Applying for social assistance

If you have too little money to get by, you may be entitled to social assistance (bijstand). You can apply for social assistance at your municipality or the werk.nl website, an online work platform operated by the Uitvoeringsinstituut Werknemersverzekeringen – UWV (Employee Insurance Agency).

You are entitled to social assistance if you:

are a Dutch citizen or lawfully resident in the Netherlands, and;
are aged 18 or over;
do not have enough income or funds to get by. Your (joint) income must be below the social assistance standard (in Dutch);
cannot claim any other provision or benefit;
are not in prison or in a detention house.

There are also a number of obligations when you receive social assistance (in Dutch).

This is how it works for you

Your (future) place of residence falls under:

Municipality of Maastricht

Here is some information from your municipality.

Social assistance

If you are unable to find work and do not have enough money to make ends meet, you may qualify for bijstand (social assistance). This type of support can supplement your income up to a minimum limit until you are able to earn enough on your own.

Please note: you can only apply for bijstand (social assistance) if you live in the Netherlands and are registered with a municipality.

To qualify for bijstand, you must meet the following conditions:

You and your partner (if you have one) do not have enough money to support yourselves.
You are 18 years old or older.
You live in Gulpen-Wittem, Maastricht, Meerssen, Vaals or Valkenburg aan de Geul.
You are not receiving any other benefits that are equal to the social assistance standard.
You do not belong to an excluded group, such as prisoners or those without a valid verblijfsvergunning (residence permit).
Your assets are below the maximum allowed. The maximum varies depending on your personal circumstances, so please check the current standards (in Dutch).

If you are approved for bijstand, you will be required to fulfill the following obligations:

Registering as a jobseeker.
Accepting any suitable job offers.
Registering with an employment agency if asked to do so.
Participating in voluntary work or other activities if asked to do so.
Being able to travel up to 3 hours per day, if necessary, to find work.
Making an effort to gain and maintain relevant knowledge and skills.
Being prepared to move to a different location for work for at least one year, with pay that is at least equal to the bijstand benefit.
Making any necessary changes to your clothing, personal care, or behaviour to improve your employment prospects.
Cooperating with any support provided by the municipality to help you find work.

You can apply for bijstand (social assistance) at the werk.nl website. To access this service, you will need a DigiD login. A DigiD is an digital online identification system that allows you to log in to various Dutch government websites.

How it works

After receiving your application for bijstand, the municipality will take care of further processing. A consultant from the municipality will contact you by telephone within 5 working days.

Sociale Zaken (Social Affairs) Maastricht Heuvelland has 8 weeks to make a decision after receiving your application. You will be notified about this by letter. The municipality may extend this period 1 time (for a further 8 weeks) if required.

If you receive a decision that you disagree with, you can file a complaint within 6 weeks. If the issue remains unresolved, you have the option to appeal to the court. You can find more information about filing an objection on the website of Sociale Zaken (Social Affairs).