Quick tip: privacy laws

Old photograph with the faces cut outPrivacy laws in the Netherlands are very strict. The law does not permit publication of information about people who may still be alive without their consent. As a rule of thumb, information for people born less than 100 years ago is not public and should not be available online.

The same applies to official records. Birth records are public until 1912, marriage records until 1932 and death records until 1962. After these dates, only the persons themselves can access the records (or next-of-kin in the case of a death record). If you don’t have their permission, you can’t access these records. If the person is deceased, you could try to order a personal index card instead. If you want to access your own records, check out the article about ordering your own birth certificate.

About Yvette Hoitink

Yvette Hoitink, CG®, QG™ is a professional genealogist in the Netherlands. She holds the Certified Genealogist credential from the Board for Certification of Genealogists and has a post-graduate diploma in Family and Local History from the University of Dundee. She has been doing genealogy for over 30 years and helps people from across the world find their ancestors in the Netherlands. Read about Yvette's professional genealogy services.

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