Students still exempted from indefinite tenancy law

A new law aimed at giving tenants more security includes a controversial exemption for students. And that’s not going to change, according to newly appointed Housing Minister Mona Keijzer.

SP MP Sandra Beckerman decided to give it another go – after all, there was a new government. Could Minister Keijzer be persuaded to kindly remove the exemption for students?

During a debate on the Indefinite Rental Contracts Act last year, a majority in the House of Representatives felt that students should also have the right to an indefinite rental contract. The matter seemed to be settled, but former Housing Minister Hugo de Jonge still singled out students as a separate category.

Housing stress

This means that landlords will still be allowed to offer students temporary contracts. Opposition parties SP and D66 were dismayed. They tried to bring the minister to heel, but received little support from other parties.

De Jonge’s exemption would apply to students temporarily living in another municipality, for example because of an internship or minor, as well as to international students. But the criteria are not clearly defined, and tenant rights organisation Woonbond is afraid that landlords will offer temporary contracts to other students as well.

Beckerman believes this will put students at a disadvantage and lead to housing stress. In August, she asked the new minister whether the government intended to implement the law as the House had originally intended, giving all students the right to an indefinite contract.

Rent

Minister Keijzer’s answer can be summed up in a single word: no. Today, she informed the House that the government will ‘maintain the policy of exempting students from the Indefinite Rental Contracts Act’. The exemption could reduce the student housing shortage, she reasons, as landlords with temporary vacancies would be allowed to offer these rooms to students on temporary contracts.

Keijzer is also not worried about landlords abusing temporary contracts to raise rents. After all, on 1 July a new law came into force that aims to keep rents in check.

Students who think they are paying too much rent can also report this to the Rent Tribunal. According to new figures released on Monday, 80 percent of students who do so are successful.