Restitution procedures for cultural goods not in possession of the Dutch State

Contact the present possessor

If you wish restitution to you of a cultural good that is currently in possession of a party other than the Dutch State, first contact the present possessor. If the possessor agrees to this, you can jointly submit a request for a binding recommendation to the Advisory Committee on the Assessment of Restitution Applications for Items of Cultural Value and the Second World War (the Restitutions Committee).

The procedure for a binding recommendation is a voluntary procedure. This means that the possessor of the object must agree jointly with you to call in the Restitutions Committee.

Prior agreement to binding recommendation

You and the present possessor undertake beforehand that both parties will accept the recommendation to be issued by the Restitutions Committee as binding and also accept the Rules of Procedure of the Committee. It is important to reach agreement on this issue with the present possessor or their authorized representative.

Jointly with the present possessor you request the Restitutions Committee for investigation and a binding recommendation. To this end you send the Restitutions Committee a letter or e-mail signed by the present possessor (of their authorized representative) and by you as representative of the party requesting restitution of the cultural good. Both parties may also submit two separate requests in different letters/e-mails.

The State Secretary of Culture and Media (OCW)
p/a Restitutions Committee
Postbus 556
2501 CN Den Haag
The Netherlands

In your letter or e-mail, provide the following information:

• particulars of the artwork (as fully as possible: type of object, title, maker/artist, current location and inventory number, and preferably also a description);
• where the object is currently located (which museum/which collection)
• the names of the parties (the party requesting restitution of the cultural good on the basis of former ownership and the present possessor);
• the names of the representatives of both parties, together with their contact details. If a party has appointed a representative, this authorized representative must be able to produce a written authorization that is no more than one year old, unless your authorized representative is registered as a lawyer in the Netherlands.

Ascertain the group of rights holders

As an applicant you must show that you are acting on behalf of all persons who have an entitlement to the estate of the original owner of the object for which you are requesting restitution. Arrange written authorizations from these persons and/or institutions at the earliest possible stage.

The Restitutions Committee will verify whether it can process the request for a binding recommendation. It is a requirement that all parties with entitlement to the estate of the original owner of the claimed cultural good are represented in the procedure. You are required to demonstrate who these entitled parties are by means of a notarized certificate of inheritance or a comparable declaration issued by a judicial authority. It is important to arrange a certification of this nature as early as possible.

If you still lack sufficient information as to whether you can or wish to submit a request for restitution, for instance because you do not know under what circumstances the cultural good was lost, then there is another option: together with the present possessor you can submit a request for research to be carried out. The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands may instruct the Expert Centre to carry out research. On the basis of the factual report drawn up by the Expert Centre you can seek to reach a solution without applying to the Restitutions Committee. If this is not possible, you can then still jointly present the case to the Restitutions Committee.

In which cases is investigation not possible?

This procedure is not intended for museums wishing to further investigate parts of the National Art Collection that they administer. Museums themselves can carry out research into objects they hold.

Moreover, this procedure is not intended for cultural goods on which the Restitutions Committee has already issued a recommendation.

If you first wish for research to be carried out by the Expert Centre for the Restitution of Cultural Goods and the Second World War (the Expert Centre), then together with the present possessor of the object you can submit a request by letter or e-mail to the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands.

Send your request preferably by e-mail: restitutie@cultureelerfgoed.nl stating 'request for research'

Or send a letter to:

The State Secretary of Culture and Media (OCW)
Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands
Postbus 1600
3800 BP Amersfoort
The Netherlands

In your letter or e-mail, provide the following information:

• particulars of the artwork (as fully as possible: type of object, title, maker/artist, current location and inventory number, and preferably also a description);
• name of the individual who was involuntarily dispossessed of the cultural good during the Nazi regime (the original owner);
• your own details and your relationship (in the context of inheritance) to the original owner. If you have appointed a representative, this authorized representative must be able to produce a written authorization that is no more than one year old, unless your authorized representative is registered as a lawyer in the Netherlands. In order to submit the request it is not necessary that you do this jointly with or on behalf of any other rights holders.

Does the cultural good fall under the restitution policy?

The Cultural Heritage Agency will verify whether the work is indeed not in possession of the Dutch State and if the request for restitution falls under the restitution policy. It will also determine if the claimed involuntary dispossession took place in the period covered by the restitution policy (1933-1945).

Expert Centre instructed to carry out research

If the request falls under the restitution policy, the Cultural Heritage Agency instructs the Expert Centre to carry out research into the relevant historical facts.

The Expert Centre sends the factual report to the Cultural Heritage Agency, which forwards this report to the applicant.

Decision whether or not to submit a request for binding recommendation

On the basis of the factual report the parties can jointly seek to reach a satisfactory solution without applying to the Restitutions Committee. If this is not possible, they can then still jointly present the case to the Restitutions Committee for a binding recommendation.

In some cases you can submit a request for a renewed binding recommendation. If the Restitutions Committee has already issued a binding recommendation on the same case, then it is not always possible to process a request for a renewed binding recommendation. This is only possible if new facts or circumstances have come to light that may give cause for a different recommendation and that were not known when the earlier recommendation was issued. Only in these cases can a request for a renewed binding recommendation be processed.

Before submitting a request for a renewed binding recommendation you can follow the steps set out under ‘Submit a request for a binding recommendation on restitution’. This means that also in the case of a request for a renewed binding recommendation the agreement of the possessor of the object is needed in order to call in the Restitutions Committee, and that the request is submitted jointly by the applicant and the possessor.

Following a recommendation granting restitution, the parties themselves are responsible for the factual and legal transfer of the object. We recommend this process be supervised by a civil-law notary. The Dutch State bears the costs of the recommendation procedure by the Restitutions Committee; however, the Dutch State does not bear the costs for transportation, legal or administrative processing or other costs relating to the transfer.