Written by Ömür Arslan, attorney at Arslan Advocaten, practising social security law. Registered in the Netherlands Bar’s register of legal practice areas for tenancy law and social security law.
Nederlands: Lees dit artikel in het Nederlands: UWV beslist te laat over uw WIA of bezwaar: wat kunt u doen?
Türkçe: Bu makaleyi Türkçe okuyun: UWV, WIA başvurunuz veya itirazınız hakkında geç karar veriyor: ne yapabilirsiniz?
Have you been waiting longer than permitted for a decision from UWV, the Dutch employee insurance agency? First check which decision period applies and whether it has been validly extended or suspended. If UWV is too late, you can send a written notice of default (ingebrekestelling). If a decision still does not follow, a penalty payment (dwangsom) and an appeal for failure to decide on time may come into play. Arrange a possible advance payment or other temporary income separately.
A late decision can mean that you do not know how you will pay next month’s rent. Nevertheless, two problems call for a different approach: the absence of a decision and the absence of income. A report about the delay does not in itself produce a WIA (incapacity benefit) payment. Conversely, an advance payment does not replace the final assessment.
Does it concern your application or an objection?
With a first WIA application, UWV still has to establish whether you meet the conditions and which benefit applies. With an objection, there is already a decision that you are challenging. The procedure, the start of the time limit and the documents therefore differ. Note clearly at the top of your file which stage is involved.
For an application, collect the confirmation of your application, the expected end date of the waiting period and all letters about missing information. For an objection, you will also need the original decision, your notice of objection and the acknowledgement of receipt. A letter about a medical appointment is not the same as a decision on the application or the objection.
Also check whether UWV really still has to decide. Sometimes a decision is available digitally while someone is only waiting for post on paper. In other cases a medical report has been received, but a formal decision is still missing. That difference determines whether a notice of default makes sense or whether, on the contrary, a period for objection or appeal is already running.
Which time limit applies to a decision on an objection?
For objections, UWV usually states thirteen weeks, and seventeen weeks where a doctor or labour expert is involved. A different decision period applies to the special route under the Sickness Benefits Act (Ziektewet) with an objection period of two weeks. Moreover, the time limit is not simply calculated from the day on which you send your letter. See UWV’s current explanation of decision periods.
So draw up a timeline with the date of the original decision, the end of the objection period, the receipt of your objection and any additional periods. If anything is unclear, ask UWV for its calculation. A date mentioned over the telephone may be a planning date, whereas what you want to know is when the statutory time limit expires.
A shortage of insurance doctors may explain why it is taking longer, but it does not automatically answer the legal question of whether every further delay is permitted. Have it assessed on which legal basis UWV is taking extra time. Keep every letter announcing a postponement; the exact wording and the date of dispatch may be relevant.
Postponement, suspension and an incomplete file
If UWV asks for necessary additional information, this may affect the time limit. Your own request for extra time to submit the grounds of objection may also have an effect. It is therefore too simplistic to count only the number of calendar weeks that have passed. Look at which periods count and which do not.
Check whether a request for information reached you and was sufficiently clear. Did you know which information was missing and by what date you had to submit it? If you have already sent the documents, proof of receipt is important. Otherwise a lost document may wrongly remain recorded as missing information.
Has UWV asked for your consent to a further postponement? Then read what it is for and until when. An agreement to reschedule a medical appointment is not automatically consent to unlimited delay. Preferably make a specific arrangement and ask what the postponement means for the decision and for any income support.
First make targeted contact
Ask about the status of the case, the department responsible and the expected next step. State your application or objection reference. A targeted question such as ‘which information is still missing for the decision?’ often achieves more than simply reporting that you have been waiting a long time.
Explain urgent circumstances straight away. Are your wages stopping, is an advance payment about to end or are you at risk of payment arrears? State dates and amounts and ask which solution UWV can look into. Confirm important arrangements in writing. A promise that someone will call you back is not yet an arrangement about payment.
Informal contact can solve an administrative problem, but it does not replace a formal step when one is needed. So do not keep waiting again and again without an end date. Agree when you can expect a response and, in addition, assess whether the decision period has already expired.
What is a notice of default to UWV?
With a notice of default, you make it clear that in your view the decision period has expired and that you still require a decision. UWV calls this a report of a late decision. State which application or objection it concerns and why you consider that the time limit has passed. Make sure that the message demonstrably reaches UWV.
UWV has a form for this and describes which information is needed. Use the current address and the current sending instructions. Keep the document you sent and the details of receipt. A general complaint about the service is not always recognised as a notice of default, particularly if it is not clear which decision has not been taken.
