What is a complaints committee, and when is one required?
A complaints committee is an independent committee that investigates complaints about an organisation, hears the complainant and the organisation, and then gives a reasoned opinion. Usually that opinion is advice to the board, which then decides. In involuntary care (Wzd) and compulsory mental healthcare (Wvggz), the committee decides itself.
Under Dutch law, whether your organisation must have one, or must be affiliated with one, depends on the sector. The decision aid below sets out the statute and article for each sector, with the deadlines and the rules on publishing decisions.
Is a complaints committee required by law?
Not for every organisation. Dutch law requires a complaints committee for housing associations, for care providers that deliver involuntary care (Wzd) or compulsory mental healthcare (Wvggz), for youth care providers, for Veilig Thuis, for primary, special and secondary schools, and for vocational colleges (mbo). Often this may be a joint committee that the organisation joins. Under the Wzd and the Wvggz, it must be an external committee. Other organisations often have to adopt complaints regulations, appoint a complaints officer or join a disputes body, but need not set up a committee. For private landlords, employers and sports organisations, the law does not require complaints regulations.
Complaints committee required
- Housing associations
- Care under the Wzd and the Wvggz
- Youth care and child protection
- Veilig Thuis
- Primary, special and secondary education
- Vocational education (mbo)
No complaints committee required
- Care under the Wkkgz: complaints officer and disputes body
- Childcare: regulations and disputes committee
- Higher education: complaints desk
- Municipalities and other public bodies: Awb chapter 9
- Housing cooperatives: regulations
- Wmo providers: regulations if the bylaw requires them
- Landlords, employers and sport: no complaints regulations required
Even where it is not required, organisations sometimes choose to have a committee. For a complainant, an outside opinion can carry more weight than the organisation's view of itself. A municipality can appoint a committee to handle complaints and advise on them, and a collective labour agreement or the organisation's own rules may require one.
Decision aid: is a complaints committee required for your organisation?
Choose your sector. You will see what the law requires for each element, with the article: a committee, regulations, an officer or desk, and membership of an external body. Below that are the deadlines and what the law says about publishing decisions. Print the overview for your board or for the file.
The decision aid needs JavaScript. All sectors are listed below in the table All sectors at a glance.
Housing association
Housing Act (Woningwet) art. 55b(3), with the designated complaints regulations
What the law requires
Required
An independent committee of at least five members, at least two of whom are substitutes. Several housing associations may set up one committee together. The chair is nominated by a working group of the housing association and the tenants' organisation (regulations art. 1 and 3).
Required
The regulations designated by the minister apply to all housing associations (Housing Act art. 55b(3)).
Not required
Not required. The board does provide a secretary, who is not a member and has no vote (regulations art. 3(10)).
Not required
Not required. Housing associations may, however, set up a committee together (regulations art. 1).
Deadlines
- Submitting a complaint: within one year of the housing association's act or omission (regulations art. 5(1)(a)).
- Acknowledgement of receipt, with the decision on admissibility: within fourteen days (art. 6(1) and (2)).
- Invitation to the hearing: within three weeks of receiving the further substantiation and information, and at least five working days before the hearing (art. 7(2)).
- Advice: within three weeks of the hearing, to the board and the complainant (art. 9(5)).
- Board decision: within one month of the advice. The board may only depart from it in writing and with reasons (art. 9(6) and (7)).
- Urgent cases: the chair may depart from the deadlines. The board then decides within one week (art. 10).
Publication of decisions
Advice is only public in anonymised form (regulations art. 11(5)). The committee keeps a register and reports every year to the board and the tenants' organisation. The housing association states in its annual report how often the advice was not followed (art. 13).
Note. After the complaints committee, a tenant can currently still go to the Rent Tribunal (Huurcommissie). That route ends under the Future-Proof Rent Tribunal Act (Wet toekomstbestendige huurcommissie), which the Dutch Senate passed on 29 September 2026. According to the Dutch government, the Act takes effect on 1 January 2027. Read what is changing.
Statutory provisions
Housing Act, article 55b, Complaints Regulations Designation Decree
An aid to finding the law, not legal advice. The law as it stood at the time of writing (1 October 2026). Your own regulations may set shorter deadlines or extra requirements, and these then apply as well.
