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DNA test when applying for first Dutch passport or ID card for your child

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If you live abroad and are applying for your child’s first Dutch passport or ID card, you may be required to prove with a DNA test that you and the child are biologically related. Find out when this is required and what requirements the test needs to meet.

When is DNA proof required?

You must provide DNA proof when applying for your child’s first Dutch passport or ID card in the following situations: 

  • You are a Dutch national, you are not married to the child’s mother, and your child was 7 years or older at the moment of acknowledgement. You must submit DNA proof within 1 year of acknowledgement. You can submit DNA proof together with your child’s passport application. 
  • The child was born to a surrogate mother. You must provide DNA proof to show that you or your partner are biologically related to the child.
  • There are doubts about the child’s identity and Dutch nationality. The government may, in that case, ask for extra proof. 

When is a DNA test legally valid?

The DNA test should be carried out by a laboratory that meets the legal requirements. This makes your DNA test legally valid.

Find out below what the legal requirements are that a laboratory in the Netherlands or abroad needs to meet. 
 

Check whether the laboratory meets the following requirements:

  • The laboratory is accredited by the Dutch Accreditation Council.
  • The accreditation is based on the criteria specified in NEN-EN ISO/IEC 17025 or NEN-EN ISO/IEC 15189.
  • The accreditation meets the recommendations of the International Society of Forensic Genetics’ Paternity Testing Commission (FSI 2007).
Attention: In the Netherlands you can contact TMFI/Verilabs BV or Dicoon BV/CWZ for a legally valid DNA test.

Check whether the laboratory meets the following requirements:

  • The laboratory is accredited by an organisation comparable to the Dutch Accreditation Council.
  • The accreditation is based on the criteria specified in NEN-EN ISO/IEC 17025 or NEN-EN ISO/IEC 15189.
  • The accreditation meets the recommendations of the International Society of Forensic Genetics’ Paternity Testing Commission (FSI 2007).
Attention: If you have found a laboratory that meets these requirements, ask for a declaration stating which organisation it is accredited with and what the scope of the accreditation is.

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