Cancel a contract in the Netherlands: phone, energy, gym

Quick answer

To end a subscription in the Netherlands, you cancel it (opzeggen). First check whether the initial fixed term has ended: after it, a contract that renews tacitly can be cancelled at any time with at most one month’s notice (art. 6:236 onder j BW). You may always cancel in writing and the same way you signed up; no registered letter is required. Phone and internet contracts last at most 24 months, and an energy supplier may charge an exit fee only when you leave a fixed-term, fixed-price contract early. A contract concluded online, by phone or at your door can usually be withdrawn within 14 days. Ask for written confirmation of the end date.

This guide covers consumer subscriptions with companies in the Netherlands, such as phone, internet, TV, energy, newspapers, magazines and gyms. It is general information, not legal advice. For insurance and tenancies, see our guides to cancelling insurance and tenant letters. Membership of an association (vereniging), such as many sports clubs, follows art. 2:36 BW and the club’s statutes instead: unless the statutes say otherwise, you can leave only at the end of the financial year with four weeks’ notice.

Check the term and the notice period

Most rules come from the Wet van Dam, which changed art. 6:236 and 6:237 BW from 1 December 2011. An initial term of more than one year is presumed unreasonable unless you can cancel at any time after the first year with at most one month’s notice (art. 6:237 onder k BW). In the initial contract, a notice period of more than one month is presumed unreasonable (art. 6:237 onder o BW), and yours may not be longer than the company’s (art. 6:237 onder l BW). After the initial term, a tacit renewal must be for an indefinite period that you can end at any time with at most one month’s notice (art. 6:236 onder j BW), and a clause forcing you to cancel at a particular moment is not allowed (onder r). ACM ConsuWijzer, the consumer service of the Dutch competition and consumer authority, says that if the terms state no notice period, the subscription ends on the day you cancel.

During the fixed term you cannot simply stop. You can leave early if the company does not perform and does not put it right, if the terms allow it (for example when you move or the price rises), or if the company agrees. An exit fee beyond reasonable compensation for the company’s loss is presumed unreasonable (art. 6:237 onder i BW); ACM tells companies it may be at most the value of the remaining term. Beware of a “new offer” on the phone: accepting it creates a new contract with a new fixed term.

• Newspapers and magazines: a tacit renewal may last at most three months, cancellable at its end with at most one month’s notice (art. 6:236 onder p BW), or continue indefinitely with at most one month’s notice, or three months for a title published less than once a month (onder q). A trial subscription may not continue at all (onder s).
• Gyms: a gym run by a company follows the rules above. Whether a gym or similar contract can be ended at any time as a contract for services (opdracht, art. 7:408 BW) depends on how the contract is classified, and courts differ, so do not rely on it.

Phone, internet and TV

Under the Telecommunicatiewet, a provider must also offer a contract of at most 12 months, and a consumer’s fixed term may not exceed 24 months (art. 7.2a lid 2–3). An indefinite contract can be cancelled free of charge at any time with at most one month’s notice (lid 6). After the initial term, a contract may continue only if you can then cancel free of charge at any time with at most one month’s notice (art. 7.2ab lid 1). At least one month before the initial term ends, the provider must tell you on a durable medium, such as a letter or e-mail, that it is ending and that you can leave free of charge, and advise you on its best tariff (lid 2).

Leaving during the term usually means paying the remaining months, the phone, or both (ACM). Adding a service mid-contract keeps the original end date. If the provider changes the terms, it must give at least one month’s notice, and you may end the contract free of charge within one month of that notice (art. 7.2 lid 1). After such a cancellation, the only fee allowed is for equipment you keep (art. 7.2ad lid 1). If you switch internet provider, the new provider offers to cancel the old contract for you, and the old one ends automatically when the switch is complete (art. 7.2c). Whether moving house lets you leave early depends on the provider’s moving clause (verhuisregeling).

Energy: exit fees since 1 January 2026

The Energiewet replaced the old electricity and gas acts on 1 January 2026. A supplier may charge a household an exit fee (opzegvergoeding) only if you end a fixed-term contract early, the price is fixed, and the fee is in the contract (art. 2.15 lid 1 Energiewet). The fee may not exceed the difference between your agreed price and the current price of the supplier’s reference offer, times the remaining volume, excluding taxes; if the reference price is equal or higher, the fee is nil (art. 2.19 Energieregeling). After you cancel, the supplier must tell you the amount without delay, and that amount stays fixed for two months (art. 2.23). ACM says these rules also apply to fixed contracts concluded under the old rules, and that the fee still applies if you move house.

There is no fee on a variable or dynamic contract, after the fixed term, or if you withdraw within the 14-day period (art. 2.24). ACM says the notice period is at most one month. To switch, you sign a contract with the new supplier, who arranges the switch (art. 2.14 Energiewet); the old supplier must send the final bill within six weeks (art. 2.13).

Withdraw from a new contract within 14 days

For a contract concluded online, by phone or away from the company’s premises, you may withdraw without giving reasons for 14 days (art. 6:230o BW). For services, energy and digital content, the period runs from the day the contract was concluded; for goods, from the day you receive them. If you were not told about this right, the period is extended until you are, by at most 12 months (lid 2). Use the model form or any unambiguous statement (lid 3). The law calls this ontbinding; ACM ConsuWijzer calls it herroepen or bedenktijd (cooling-off). ACM says sending within the period is enough and that a period ending on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday runs to the next working day, but you must prove you withdrew in time (lid 5).