All sectors at a glance: law, deadlines and publication
The same information in one table, in brief. The full text with all the articles is in the decision aid above and in the printout of all sectors.
| Sector | Law | Complaints committee required? | Deadlines | Publication |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Housing associationHousing | Housing Act (Woningwet) art. 55b(3), with the designated complaints regulations | Yes, at least five members | Receipt 14 days, advice 3 weeks after the hearing, decision within 1 month | Public only when anonymised. Register and annual report required |
| Housing cooperativeHousing | Housing Act art. 18a(3) | No, but regulations are required | No statutory deadlines | Not regulated |
| Private or commercial landlordHousing | Good Landlordship Act (Wet goed verhuurderschap) art. 2 and 4, Rental Prices (Housing) Implementation Act art. 4(5) | No, but a contact point | Rent Tribunal up to one year after the conduct, while art. 4(5) applies | Not applicable |
| Care provider (Wkkgz)Health and social care | Wkkgz arts. 13 to 22 | No, but an officer and a disputes body | Opinion within 6 weeks, one extension of 4 weeks | Disputes body decisions public, not traceable to individuals |
| Involuntary or compulsory care (Wzd, Wvggz)Health and social care | Wzd arts. 53 to 56b, Wvggz arts. 10:1 to 10:6 | Yes, external, and it decides itself | Decision within 14 days, or 4 weeks | Must be published, not traceable to individuals |
| Youth care and child protectionHealth and social care | Youth Act (Jeugdwet) art. 4.2.1 and 4.2.2 | Yes, with an outside chair | Period from own rules, provider responds within 1 month | Not regulated. Serious structural situations reported to the regulator |
| Wmo provider or Veilig ThuisHealth and social care | Social Support Act (Wmo 2015) art. 2.1.3, 3.2 and 4.2.7 | Veilig Thuis only | Veilig Thuis: own rules, response within 1 month | Not regulated |
| Primary, special and secondary educationEducation and childcare | WPO art. 14, WEC art. 23, WVO 2020 art. 3.35 and 3.36 | Yes, with an outside chair | Deadlines from the regulations, board responds within 4 weeks | Not regulated. Data for the committee and board only |
| Vocational education (mbo)Education and childcare | WEB art. 7.5.1, 7.5.2 and 7.5.7 | Yes, plus a complaints desk | 6 or 10 weeks (Awb 9:11 via the WEB), set it in the regulations | Register complaints and publish annually |
| Higher educationEducation and childcare | WHW art. 7.59a, 7.59b, 7.60 and 7.63a | No, but a complaints desk | 6 weeks, or 10 weeks with a committee (Awb 9:11) | Register complaints and publish annually |
| ChildcareEducation and childcare | Childcare Act (Wet kinderopvang) art. 1.57b and 1.57c | No, but a disputes committee | Opinion within 6 weeks, report before 1 June | Annual report to regulator and parents, not traceable |
| Municipality or other public bodyGovernment | Awb chapter 9, arts. 9:1 to 9:18 | No, but a committee is allowed | 6 weeks, or 10 weeks with a committee | Register complaints and publish annually |
| Employer: unacceptable behaviourWork and sport | Arbowet art. 3(2), Arbobesluit art. 2.15 | No, but a policy | No statutory deadlines for complaints | Not regulated |
| Sports federation or sports clubWork and sport | No law yet. Sport Integrity Bill (Wet integere sport) | No, a bill is in preparation | No statutory deadlines | Not regulated |
Complaints committees in healthcare: Wkkgz, Wzd and Wvggz
In healthcare, the subject of the complaint determines whether there must be a committee. Most complaints fall under the Healthcare Quality, Complaints and Disputes Act (Wkkgz), which does not require a complaints committee. The care provider has complaints regulations, appoints someone to advise complainants free of charge and gives its own reasoned opinion within six weeks. A committee may advise on this, but the opinion and the deadline remain the provider's responsibility. If the complainant is not satisfied, they can go to the recognised disputes body the provider belongs to. That body issues a binding opinion (Wkkgz, article 20).
It is different when the complaint concerns involuntary care under the Care and Compulsion Act (Wzd) or compulsory care under the Compulsory Mental Healthcare Act (Wvggz). The provider is then affiliated with an external complaints committee, set up by clients' organisations and organisations of care providers. That committee decides itself, within 14 days, and may suspend or annul the contested decision. It hears both sides at a place the client can easily reach, and publishes its decisions in a form that cannot be traced to individuals. A care organisation with locations under the Wzd therefore often runs two routes side by side: the Wkkgz for most complaints and the external committee for complaints about involuntary care.
For youth care and child protection, the Youth Act requires a complaints committee with a chair from outside the organisation. The deadline for the opinion is set in the organisation's own rules, and the provider states within one month what measures it will take.
How does a complaints committee work?
A complaints committee steps in where the conversation between the complainant and the organisation has stalled. It checks whether the complaint is admissible, gathers the documents from both sides, hears the complainant and the organisation at a hearing and writes a reasoned opinion. Usually the organisation's board then decides. If it departs from the advice, it must explain why.
The steps below follow the designated complaints regulations for Dutch housing associations. In other sectors the steps are similar, but the deadlines differ.
- The housing association first. If the housing association has not had a proper chance to resolve the complaint itself, the committee forwards the complaint to the housing association and tells the complainant (regulations art. 5(1)(e)).
