In the coalition agreement, the governing parties promised that the new government would allocate 1.4 billion euros to compensate students who missed out on the basic grant between 2015 and 2023. The first draft of the necessary legal change is now available online.

The government intends to provide students under the loan system with an additional compensation of “about 40 euros” per month for the missed basic grant. Over the course of four years of study, this amounts to roughly 1,920 euros – slightly more than the first compensation that has been distributed since the beginning of this year (1,640 euros).

The second amount will also, in principle, be deducted from the student loan debt, or otherwise directly transferred to the bank account. Those who are eligible for the first compensation will automatically be eligible for the second as well.

Special circumstances
Everyone can comment on the draft law until May 2. One key difference from the first compensation is that the target group is expanded to include an estimated six thousand students who couldn’t complete their degree due to “special circumstances.” This could include disability, functional limitations, or chronic illness. These students would not only be eligible for the additional compensation starting in 2027 but also retroactively for the first one.

The same applies to “several dozen” students in similar situations, who were unable to finish their degree within the set ten years. For them, Minister Bruins proposes extending the graduation deadline to a maximum of fifteen years.

Benefit
If the draft law passes, the first four cohorts of unlucky students – including the study voucher – will receive a total compensation of 5,600 euros for four years of study. For students living at home, this amount is one thousand euros higher than the basic grant they missed out on.