As an English-language news source for internationals in the Netherlands, it is our job to warn you against practices like this one.
A company called myStudentFinance has been charging international students a commission to apply for studiefinanciering (student financial aid) on their behalf.
Dienst Uitvoering Onderwijs (DUO) is responsible for handing out financial aid to eligible international students who are EU citizens. You apply directly to DUO, and the application is completely free.
However, according to NOS, approximately 350 international students have already paid myStudentFinance to apply for them.
It’s daunting to move to a new country as a young person. It’s even more daunting to be faced with bureaucratic hurdles upon arrival. But to let a company exploit your confusion? That’s a no-go.
Here’s how the business model works
The company in question, myStudentFinance, is run by an international student (with a guilty conscience?).
Promising how wonderful life could be with up to an extra €1,300 per month, the company positions itself as a “coach” or “guide” for broke students. The business plan relies on the omission of one simple fact: DUO’s applications are free.
READ MORE | Student loans, financing, and scholarships in the Netherlands in 2026
The company lets students authorise it to handle their student financing application to DUO. In return, it takes around 60% of the first payment they receive.
Because the process for EU students typically takes longer, the first payment usually covers four or five months of backdated aid, at about €324.52 per month.
That means the commission can run into the hundreds of euros.
It’s not illegal
After a handful of student complaints and a bank flagging suspicious DUO transactions, DUO filed a police report to have the practice investigated.
As it turns out, myStudentFinance operates well within the law. The Public Prosecution Service declared the gimmick was not criminal, just “morally reprehensible.”
“There are very few tools left to prevent this,” DUO spokesperson Bert Viel tells NOS. “All we can really do is make it clear that the application is free,” he added.
What’s happening now?
DUO and Logius (the organisation behind DigiD, the Dutch digital identity system) cancelled the company’s active authorisations. But the students simply reactivated them.
DUO then sent letters to around 100 students explaining that the process is free.
MyStudentFinance responded by reminding those students of the contracts they had signed and is now considering legal action against DUO.
For now, DUO is working with the Ministry of Education to explore whether legislation can close the loopholes that make this possible, including the rule that allows student finance to be paid directly into a third party’s account.
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I want to apply for scholarships can you help me please