Giving birth in the Netherlands as an expat: what the guides don't tell you
Giving birth in the Netherlands as an expat usually means midwife-led care, a choice between home and hospital birth, and a maternity nurse visiting your home in the first week. I know how disorienting that can feel. When I was pregnant with my twins, I moved countries at 25 weeks and spent the rest of my pregnancy trying to understand a system that worked nothing like the one I had started in.
For the past seven years I have supported mothers having babies far from home, many of them here in the Netherlands, first as a doula and now as a perinatal counsellor. This guide is for you if you are expecting a baby in the Netherlands without family nearby. It is especially for you if you are neurodivergent, highly sensitive (sometimes called a highly sensitive person, or HSP), or carrying the memory of a difficult previous birth.
How maternity care works in the Netherlands
Dutch antenatal care starts from the idea that pregnancy and birth are normal life events. If your pregnancy is low risk, a midwife (verloskundige) leads your care, and you don't need a GP referral to find one.
The role of the midwife
Midwives in the Netherlands are independent, highly trained professionals. They run your check-ups, arrange your scans, attend births at home and uncomplicated births in hospital, and visit you after the baby is born. Most work in group practices, so you will probably meet several midwives during your pregnancy, because any one of them could be on call when labour starts.
When an obstetrician takes over
If there is a medical indication, such as gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, twins or a previous caesarean, your care moves to an obstetrician (gynaecoloog) in hospital. This can happen from the start, partway through, or during labour itself. Being transferred says nothing about you or your body, although I know from the mothers I support that it can feel like a verdict.
How the Dutch system differs from other countries
Compared to other European countries, and even more so to the US or much of Asia and Latin America, The Dutch care system can feel surprisingly hands-off. There are fewer routine scans and tests, and you may hear "let's wait and see" more often than you expected. The approach is deliberate, but it can leave you feeling unheard, particularly after a loss or a hard birth. You are allowed to ask why a test isn't offered, and to ask again if the answer doesn't make sense to you.
What to do when you find out you're pregnant in the Netherlands
The first weeks involve more admin than most people expect. Roughly in this order:
Contact a midwifery practice near you. Your first appointment usually takes place somewhere in the first trimester, often around eight to ten weeks.
Register for kraamzorg early. There is a shortage of maternity nurses in some regions, so many mums are advised to book in the first trimester.
Check your health insurance in the Netherlands. If you live and work here, maternity care is covered by your health insurance, but supplementary policies vary.
Prenatal care, scans and classes
Standard prenatal care in the Netherlands includes regular check-ups with your midwife, blood tests in early pregnancy, a dating scan and a 20-week anomaly scan. Screening such as the NIPT is offered but optional, and your midwife will talk it through with you first. A free whooping cough vaccination is offered from around 22 weeks.
You can search for the nearest birth preparation courses organised by Access NL, or you can ask your Midwife about local offerings in English. Some practices offer Centering Pregnancy, where your check-ups happen in a small group of women due around the same time, and plenty of mums say they still meet their group years later.
Home birth or hospital birth: your options
The Netherlands is one of the European countries with the highest rates of births that take place at home, yet the rate of hospital births is still higher than home birth. If your pregnancy is low risk, the choice is genuinely yours as to where you prefer to give birth, and you can change your mind as your pregnancy goes on.
Birth at home
If you choose to give birth at home, and if you have hired a doula, this is the first person to join you and stay with you once labour starts. Your midwife might pay you a visit to check your progress and if you are still in the early stages, will leave and join you at a later time, or when you call her back. As labour progresses and you are close to delivery, your midwife will call the maternity nurse so she can join and be available for the first couple of hours after birth. All these professionals assume different roles and work seamlessly together to provide you with the best support during labour.
Pain relief at home means non-medical options such as water, warmth, movement and emotional and hands-on support. If you decide you want an epidural, or if anything changes, you will need to transfer to hospital, which will be coordinated by your midwife.
Giving birth in the hospital or a birth centre
You can also give birth in hospital with your own midwife, known as an outpatient birth (poliklinische bevalling). If all is well, you usually go home a few hours after your baby is born. Some areas also have birth centres, which feel more homely but sit inside or close to a hospital. Around Eindhoven, the hospitals most families use include Catharina Ziekenhuis in Eindhoven and Máxima MC in Veldhoven.
What the research says
Home birth is common here, but no longer the norm.
- Around 13 to 21% of babies in the Netherlands are born at home, depending on the year and source.
