After giving birth, you may have a few checkups with the midwife, gynaecologist or GP. They will check if you are recovering well from childbirth or if you need additional care.

If you did not arrange for maternity care during your pregnancy, arrange it as soon as possible after the birth. The maternity nurse will support you in the first days at home. In the Netherlands it is customary to check the health and growth of your child up to age 4. This can be done at the GP's office, but most people go to a health clinic. 

Doctors and nurses work at a health clinic. Together they assess the health of all children from 0 to 4 years of age. At a health clinic, children also receive the vaccinations of the Dutch National Vaccination Program.

It is also important to make an appointment for follow-up checkups with the midwife. You can ask your GP for information.

Within 3 days of birth, you must register your baby with the municipality where your child was born. You will then receive a birth certificate. This is an important official document. You will need it, for example, to apply for child benefit.

Are you not married or in a registered partnership with your baby's other parent? Then you or your partner must acknowledge the baby at the municipality. You do this at the same time as registering your baby in the municipality. This gives you the same rights and obligations as parents. This is also called parental authority.

Het Juridisch Loket

Make sure your baby is added to your health insurance. You do not need to arrange separate health insurance for your baby. You have a few weeks to enroll your baby in your health insurance.

All parents in the Netherlands are entitled to child benefit. This is a supplement you get if you have one or more children. This is money you get from the government to pay for the cost of raising and caring for your child. Sometimes you have to apply for child benefit yourself from the Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB)

In some cases, you may be eligible for benefits, such as childcare allowance, child budget or health insurance allowance.

Preparing a will is especially important if, for example, you want to record who will take care of your child if something happens to you and the other parent. You can draw up a will at a notary's office. Het Juridisch Loket can give you more information about this.