THE HAGUE – Students completing internships in Curaçao will not be covered by a proposed Dutch law that would grant students the right to receive compensation for mandatory internships.
The proposed legislation, announced by the Dutch government, will apply only in the European Netherlands and the Caribbean Netherlands—the public entities of Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba (BES islands). It will not apply to the autonomous countries of Curaçao, Aruba and St. Maarten within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The bill aims to ensure that students enrolled in secondary vocational education (MBO), universities of applied sciences (HBO) and research universities (WO) receive compensation for mandatory internships or internships that form part of their educational program.
Under the proposal, no nationwide minimum internship allowance will be established. Instead, the amount would be determined through sector-specific or company-level agreements.
Because Dutch education legislation does not extend to Curaçao, the proposed legal right to internship compensation would have no direct effect on the island.
This also means that students from the Netherlands who complete internships in Curaçao would not be able to claim the proposed statutory right to compensation under Dutch law.
Interns and host organizations in Curaçao would still be free to negotiate internship allowances on their own. However, according to the Dutch Ministry of Education, whether such agreements are legally enforceable depends on the law governing the internship contract.
The proposed legislation is expected to be released for public internet consultation before the summer of next year, after which it will continue through the Dutch legislative process before being considered by Parliament.
If adopted, the law would mark a significant change for students in the Netherlands and the BES islands, while leaving internship compensation in Curaçao subject to existing contractual arrangements rather than a statutory entitlement.