- Receipt and admissibility. The committee acknowledges receipt and checks whether the complaint was submitted in time, concerns a specific act or omission and falls within its remit. If the complaints committee of Elmwood Housing Association receives a complaint on Monday 5 October 2026, the complainant hears by Monday 19 October at the latest, including whether the complaint will be handled (art. 6(1) and (2)).
- Documents and positions. The housing association receives a copy of the complaint and sets out its position, with the documents. Whatever one party submits, the other receives too, so that everyone works from the same case file (art. 6(6) and art. 7(6)).
- The hearing. The complainant and the housing association explain their positions in person, and each side can respond to the other. The hearing is not public and the committee sits with at least three members, including the chair (art. 8). Our guide to preparing and chairing a hearing includes a run sheet you can adapt, with the invitation, the agenda, the roles, a checklist for the chair and a report template.
- Deliberation and advice. The committee deliberates without the parties, decides by majority and writes a reasoned advice: complaint upheld, partly upheld or not upheld, sometimes with recommendations (art. 9). Our guide to writing the advice has a template with an explanation of each section.
- The decision. The board decides within one month of receiving the advice. If it departs from the advice, it gives its reasons in writing (art. 9(6) and (7)). Under the Wzd and the Wvggz, the committee decides itself.
- Publication and accountability. Advice is only made public in anonymised form, and the advice guide includes a checklist for this. The committee keeps a register and reports every year (art. 11 and 13). What belongs in that report is covered in our guide to the annual report.
What the secretary does at each step and throughout the year, with a printable annual planner, is covered in our guide for the complaints committee secretary.
What is the difference between a complaints committee and a disputes committee?
A complaints committee assesses whether an organisation acted properly and advises the board, which then decides. A disputes committee settles a dispute between two parties with a binding decision, sometimes including compensation. The complaints committee is usually part of the organisation's own complaints procedure. The disputes committee is an outside body.
| Aspect | Complaints committee | Disputes committee |
|---|---|---|
| Outcome | Advice or an opinion on the complaint, sometimes with recommendations | A binding decision, sometimes with compensation |
| Who decides | The organisation's board, except under the Wzd and the Wvggz | The disputes committee itself |
| Examples in the law | The committee of a housing association, school or youth care provider | The disputes body in healthcare (Wkkgz art. 20) and the disputes committee in childcare (Childcare Act art. 1.57c) |
Look beyond the name. Some joint committees of housing associations are called disputes committees or disputes advisory committees, but work under the complaints regulations and issue advice. In vocational and higher education, by contrast, the disputes advisory committee deals with objections to decisions. What a committee does is set out in its rules, not in its name.
An independent or external complaints committee
In the law, independent mainly means that whoever gives the opinion does not work for the organisation complained about. How far that goes differs from one statute to another.
- Wzd and Wvggz: none of the members works at or for the care provider, and the committee is set up by clients' organisations and organisations of providers. An in-house committee is not enough here.
- Housing associations: the chair is nominated by a working group of the housing association and the tenants' organisation, and half of the other members by the tenants' organisation. Anyone who, in the five years before appointment, worked for the housing association, sat on its board or supervisory board, or was a board member of the tenants' organisation cannot become a member, among other restrictions (regulations art. 3).
- Schools, vocational education, youth care and Veilig Thuis: at the very least, the chair does not work for or at the organisation. In vocational education (mbo), none of the members may be part of a competent authority either.
- Government: the public body may give a committee that handles and advises on complaints only general instructions (Awb art. 9:14(2)).
In practice there are three forms: your own committee with external members, a joint committee for several organisations, or membership of a national or regional committee. Whatever the form, set out in the regulations who appoints the members, who has access to the case files and how the deadlines are monitored.
Housing associations: the Rent Tribunal route ends on 1 January 2027
At present, a tenant can ask the Rent Tribunal (Huurcommissie) for a ruling on a complaint about the landlord's conduct. This is possible if the landlord has not dealt with the written complaint on its merits within a reasonable time, or if the tenant disagrees with the landlord's assessment of the complaint. The request must be made within one year of the conduct (Rental Prices (Housing) Implementation Act, art. 4(5)). The complaints regulations that the minister has designated for all registered housing associations require the board to point this option out to the complainant when notifying its decision (Complaints Regulations Designation Decree, annex, art. 9(8)).
The Future-Proof Rent Tribunal Act removes that provision. The House of Representatives passed the bill on 21 April 2026 and the Senate on 29 September 2026. According to the Dutch government, the Act takes effect on 1 January 2027. Until then, the current rules apply. From 1 January 2027, for a complaint about the conduct of a housing association, the advice of the complaints committee is the last step before the courts. The Rent Tribunal procedures on rent levels, service charges and defects remain in place.
