Legal Terms

Certificate of good conduct (VOG)

Verklaring Omtrent het Gedrag (VOG)

A Certificate of Good Conduct, or 'Verklaring Omtrent het Gedrag' (VOG), is a document stating that your past criminal record does not object to you performing a specific role.

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Eligibility Rules, Document Wording, and Related Terminology: Continue from Certificate of Good Conduct (VOG)

The Certificate of Good Conduct (VOG) entry explains general usage; exceptions, authority, and applications determine how far that explanation applies.

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A Background Check for a Specific Purpose

A Verklaring Omtrent het Gedrag (VOG), often translated as a Certificate of Good Conduct, is a formal statement issued by Justis, the screening authority of the Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security. The VOG is a declaration that, based on a review of your judicial records (criminal record), there are no objections to you fulfilling a specific role or function in society. Crucially, a VOG is not a general statement of being a 'good person.' It is always issued for a specific purpose, which is stated on the certificate. For example, you might need a VOG for a new job, a volunteer position, or for certain license applications.

The screening process is purpose-specific. When an employer requests a VOG, they provide a screening profile relevant to the job. For a teacher working with children, the screening will be far more stringent and will look back further in time for different types of offenses than for an office administrator. An old offense that is irrelevant to the new role will generally not be an obstacle to receiving a VOG. For many professions, especially in childcare, education, healthcare, and finance, obtaining a VOG is a mandatory condition of employment.

VOG in the Rental Context

While the VOG is primarily an employment-related document, it has begun to appear more frequently in the Dutch rental market, particularly in the high-demand, high-price segment. Some landlords and real estate agencies, in an effort to perform maximum due diligence on potential tenants, may request a VOG as part of the application package. Their rationale is that it provides an extra layer of assurance about the character of the prospective tenant and reduces the risk of renting to someone involved in criminal activities, such as using the property for illicit purposes.

This practice is legally and ethically questionable. While a landlord has a right to vet tenants, the VOG is designed to assess suitability for a job, not for housing. There is no standard screening profile for 'being a tenant.' A landlord requesting one would likely use a general profile, but this raises privacy concerns about what information is being screened for and whether it is proportionate to the goal of securing a reliable tenant. For an expat, providing a VOG can be complicated. If you have only recently moved to the Netherlands, you won't have a Dutch judicial record to screen. In such cases, you might be asked to provide an equivalent police clearance certificate from your home country. If a VOG is requested, a tenant should question its necessity and be aware that it represents an unusually high level of scrutiny that is not standard practice across the rental market.