- Of all women who start labour in primary midwife-led care (home, birth centre or poliklinische bevalling), about 38% are transferred to hospital during labour.
- Transfer is more likely for first-time mothers (around 57%) than for those who have given birth before (around 22%).
What this means for you: having your baby at home in the Netherlands is a real option, especially if it is not your first baby. If it is your first birth, a transfer to hospital is statistically more likely, and that is built into how the system works rather than a sign that you or your body failed.
First-time mothers are transferred to hospital during labour more often than mothers who have given birth before. Source: Perined.
Pain relief options and epidurals
Medical pain relief, including an epidural or remifentanil, is only available in hospital. How quickly an anaesthetist can place an epidural varies between hospitals and times of day, so ask how it works where you are giving birth and write your preference down.
Is giving birth free in the Netherlands?
Mostly, if you have Dutch basic health insurance. Midwife care, kraamzorg and hospital care with a medical indication are covered, and your annual deductible (eigen risico) does not apply to maternity care. You'll usually pay a small hourly contribution towards kraamhulp, and a personal contribution if you give birth in a hospital without a medical reason. Supplementary insurance can reduce these costs, so check your policy early in pregnancy.
Writing a birth plan in the Netherlands
Many hospitals give you a birth wishes questionnaire, and Dutch midwives often suggest keeping your plan short. I agree, with one addition. That the birth plan reflects what is really important to you. I find that the biggest benefit of making a plan comes through the process of learning what your options are, and understanding the emotional and physiological process of birth and what you need from your environment and your support team to make it the most positive birth experience.
Talk through the "what if" moments
Two worries come up again and again with the expat families I support. The first is language. Most Dutch healthcare staff speak excellent English, but in an emergency they may switch to Dutch with each other so they can work quickly. You can ask in advance for your partner to be kept updated in English.
The second is separation. If your baby needs care on the neonatal unit following the birth, your partner will often be asked to go with them while you stay behind. It helps to decide together, before labour, what you would both want.
What to prepare and pack
Many insurers send a free maternity pack (kraampakket) towards the end of your pregnancy. If you're planning a home birth, you'll also need bed raisers, which you can usually borrow or rent. And prepare for the weeks after, not only the day itself: meals in the freezer, and a short list of people who could help with household chores, and vetted professionals you can turn to if you need additional support in the weeks and months after childbirth
Planning a c-section after a traumatic birth
Can you request a planned c-section in the Netherlands?
This is one of the questions I'm asked most often. There is no simple written rule, and a planned caesarean without a medical reason isn't common in the Netherlands. In my experience, though, obstetricians here are generally open to the conversation, particularly when a previous birth was traumatic. Bring your medical records from the previous birth and any letter from your previous obstetrician. Because you may not see the same obstetrician each time, ask for any agreement to be recorded in your notes.
Why having someone alongside you matters
Advocating for yourself after a hard birth can mean retelling the worst day of your life to a stranger, often in your second language. When I was pregnant with my youngest after a traumatic first birth, a single nurse acknowledged my fear before I went into theatre, and I felt my whole body soften. Being truly heard matters that much.
Every situation is different. What helps depends on your history, your body and what feels safe to you, which is why I work through this individually with mothers, sometimes starting with a birth debrief or birth trauma recovery support before planning the next birth.
What the research says
Dutch caesarean rates are low by international standards.
- Around 17 to 18% of births in the Netherlands are by caesarean section, compared with about 29% in the US and 34% in Germany.
- Across high-income countries, including the Netherlands, the share of planned caesareans has been rising over time.
- For women with a previous caesarean who plan a vaginal birth, international data show a VBAC success rate of about 68%, with uterine rupture rare at around 0.5 to 0.9%.
What this means for you: a low national caesarean rate does not automatically make a planned caesarean after a traumatic birth easy to access. In practice it is usually a conversation with your obstetrician rather than a simple request. Bringing your previous birth records, and asking for any agreement to be written into your notes, can help.
Sources: NPEU, University of Oxford, international comparison of caesarean birth rates; OECD and European Observatory, Netherlands country health profile 2025
Systematic review and meta-analysis of trial of labour and vaginal birth after caesarean
Giving birth as a neurodivergent mother far from home
Dutch hospitals are often calm places, but bright lights, unexpected touch, new faces at every shift change and information given quickly in a second language can build up fast. If you're neurodivergent or highly sensitive, this deserves real space in your preparation.