Do not send the notice of default too early. If the decision period is still running, the notice may miss its intended effect. A different route also applies once a decision has already been taken. You must then assess the content of the decision and, if necessary, lodge an objection or appeal in time.
Penalty payment: a financial incentive to decide
If no timely decision is taken after a valid notice of default, an administrative penalty payment may become due under the applicable conditions. UWV currently describes an amount that increases per day, capped at a maximum of six weeks and a maximum of € 1,442. The additional period after receipt of the notice of default is important here. UWV explains the report and the penalty payment.
A penalty payment is not a substitute for your benefit. The amount also says nothing about whether you will receive WIA. You may therefore ultimately receive a refusal while UWV does owe a penalty payment because of the delay. Keep these flows of money and decisions separate in your records.
Nor should you assume that your financial loss will automatically be compensated in full. Extra interest costs, lost income and other damage require a separate legal assessment. Keep evidence of specific damage, but do not automatically regard every expense incurred while waiting as a compensable item of loss.
Appeal for failure to decide on time
If the decision is still not taken after the required steps have been taken, an appeal for failure to decide on time may be possible. The administrative court then assesses the delay. That procedure differs from an appeal against a refusal on the merits: the court does not yet have to determine that you are entitled to WIA.
Enclose the application or objection, acknowledgements of receipt, relevant postponement letters and the notice of default with proof of receipt. Explain in a few paragraphs which time limit you are applying and why it has expired. A clear chronology helps the district court to assess what is still outstanding.
The court can order UWV to decide within a certain period and attach a court-imposed penalty payment to that order. Which period is appropriate depends on the case. So do not promise yourself a decision within a fixed number of days after lodging the appeal. The judgment and the specific circumstances are decisive.
Advance payment with a WIA application
Ask UWV in good time whether an advance payment is possible if the WIA assessment is not ready around the time your wages or sickness benefit end. An advance payment can bridge the waiting period financially. Have it recorded in writing which period it covers and which information determines the amount.
Also discuss what happens in the event of a lower benefit or a refusal. Special implementation policy exists for certain WIA advance payments; this must not be confused with a general rule that advance payments never have to be repaid. The current conditions and your own decision on the advance payment must be checked.
Report work, income and other relevant changes in accordance with the instructions. An advance payment is no reason to hold back information for the time being. If it overlaps with wages, WW (unemployment benefit) or social assistance benefit, ask how set-off takes place. This prevents a solution for today from causing a recovery claim later.
When is interim relief useful?
If a decision on the merits affects your income and an objection or appeal is pending, a temporary decision from the court (voorlopige voorziening) can be requested in urgent cases. In the event of delay as well, careful consideration must be given to which procedure and which temporary measure are appropriate. Merely submitting a complaint does not create pending objection or appeal proceedings.
Substantiate why waiting would have unacceptable consequences. Think of current bank balances, essential expenses, medical costs and specific payment reminders. Also provide insight into a partner’s income and other available resources where relevant. Leaving out an account can make the picture unreliable.
The Dutch judiciary (Rechtspraak) describes the conditions for interim relief. Urgent proceedings offer no guarantee of payment. So at the same time discuss practical measures, such as a payment arrangement and looking into other income support.
Example: the medical appointment is postponed again
An employee reaches the end of the period during which the employer pays wages. The WIA application has been submitted, but the appointment with the insurance doctor is postponed. The employee calls several times and is given a new expected date each time. There is not yet a clear written arrangement about an advance payment.
In this fictitious example, the confirmation of the application and the postponement letters must be assessed first. In addition, a separate question needs to be asked about income from the day on which the wages stop. If the decision period has expired, a notice of default may be appropriate. The missing medical assessment and the financial hardship are therefore both made concrete.
If the person’s health changes during the waiting period, that is also relevant information. Record what already existed on the date to which the WIA assessment relates and what only changed later. A long waiting period must not lead to an unclear medical file in which different moments become mixed up.
What if UWV decides after all during the proceedings?
Read a new decision immediately, even if you expect your lawyer or the court to receive it automatically. A decision can affect the proceedings about the delay and at the same time give grounds for an objection or appeal on the merits. Discuss which steps are still needed and which time limits will start to run.
Also check whether a decision has been taken on the penalty payment and whether the benefit awarded is being paid retroactively from the correct date. A decision that is favourable on the merits may still contain an incorrect amount or an incorrect start date. Compare the decision with the payment statement.
