The Dutch Monarchy

The monarchy of the Netherlands is a constitutional monarchy. As such, the role and position of the monarch are governed by the Constitution of the Netherlands. Consequently, a large portion of it is devoted to the monarch. Roughly a third of the document explains the succession, mechanisms of accession & abdication to the throne, and the roles & duties of the monarch. This includes the formalities of communication between the States-General and the monarch's role in creating laws.

The Kingdom of the Netherlands has been an independent monarchy since 16 March 1815, but its once sovereign provinces had been intermittently "governed" by members of the House of Orange-Nassau and the House of Nassau from 1559, when Philip II of Spain appointed William of Orange as stadtholder, until 1747.

William became the leader of the Dutch Revolt and the independent Dutch Republic. As a stadtholder, he was followed by several of his descendants. In 1747, the function of stadtholder became a hereditary position in all Provinces of the thus " crowned" Dutch Republic. The last stadtholder was William V.

The cycle of monarchs is described in the first section of Chapter 2 of the Constitution of the Netherlands, which is dedicated to the cabinet. Willem-Alexander has been King of the Netherlands since 30 April 2013.

Succession

The monarchy of the Netherlands passes by right of succession to the heirs of William I. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 24 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) The heir is determined through two mechanisms: absolute cognatic primogeniture and proximity of blood. The Netherlands established absolute cognatic primogeniture instead of male preference primogeniture by law in 1983. Proximity of blood limits accession to the throne to a person who is related to the current monarch within three degrees of kinship. For example, the grandchildren of Princess Margriet of the Netherlands (sister of Princess Beatrix) have no succession rights because their kinship with Beatrix when she was queen was of the fourth degree (that is, Princess Beatrix is their parent's parent's parents' daughter). Also, succession is limited to legitimate heirs, precluding a claim to the throne by children born out of wedlock. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 25 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) A special case arises if the king dies while his wife is pregnant: the unborn child is considered the heir at that point, unless stillborn – the child is then considered never to have existed. So, if the old king dies while his wife is pregnant with their first child, the unborn child is immediately considered born and immediately becomes the new king or queen. If the pregnancy ends in stillbirth, his or her reign is expunged (otherwise the existence of the stillborn king/queen would add a degree of separation for other family members to the throne and might suddenly exclude the next person in line for the throne). Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 26 (Dutch edition of WikiSource)

If the monarch is a minor, a regent is appointed and serves until the monarch comes of age. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 33 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 37 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) The regent is customarily the surviving parent of the monarch but the constitution stipulates that custody and parental authority of the minor monarch will be determined by law; any person might be appointed as regent, as legal guardian or both. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 34 (Dutch edition of WikiSource)

There are also a number of special cases within the constitution. First, if there is no heir when the monarch dies, the States-General may appoint a successor upon the suggestion of the government. This suggestion may be made before the death of the reigning monarch, even by the monarch himself (in case it is clear that the monarch will die without leaving an heir). Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 30 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) Second, some people are excluded from the line of succession. They are:

* Any heir who marries without the permission of the States-General loses the right of succession. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 28 (Dutch edition of WikiSource)
* A person who is or has become truly undesirable or unfit as monarch can be removed from the line of succession by an act of the States-General, upon suggestion of the reigning monarch. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 29 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) This clause has never been executed and is considered an "emergency exit". An example would be an heir apparent who commits treason or suffers a serious accident.

Accession

As with most monarchies, the Netherlands cannot be without a monarch – the constitution of the Netherlands does not recognize a situation in which there is no monarch. This is because there must be a head of state in order for the government to function, i.e. there must be someone who carries out the tasks of the constitutional role of the King/Queen. For this reason the new monarch assumes the role the moment the previous monarch ceases to hold the throne. The only exception is if there is no heir at all, in which case the Council of State assumes the role of the monarch pending the appointment of a monarch or regent. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Chapter 2: Government (Dutch edition of WikiSource)

The monarch is expected to execute his duties and responsibilities for the good of the nation. The monarch must therefore swear to uphold the constitution and execute the office faithfully. The monarch must be sworn in as soon as possible after assuming the throne during a joint session of the States-General held in Amsterdam. Article 32 of the Dutch constitution describes a swearing-in in "the capital Amsterdam", which incidentally is the only phrase in the constitution that names Amsterdam as the capital of the Kingdom. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 32 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) The ceremony is called the inauguration ().

The Dutch monarch is not crowned, although the crown, orb and sceptre are present at the ceremony-the monarch's swearing of the oath constitutes acceptance of the throne. Also note that this ceremony does not equal accession to the throne as this would imply a vacancy of the throne between monarchs which is not allowed. The monarch ascends immediately after the previous monarch ceases to reign. The swearing-in only constitutes acceptance in public.

