Wet Inburgering 2013 vs 2021: Which Law Applies to You?

Wet inburgering 2013 and Wet inburgering 2021 are two different civic integration systems. The safest first check is not your arrival date, but the start date of your inburgeringsplicht, meaning your official integration duty. If that duty started before 1 January 2022, Wi2013 usually remains important. If it started on or after 1 January 2022, Wi2021 usually applies.

• Wi2013 usually means you arrange more yourself: course choice, exam planning, DUO loan questions and deadlines.
• Wi2021 gives the gemeente a formal role. The gemeente invites you for a brede intake and makes a PIP, the personal plan for integration and participation.
• Under Wi2013, many people work toward A2 language exams plus knowledge exams such as KNM and sometimes ONA or PVT.
• Under Wi2021, your route can be the B1-route, onderwijsroute or Z-route. Your PIP and Mijn Inburgering show which exams or municipal modules you need.
• Do not copy another person's checklist. ONA, MAP, PVT, loan rules, free attempts, exemptions and fines can differ by law and migration category.

A lot of confusion starts because people use the wrong date. The important date is the official start of your inburgeringsplicht. DUO says you can see this in Mijn Inburgering, and your letters tell you from when you must integrate. Someone who arrived before 2022 may still receive a later official start date. Someone who arrived earlier and already had the duty before 2022 may still be handled under the older rules.

If you are unsure, do not guess from a friend's route, a school advertisement or an old forum post. Log in to Mijn Inburgering, read the latest DUO letter, and if you are under Wi2021, compare it with your PIP from the gemeente.

This table keeps the main differences simple. Your own DUO file and PIP are still the final practical source for your situation.

• Your contact point changes. Under Wi2013 you often deal directly with DUO and the school. Under Wi2021, the gemeente is central for the intake, route and PIP.
• Your exam list changes. Wi2013 can include A2 language exams, KNM, ONA and PVT. Wi2021 follows the route in your PIP and can include B1 or B2 exams, KNM, MAP, PVT or a Z-route certificate.
• Your money questions change. Loan access, municipal course offers, free attempts and who pays the school are not the same in every group.
• Your problem route changes. If B1 is too hard under Wi2021, you talk to the gemeente about the PIP and possible scaling down. Under Wi2013, you usually look at DUO rules for extra time, exemptions or proven effort.

• Assuming Wi2021 applies only because the current website talks about the new law.
• Assuming Wi2013 applies only because you arrived in the Netherlands before 2022.
• Booking ONA when your Wi2021 PIP actually says MAP, or waiting for MAP when your old DUO file says ONA.
• Comparing fines, loans or free attempts with someone under a different law.
• Starting a course before checking whether the school, route and payment rules match your official file.

• Log in to Mijn Inburgering and write down your law, start date, deadline and open tasks.
• Save your latest DUO letters. They matter if a school, gemeente or helpdesk gives different advice.
• If you are under Wi2021, read your PIP before booking exams or choosing a course.
• If you are under Wi2013, check your remaining exams, course hours, attempts and possible loan or exemption rules with DUO.
• Ask for written clarification when something conflicts. A short message from the gemeente or DUO is safer than memory after a phone call.

For the current system, read the Wet Inburgering 2021 guide. If you are just starting, use the DUO letter guide and the Dutch exam decision guide.