The company refunds you within 14 days (art. 6:230r BW). If you expressly asked for a service to start during the period, you pay for what was supplied; otherwise you owe nothing for it (art. 6:230s). From 25 June 2026, a company that concludes distance contracts online must offer a clearly visible withdrawal function (art. 6:230oa BW). It is for this 14-day withdrawal only, not for ending a running subscription. Insurance has its own rules: see cancelling insurance in the Netherlands.

Write your cancellation letter (opzegbrief)

Include the customer and contract numbers, the start date, and for phone, internet or energy the connection address or phone number. The example cancels on the date you choose or, failing that, at the earliest date the contract and the law allow, and asks for confirmation within two weeks. It claims no right to leave a fixed term early. For an energy contract with a fixed term, keep the bracketed request for the exit-fee calculation. Add both addresses and the date, and replace every placeholder.

Onderwerp: Opzegging [abonnement of contract] — klantnummer [klantnummer]

Geachte heer, mevrouw,

Hierbij zeg ik de overeenkomst op voor [dienst, bijvoorbeeld internet en televisie, energielevering of lidmaatschap van de sportschool], op naam van [voornaam en achternaam], met klantnummer [klantnummer] en contractnummer [contractnummer] [en aansluitadres of telefoonnummer]. De overeenkomst is ingegaan op [ingangsdatum].

Ik zeg op met ingang van [gewenste einddatum] of, als dat niet mogelijk is, met ingang van de eerst mogelijke datum die de overeenkomst en de wet toestaan, met inachtneming van de geldende opzegtermijn. Een schriftelijke opzegging is voldoende; een beding dat voor de opzegging een strengere vorm voorschrijft dan een onderhandse akte, wordt vermoed onredelijk bezwarend te zijn (artikel 6:237 onder m BW).

Ik verzoek u mij binnen twee weken per brief of e-mail te bevestigen dat u deze opzegging hebt ontvangen en per welke datum de overeenkomst eindigt. Ik verzoek u na die datum geen bedragen meer af te schrijven en eventueel vooruitbetaalde bedragen terug te betalen op rekeningnummer [IBAN] ten name van [naam rekeninghouder]. [Bij een energiecontract met vaste looptijd: Ik verzoek u mij ook de hoogte en de berekening van een eventuele opzegvergoeding toe te sturen.]

Met vriendelijke groet, [Voornaam en achternaam] [Handtekening]

If billing continues: send an ingebrekestelling

If no confirmation arrives, or the company keeps charging after the end date, send a written formal notice (ingebrekestelling) with a reasonable deadline; once it passes without the company complying, the company is in default (art. 6:82 BW). The example asks it to stop billing, refund what it took after the end date and confirm that date, and refers to your original cancellation, which it does not replace. You can reverse any direct debit through your bank within eight weeks, or an unauthorised one within 13 months (ACM), but the bank does not check whether the money was owed, and a reversal does not end the contract.

If the dispute continues, complain in writing and, if the company is affiliated, go to De Geschillencommissie, a disputes committee whose rulings are binding; ACM ConsuWijzer takes reports but does not handle individual cases. Claims up to €25,000 go to the sub-district court (kantonrechter) without a lawyer (art. 93 and 79 Rv). See our guides to formal complaints and payment demands.

Onderwerp: Ingebrekestelling — opzegging [abonnement of contract], klantnummer [klantnummer]

Geachte heer, mevrouw,

Op [datum] heb ik de overeenkomst met klantnummer [klantnummer] via [gebruikt kanaal] opgezegd met ingang van [einddatum]. Een kopie van mijn opzegging en het bewijs van [verzending of ontvangst] stuur ik mee.

Ondanks deze opzegging hebt u na de einddatum [bedrag] euro in rekening gebracht of afgeschreven ([factuurnummers of data van afschrijving]). Voor de periode na de einddatum ben ik u niets verschuldigd.

Ik stel u hierbij in gebreke en verzoek u binnen veertien dagen na ontvangst van deze brief de facturering en afschrijvingen te stoppen, [bedrag] euro terug te betalen op rekeningnummer [IBAN] ten name van [naam rekeninghouder] en mij de einddatum van de overeenkomst schriftelijk te bevestigen. Meent u dat de overeenkomst op een latere datum eindigt, laat mij dan binnen dezelfde termijn weten op welke contractuele of wettelijke grondslag.

Voldoet u hier niet binnen deze termijn aan, dan bent u in verzuim. Ik behoud mij het recht voor de afschrijvingen te laten terugboeken, het geschil voor te leggen aan de bevoegde geschillencommissie of de kantonrechter en een melding te doen bij ACM ConsuWijzer.

Met vriendelijke groet, [Voornaam en achternaam]

Post your letter and keep evidence

Upload your final PDF or write the letter in MaisonMail. Use the address given in the terms or on the company’s website, not a general address you have not checked. The recipient address determines the destination; available services, estimated delivery and the final price appear before payment. A cancellation or ingebrekestelling takes effect when it reaches the company (art. 3:37 lid 3 BW), so allow time for printing and delivery; only for the 14-day withdrawal is sending in time enough. Dutch law does not require an aangetekende brief (registered letter) to cancel a consumer subscription, and a standard or tracked letter is not one. Send the same text by e-mail or through the company’s web form, and ask for written confirmation. If receipt may be disputed, use Dutch registered post as well. Keep a copy of the exact letter: tracking shows that an item arrived, not what the envelope contained.