If you do not follow the rules
It is important to inform us of changes in your personal situation because the amount of your pension or benefit depends on your personal situation.
You must tell us about changes on time. If you do not, you can get a fine. Or we may start an investigation into your entitlement or a fraud investigation.
Read the information here carefully so that you know what to do to avoid being fined or investigated.
You must report changes within 4 weeks (6 weeks if you live outside the Netherlands).
You can report changes to us quickly and easily via My SVB.
We check your details by gathering information in various ways, for example:
- from your municipality (gemeente) to see who is registered at your home address
- by visiting you at home to view your living situation
- by asking your bank or other organisations for information
- from the internet, for example from social media or using search engines such as Google
Checks outside the Netherlands
We can also check your details if you live outside the Netherlands.
> Find out more about how we check details of clients living outside the Netherlands
Temporary stay outside the Netherlands
If you often stay outside the Netherlands for a certain period, or you are away for a particularly long period, this may affect your pension or benefit. Always contact us if you are going to leave the Netherlands for a longer period of time.
If you receive too much pension or benefit from us, you must repay the amount that was overpaid. If you receive too much because you failed to give us information, or the information you gave was not completely correct, you can also get a fine. The standard fine is half of the overpayment you received. However, a fine can be also be higher or lower than the standard fine.
If the overpayment is more than €50,000, we always investigate whether you deliberately decided not to report a change to us. If so, you can be reported to the public prosecutor. It is therefore important that you report changes in your situation to us within 4 weeks. If you live outside the Netherlands, you must report changes to us within 6 weeks.
If we suspect fraud, we can request information from other organisations and from the bank. We can do this if we have permission from the Public Prosecutor. If our investigation shows that you may have committed fraud, you will be called in to talk to us.
What happens if you are called in to talk to us
We will try to find out whether you made an error and if it was deliberate. You can explain your situation to us, and we will ask you questions if something is not clear. You can bring a lawyer with you if you wish. You will receive a report of the interview.
Reporting a case to the Public Prosecutor
If we think you have committed fraud, we will report your case to the Public Prosecutor. The court will then decide whether or not you are guilty of fraud. If the Public Prosecutor decides not to prosecute, you will still have to repay the overpaid amount to the SVB. You could also still get a fine.
If you see or suspect that someone is getting a pension or benefit from us and you don’t think that is correct, please let us know. You can use the online fraud form or phone telephone number +31 (0)30 264 9880.
If you prefer to let us know in writing, you can download and print out the fraud form, fill it in and send it to us. Our address is at the bottom of the form.
We cannot inform you of the outcome of a fraud investigation. This is for reasons of client privacy.