I was diagnosed with AuDHD long after my own births. Looking back, so much of what overwhelmed me made sense. Some things that help: note sensory needs in your birth plan (dimmed lights, a warning before touch, one person speaking at a time), ask for important information in writing, bring your own headphones, and agree with your partner that slowing conversations down is part of their role. Neuro-affirming birth support starts from the idea that your needs are information, not inconvenience.
After the birth: kraamzorg and postnatal care
Kraamhulp is one of the loveliest parts of the maternity system in the Netherlands. After your baby is born, at a home birth or a hospital birth, a maternity nurse (kraamverzorgende) comes to your home for several hours a day over roughly the first eight days. They check on you and your new baby, help you breastfeed or bottle feed, and take care of some light household chores. Your midwife visits too, and your baby will have a heel prick test in the first week.
If you plan to breastfeed, ask for help with latching early, and ask about a lactation consultant if feeding hurts. Your midwife usually sees you again for a postnatal check around six weeks, while the youth health service (consultatiebureau) takes over your baby's check-ups.
For many mothers far from home, the day kraamhulp ends is when the quiet arrives. As a new mother, living far away from the support of your family, this is worth planning for as carefully as the birth.
What the research says
Kraamzorg is a cornerstone of Dutch postnatal care, but the hours are shrinking.
- The average number of kraamzorg hours per family has been falling in recent years because of staff shortages.
- In 2022, 2.5% of families received no kraamzorg at all. In some regions, late booking or shortages mean women receive fewer hours than recommended.
- Mothers in vulnerable situations are more likely to receive less than the recommended 24 hours, around 21% compared with 8% of other families, and lower income households receive up to 7 hours less on average.
What this means for you: booking kraamzorg in the first trimester is a practical way to protect your postnatal support rather than simply a helpful tip. If you are already under pressure, whether from a new country, limited local help, neurodivergence or a past trauma, it is worth planning early for what happens when those hours end, or if they never fully arrive.
Sources: Zorginstituut Nederland; Monitor Kansrijke Start 2024, via parliamentary answers; Inspectorate for Health and Youth Care
Registering the birth and your baby's nationality
Registration of birth should be done within three working days at the municipality (gemeente) where your baby was born. You can then request a birth certificate. Being born in the Netherlands doesn't give your baby Dutch nationality automatically, so contact your embassy in the Netherlands about registering the birth and applying for a passport.
Having a baby far from family and friends
Most expats I have talked to about pregnancy and giving birth in the NL carry the same quiet question underneath: who will be there? Your midwife may suggest pregnancy yoga or a Centering pregnancy group, and after the birth, local libraries and baby swimming are good ways to meet other parents during your parental leave. If you'd like a smaller, steadier circle, my mother's group meets online and in person in Eindhoven.
Frequently asked questions about giving birth in the Netherlands
Can non-residents give birth in the Netherlands?
Yes, but without Dutch basic health insurance you are responsible for the costs, which can be high, particularly for a hospital birth. If you're visiting or have only recently been living in the Netherlands, check what your current insurance covers before the end of your pregnancy.
Is home birth an option for everyone?
The Netherlands has one of the highest rates of home births, and it is often an option if your pregnancy is low risk and your care stays with a midwife. If there is a medical indication, such as a previous caesarean or twins, your obstetrician will usually recommend birth in hospital.
Can I choose to have an epidural when giving birth in the Netherlands?
Yes. Epidurals are available in hospitals, so if you want one, plan a hospital birth. Ask your hospital how quickly an epidural can usually be placed and add your wishes to your birth plan.
Do I need to speak Dutch to give birth in the Netherlands?
No. Most midwives, nurses and doctors speak good English. In urgent situations, staff may speak Dutch to each other, so ask in advance for you or your partner to be kept informed in English.
When should I book kraamzorg?
As early as possible, ideally in the first trimester. Shortages in some regions mean late bookings may receive fewer hours than they hoped for.
Can I request a planned c-section after a traumatic birth in the Netherlands?
You can ask, and obstetricians are generally willing to discuss it, especially after a traumatic previous birth. Bring your records from the earlier birth and ask for any decision to be written in your notes.
Support for your birth in Eindhoven
Guides like this one can explain the Dutch system. They can't know your history, your sensory needs or what your last birth left behind. If you'd like to plan a birth that fits you, I offer birth planning sessions for mothers far from home, in person and online. You can find out more about birth support in Eindhoven and book a session there.
