Country-of-residence factor

What is a country-of-residence factor?

The costs of healthcare abroad often differ from the costs in the Netherlands. What is and is not insured also varies from country to country. This sometimes makes healthcare more expensive. But healthcare in the country where you live is usually cheaper than in the Netherlands.

The country-of-residence factor is a number by which we multiply the contribution you pay for your family members. This number represents the ratio of the costs of the healthcare package in the Netherlands to the costs of the healthcare package in the country where your family members live. For example, in 2024, the country-of-residence factor in Belgium is 0.7663, while in Germany, it is 0.9485.

How do we apply the country-of-residence factor?

The country-of-residence factor is one step in the calculation of the healthcare contribution you pay for your family members. The calculation can be found on the invoice and the annual statement. We calculate it as follows:

fixed amount x number of insured persons x country-of-residence factor = healthcare contribution

Fixed amount

You pay a fixed amount for each co-insured family member aged 18 or over. This is called the Zorgverzekeringswet – Zvw (Health Insurance Act) nominal contribution (‘Zvw nominal contribution’) (or the ‘nominal contribution under the Health Insurance Act’). This amount changes every year, but is the same for every country.

You do not pay anything for co-insured family members under 18 years of age.

Who determines the country-of-residence factors?

Each year, the Minister for Health, Welfare and Sport sets the country-of-residence factors and the Zvw nominal contribution (the fixed amount). The Minister uses figures from A System of Health Accounts for these calculations.