Do not withdraw proceedings merely because someone says over the telephone that everything will be sorted out. First ask exactly what is being awarded, when payment will follow and how any costs will be dealt with. A written, verifiable solution prevents new uncertainty.
Make a timeline of time limits and postponements
A timeline helps to establish whether UWV is legally too late. Do not start only with your first telephone call, but with the formal application or the notice of objection. Then add every letter about receipt, missing information and postponement.
| Event | What do you record? | Why? |
|---|---|---|
| Application or objection submitted | Date, reference and proof of receipt. | This partly determines which decision route must be followed. |
| Request for additional information | Date of dispatch, documents requested and time limit for responding. | A missing document may affect the calculation of the time limit. |
| Information supplemented | Your response with enclosures and acknowledgement of receipt. | This shows when UWV was able to continue handling the case. |
| Notice of postponement | The reason, duration and any consent. | Not every delay has the same legal significance. |
| Notice of default received | Proof of receipt by UWV. | This is relevant for the next steps for failure to decide on time. |
Keep a medical appointment separate from the statutory decision period. The fact that an examination has been scheduled does not automatically mean that the decision period starts again. Conversely, a suspension that genuinely applies may be relevant, even if you have not yet had an examination appointment.
If a notice of postponement is unclear, ask for the specific end date and the legal reason. This gives you an answer that is easier to verify than an answer to the question of when you will finally hear something. Briefly confirm verbal arrangements in writing.
A complaint and a notice of default serve different purposes
A complaint may concern accessibility, unclear communication or the way in which your file is being handled. A notice of default is aimed at the absence of a decision after the applicable time limit has expired. A complaint is therefore not automatically a substitute for the formal step required to challenge a late decision.
Use a clear subject line in your correspondence and state which decision is missing. If you want to raise both issues, set them out separately. This prevents a letter about your financial hardship from being treated solely as a complaint while you also require a decision.
Then keep not only the letter you sent, but also the acknowledgement of receipt and every substantive response. Those documents help to assess whether UWV has decided after all or has merely announced that it will be in touch later.
State specifically which decision is still missing
A letter about a late decision becomes clearer if you state precisely which decision is outstanding. For example, state that you are waiting for the decision on your WIA application of a certain date, with the corresponding reference. If you have also objected to another decision, keep that separate.
Enclose not only medical information, but also the confirmation of application or receipt. This shows which request is pending. If UWV states that information is still missing, ask which information that is and why the earlier documents are not sufficient.
A request for progress and a formal notice of default must be recognisable as such. Use the appropriate procedure and keep a copy. This makes it possible to check later which response you required and when UWV received it.
Frequently asked questions
Is every postponement letter from UWV valid?
That does not follow from the mere existence of the letter. The legal basis, timing and duration must fit within the applicable rules. Keep the letter and have the full calculation of the time limit reviewed. An expected handling date is not always a statutory end date.
Can I go straight to court if UWV is too late?
Usually UWV must first have been validly given notice of default, and the applicable period must then have expired. There are exceptions, but they require a separate assessment. Without proper preparation, an appeal may be premature.
Does a notice of default guarantee that I will receive WIA?
No. The notice of default concerns the taking of a decision. The entitlement to WIA is assessed on the merits on the basis of the statutory conditions. A quick refusal and a late award are legally different outcomes.
Does the penalty payment count as my monthly benefit?
No, it is a separate payment for the delay. Do not assume that the amount will make up for your entire loss of income. Apply separately for an advance payment or other temporary support and take possible set-offs into account.
Should I submit a complaint or lodge an objection?
A complaint concerns the way in which you are treated. An objection is directed against a decision. Where a decision is missing, a notice of default followed by an appeal for failure to decide on time may be appropriate. Sometimes different routes run side by side.
Which documents does a lawyer need?
Above all the application or objection, acknowledgements of receipt, postponement letters and all correspondence about the planning. If you are in financial difficulty, add recent financial documents. With this information, the time limit, the stage on the merits and possible urgent measures can be distinguished.
Help with an outstanding UWV decision
Would you like to know whether UWV is too late in your case and which step can be effective? Submit your letters to Arslan Advocaten. Also state when your current income will stop. Discuss the costs in advance and which procedure is actually needed.
Also read about objecting to UWV decisions, the WIA benefit and appealing against UWV. Keep your file up to date while you wait: a new letter may contain both a solution and a new time limit for responding.
Read also
Benefit stopped and no income during the objection: interim relief against UWV
Ill during WW: from unemployment benefit to the Sickness Benefits Act
Engaging a medical expert in a UWV case: when does an expert report help?
