Who gets 2 free attempts per exam under the Wet inburgering 2021
Only asylum status holders (asielstatushouders) whose integration duty started on or after 1 January 2022 receive two free attempts for each exam part. Your gemeente (municipality) pays the course fees directly and covers up to two attempts for Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening, and Kennis van de Nederlandse Maatschappij (KNM).
This benefit does not apply to everyone. If you are a family migrant (gezinsmigrant), an expat, or someone integrating under the older Wet inburgering 2013, you get zero free attempts. DUO tracks your integration regime based on the start date of your inburgeringsplicht (civic integration duty). You can verify your exact regime and see which exams you must complete by logging into the official portal on inburgeren.nl.
For qualifying asylum status holders, the municipality funds these attempts automatically. You do not need to advance the cash or submit an invoice to get reimbursed. You pay nothing as long as you sit the exam at the level in your PIP or higher. If you pass a test on your first try, DUO allows you to take it a second time at a higher language level for free. This gives you room to demonstrate stronger Dutch without taking a personal financial risk.
The two free attempts are counted per exam part: DUO's wording is "the first 2 attempts of each exam". Each part therefore has its own two attempts.
When an attempt is not free: sitting below the level in your PIP
Your exam attempt is not free if you book it at a lower language level than the level recorded in your PIP. The Persoonlijk Plan Inburgering en Participatie (PIP) is the formal plan established between you and your municipality during your brede intake (broad intake).
If your PIP specifies that you must sit your language exams at level B1, you must book B1 tests. Sitting an A2 exam instead will not be funded by the municipality, even if it is your very first try. In that situation you pay the exam fee yourself.
There is a lawful procedure if B1 proves too difficult. Under the Wet inburgering 2021, lowering your target from B1 to A2 is called afschalen (scaling down). This adjustment is not automatic, and you cannot make the decision alone. The law requires you to complete at least 600 course hours of Dutch as a second language (NT2) at an approved school and show sustained effort before the municipality can agree to change your level. Only after the gemeente updates your official PIP can you take the exams at A2 without paying for them.
Conversely, testing at a higher level than your PIP demands is always permitted. If your PIP specifies A2 but your Dutch improves rapidly, you can book a B1 exam or the Staatsexamen NT2 without losing municipal funding. You can review your legal rights and municipal payment arrangements on inburgeren.nl paying for integration.
What a third attempt costs and why you cannot borrow for it
If you fail an exam part twice, you must pay for every subsequent try yourself. DUO charges a fee for each separate exam part: Reading, Listening, Writing, Speaking and KNM. The current amount per part is in the table on DUO's paying-for-integration page.
The Module Arbeidsmarkt en Participatie (MAP) and the Participatieverklaringstraject (PVT) add nothing to this, because you complete them through your municipality free of charge. But if you fail Speaking twice, you pay the fee for the third attempt yourself.
Money problems multiply quickly. The critical trap for asylum status holders under the 2021 Act is that you cannot take out a DUO loan to cover third or fourth attempts. DUO states that asylum status holders in this cohort cannot borrow from DUO; the gemeente pays the course and two attempts instead.
This creates a hard financial border. While your course remains funded, retakes beyond the second attempt come out of your own pocket. Fail several parts twice and the extra attempts add up quickly. Missing your three-year inburgeringstermijn (integration deadline) also triggers serious consequences, as DUO can levy an administrative fine of up to €1,000 for failing to complete your path on time.
Family migrants and others: pay yourself or borrow from DUO
Family migrants and non-asylum newcomers do not receive two free attempts per exam under any circumstances. If you moved to the Netherlands to join a spouse, partner, or family member, the law expects self-reliance from day one.
You have two choices to finance your civic integration requirements:
- Pay all course fees and exam registrations directly from your personal funds
- Apply for a study loan through DUO to cover approved language schools and official test fees
DUO decides how much you can borrow based on your household income from two years prior. Unlike asylum status holders from the 2013 law who had a fixed €10,000 cap, family migrants under the 2021 law receive an individual limit. You can check borrowing conditions via DUO loan rules and calculate your specific eligibility under DUO loan limits. You must repay this loan over a term of up to 10 years, with interest applied annually. Under specific conditions, DUO partly forgives the debt, but you should never assume your balance will be wiped automatically.
Every retake adds to your personal debt. When a family migrant fails an exam part, the retake fee either comes out of savings or increases the amount borrowed from DUO. That financial pressure makes thorough preparation essential before you schedule any date at a test centre.
How to plan your exams so no free attempt is wasted
Treating your first exam attempt as an exploratory trial is an expensive mistake. You only have two free attempts, so burning one when you are unprepared cuts your safety margin down to zero.
DUO enforces strict administrative deadlines for changes. Since late 2025, you must cancel or reschedule an exam at least 7 days before the exam date if you want to keep your booking fee intact. Cancel later than that and the fee for that exam is lost.
Smart scheduling protects your attempts:
- Space your bookings out across several weeks rather than taking all five parts in one exhausting week.
- Test your receptive skills first if your reading and listening comprehension are stronger than your output.
- Complete official sample papers on DUO practice exams before scheduling your speaking and writing tests.
- Verify that your test confirmation matches the exact level written in your municipal PIP.
Life disruptions happen. If severe circumstances arise, such as your own childbirth, long-term illness, or documented administrative delays where your municipality failed to provide a timely course offer, DUO can grant an official extension (verlenging) of your three-year deadline. However, an extension merely grants more calendar time to complete your duties; it does not give you extra free attempts. Master the material thoroughly, take sample tests under timed conditions, and preserve your second attempt for genuine emergencies.