Around 9% of the 9,230 people currently in Dutch custody have no legal right to be in the country, new figures show. The Netherlands’ only prison for foreign offenders has run at more than 99% capacity for six months, with all 443 cells occupied, Acting Justice State Secretary Arno Rutte (VVD) confirmed.
More than 800 detainees without valid residence permits are held nationwide — including rejected asylum seekers, people with expired visas, and EU citizens declared “undesirable.” Detention costs average €399 per prisoner per day, putting the daily bill for foreign nationals near €300,000.
The numbers come amid a series of serious crimes. In one case, a rejected Palestinian asylum seeker was sentenced to 18 years for fatally stabbing a 70-year-old woman in Groningen in 2023.
The Justice Ministry denies offenders can evade punishment, while admitting the wider prison shortage is driven by staff gaps. Ministers are studying options from extra cells to a detention vessel. Rutte will update parliament later this year.
