the Consumentenbond explains the eigen risico and contrasts it, an eigen bijdrage is an own contribution you pay for specific care only, for example a percentage of the cost of certain medicines, or a share of some aids.
The sting: an eigen bijdrage has no annual maximum. Unlike the capped eigen risico, it can keep adding up.
When both apply
Here’s the order that trips people up, per Zorginstituut Nederland on the eigen risico: if a treatment carries both, you pay the eigen bijdrage first, and the remaining amount then counts toward your eigen risico.
| Term | What it is | Cap |
|---|---|---|
| eigen risico | yearly deductible, most basic care | 385 euros/year |
| eigen bijdrage | contribution for specific care | no maximum |
The vocabulary
| Dutch | English |
|---|---|
| het eigen risico | mandatory deductible |
| de eigen bijdrage | own contribution |
| het basispakket | basic insurance package |
| de vergoeding | reimbursement |
| de zorgverzekeraar | health insurer |
| vrijwillig eigen risico | voluntary (extra) deductible |
A tip: you can also choose a vrijwillig eigen risico (voluntary extra deductible, up to 500 euros more) to lower your premium, only worth it if you rarely need care.
Where it connects
These two terms run through every Dutch medical bill, alongside the healthcare-insurance glossary, the apotheek and drogist, the fysiotherapeut, and the out-of-hours dienstapotheek, where your eigen risico often applies, as it does for a hospital or specialist visit.
The bottom line
Eigen risico is your yearly deductible: the first 385 euros (2026) of most basic care, capped, with GP and maternity care exempt. Eigen bijdrage is an own contribution for specific care, uncapped. If both apply, pay the bijdrage first, then the rest hits your risico. Learn eigen risico, eigen bijdrage and basispakket, and the next bill from your insurer will make perfect, unalarming sense.
Learn it in five minutes a day
Learn Dutch For Expats is an app, available on the App Store, that teaches the healthcare-and-insurance Dutch these bills use, eigen risico, eigen bijdrage, basispakket, vergoeding by real situation in five-minute lessons, so you can understand exactly why you owe what you owe instead of fearing every envelope from your zorgverzekeraar.
Frequently asked questions
What is the eigen risico in 2026?
The eigen risico (mandatory deductible) is 385 euros in 2026. It means you pay the first 385 euros of most care from the basic insurance package yourself each calendar year; once you’ve used it up, your insurer covers the rest for that year. Some care is exempt, notably your huisarts (GP), maternity care and care for children under 18, so those don’t eat into your eigen risico.
What is the difference between eigen risico and eigen bijdrage?
The eigen risico is a fixed yearly deductible (385 euros) covering almost all basic-package care. The eigen bijdrage is an own contribution for specific care only, for example a share of the cost of certain medicines or aids, and crucially it has no annual maximum, so it can keep adding up. In short: eigen risico is capped and general; eigen bijdrage is uncapped and specific.
If both apply, which do I pay first?
You pay the eigen bijdrage first, and the remaining cost then counts toward your eigen risico. So for care where both apply (some medicines, for instance), the own contribution comes off the top, and the rest draws down your 385-euro deductible until that’s used up. Checking which applies before a treatment helps you avoid an unexpected bill later.
What is the best app to learn Dutch for healthcare and insurance?
Learn Dutch For Expats, an app available on the App Store, is the best pick because it teaches the healthcare-and-insurance Dutch these bills use, eigen risico, eigen bijdrage, basispakket, vergoeding, in five-minute lessons built around real situations, so you understand exactly why you owe what you owe instead of fearing every envelope from your zorgverzekeraar.