- The advice carries more weight. Outside the courts, there is then no second review. A complainant who disagrees with the board's decision can only go to the subdistrict court (kantonrechter). Careful reasoning matters even more.
- The notice to the complainant. From 1 January 2027, article 9(8) of the regulations refers to a route that no longer exists. At the time of writing, it was not known whether or when the regulations would be amended. Agree with the housing association what the notice will say.
- Rota and secretariat. Complaints that now go to the Rent Tribunal may come to the committee instead. Check whether the rota and the secretariat can cope.
How Adminio helps the complaints committee
Adminio is the working environment for complaints committees. Each case has one case file, in which the complainant, the organisation, the secretariat, the chair and the members each work in their own view. Adminio is set up around the committee's rules of procedure and way of working. It shows who needs to act, prepares the case file and helps with the writing, from the hearing transcript to the draft advice. The committee makes its own judgement.
- 1.Complainant, SecretariatThe complainant submits the complaint online through Your complaint, step by step, with attachments, and receives a reference number straight away.
- 2.Secretariat, ChairUnder Intake and admissibility, the committee records whether it will handle the complaint. If it will not, it notes the ground from the regulations. The caseload shows who needs to act on each case, and the Deadline passed filter shows what is held up.
- 3.Complainant, Organisation, Secretariat, Chair, MembersThe secretariat schedules the hearing in Rota and hearings. The committee holds the hearing via Microsoft Teams or in person. Adminio produces a transcript and a summary from the recording. How the hearing works in Adminio.
- 4.Chair, MembersUnder Draft advice, Adminio prepares a draft from the case file and the hearing. The committee edits it together, adopts it itself and sends it with Send advice to parties. How the advice takes shape.
- 5.Secretariat, MembersUnder Anonymise and publish, Adminio proposes the anonymisation. A committee member checks the full text and ticks it off before anything is made public. Adminio compiles the annual report from the cases handled. How the annual report takes shape.
When a case is prepared, the assistant also finds relevant legislation and similar rulings for the case file. Does your committee work in healthcare, education, childcare or for a municipality? Tell us which regulations you follow, and we will show you how Adminio is set up around them.
Prefer to call? We are available from 9:00 to 21:00 (CET) on +31 85 060 88 49.
Frequently asked questions
That depends on the law and the rules of procedure. At schools, vocational colleges, youth care providers and Veilig Thuis, there are at least three members, including a chair who does not work for the organisation. Under the Wzd and the Wvggz, there is an odd number of at least three members, none of whom works at or for the care provider. At housing associations, there are at least five members, at least two of whom are substitutes. The secretary there is not a member and has no vote.
Usually not. The committee advises and the board decides. The board must, however, explain why it departs from the advice, for example at housing associations (regulations, article 9(6)) and in government (Awb, article 9:16). Under the Wzd and the Wvggz, the committee decides itself. A recognised disputes body in healthcare issues a binding opinion (Wkkgz, article 20).
Only where the law says so. Complaints committees under the Wzd and the Wvggz, and the disputes bodies in healthcare, publish their decisions in a form that cannot be traced to individuals. Only the care provider may be identifiable. For housing associations, the regulations state that advice may only be made public in anonymised form. They contain no duty to publish every advice. Public bodies publish the registered complaints every year. How to anonymise an advice before it is published is covered in our guide to writing the advice.
First to the organisation itself, for example to the complaints officer or the complaints desk. If you cannot resolve it together, the complaint goes to the complaints committee or disputes body named in the organisation's complaints regulations. These are often on its website. If it concerns a municipality or another public body, you can then go to the National Ombudsman, or to the municipality's own ombudsman or ombuds committee if it has one. The letter closing the complaint says which (Awb, article 9:12).
Send this page to your board or your fellow committee members. Would you like to see how a case runs in Adminio, from intake to advice? We will show you, alongside your own regulations.
This page and the decision aid are general information, not legal advice. Sources: Housing Act (Woningwet), Complaints Regulations Designation Decree for registered housing associations, Good Landlordship Act, Rental Prices (Housing) Implementation Act, Healthcare Quality, Complaints and Disputes Act (Wkkgz), Care and Compulsion Act (Wzd), Compulsory Mental Healthcare Act (Wvggz), Youth Act, Social Support Act (Wmo 2015), Primary Education Act (WPO), Expertise Centres Act (WEC), Secondary Education Act (WVO 2020), Adult and Vocational Education Act (WEB), Higher Education and Research Act (WHW), Childcare Act, General Administrative Law Act (Awb), Working Conditions Act (Arbowet), Whistleblower Protection Act, Dutch Senate, Future-Proof Rent Tribunal Act (parliamentary papers 36791), Dutch government, Senate approves the Future-Proof Rent Tribunal Act (29 September 2026) and Dutch government on the Sport Integrity Act. The law as it stood at the time of writing (1 October 2026).