End of a reign

The monarch's reign can end in two ways:

;Death: (William II, William III)
;Abdication: The monarch willingly steps down. (William I, Wilhelmina, Juliana, Beatrix)

Both these events cause the regular mechanisms of succession to go into effect. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 27 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) While the constitution mentions neither possibility explicitly, it does describe what happens after the monarch dies or abdicates. Abdication is a prerogative of the monarch, but it is also irreversible—the person abdicating cannot return to the throne, nor can a child born to a former monarch after an abdication has occurred have a claim to the throne.

The abdicated monarch is legally a Prince or Princess of the Netherlands as well as Prince or Princess of Orange-Nassau. After his or her death, legally the deceased monarch (abdicated or not) has no titles. However, after death, the abdicated monarch is traditionally referred to as king or queen again. For example, Queen Juliana became queen on 4 September 1948 and princess again on 30 April 1980 following her abdication, but has been referred to as Queen Juliana since her death on 20 March 2004.

Temporary loss of royal authority

There are two ways in which the monarch, without ceasing to be monarch, can be stripped of his or her royal authority:

;Voluntary suspension of royal authority: The monarch temporarily ceases execution of his or her office.
;Removal from royal authority: The government strips the monarch of his or her royal authority, as he or she is deemed unfit for their tasks.

These cases are both temporary (even if the monarch dies while not executing his office it still counts as temporary) and are described in detail in the constitution. A monarch can temporarily cease to reign for any reason. This can be at his own request or because the Council of Ministers deems the monarch unfit for office. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 35 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 36 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) Although there can be any reason for the monarch to cede royal authority or be removed from it, both monarch and council are deemed to act responsibly and not leave the execution of the office vacant unnecessarily. Both cases are intended to deal with emergency situations such as physical or mental inability to execute the office of monarch.

In both cases an act of the joint States-General is needed to strip the monarch of authority. In the case of the monarch ceding royal authority, the required act is a law. In case of removal, it is a declaration by the States-General. Formally, both require the normal procedure for passing a new law in the Netherlands. The former case is signed into law by the monarch himself, the latter is not, so technically it is not a law (this is allowed explicitly in the constitution, since the monarch who is being stripped of his authority will probably not agree to signing the act of his removal, and—in the case of the States-General removing a monarch who has become unfit due to mental or physical incapacitation—may not be able to).

Since neither ceding nor removal is permanent, neither triggers succession. Instead the States-General appoint a regent. This must be the heir apparent if he or she is old enough. In order for the monarch to resume his duties, a law (which is signed by the regent) must be passed to that effect. The monarch resumes the throne the moment the law of his return is made public.

The monarch and the government

Although the monarch has roles and duties in all parts of the government and in several important places in the rest of society, the primary role of the monarch is within the executive branch of the Dutch government: the monarch is part of the government of the Netherlands.

The role of the monarch within the government of the Netherlands is described in Article 42 of the constitution: Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 42 (Dutch edition of WikiSource)

This article is the basis of the full power and influence of the monarch and makes him beyond reproach before the law, but also limits his practical power, as he can take no responsibility for it.

The first paragraph of Article 42 determines that the government of the Netherlands consists of the monarch and his ministers. The monarch is according to this article not the head of government; the ministers are not answerable to the monarch within the government. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 46 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 45 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) There is no distinction, no dichotomy, no segregation or separation: the monarch and his ministers ''are'' the government and the government is one.

This fact has practical consequences, in that it is not possible for the monarch and the ministers to be in disagreement. The government speaks with one voice and makes decisions as a united body. When the monarch acts in an executive capacity, he does so as representative of the united government. And when the government decides, the monarch is in agreement (even if the monarch personally disagrees). As an ultimate consequence of this, it is not possible for the monarch to refuse to sign into law a proposal of law that has been agreed to and signed by the responsible minister. Such a disagreement between the monarch and his minister is a situation not covered by the constitution and is automatically a constitutional crisis.

The second paragraph of the article, though, is what really renders the monarch powerless. This paragraph states that the monarch is inviolate. He is beyond any reproach, beyond the grasp of any prosecution (criminal or otherwise) for any acts committed or actions taken as monarch. If anything goes wrong, the minister responsible for the topic at hand is responsible for the failings of the monarch. This sounds like it makes the monarch an absolute tyrant, but in fact the opposite is true: since the ministers are responsible, they also have the authority to make the decisions. The ministers set the course of the government and the country, the ministers make executive decisions and run the affairs of state. And since the government is one, the monarch abides by the decision of the ministers. In fact the monarchs of the Netherlands rarely make any executive decisions at all and practically never speak in public on any subject other than to read a statement prepared by the Prime Minister (since an unfortunate off-the-cuff remark could get a minister into trouble). The practical consequence of this limit on the power of the monarch is that the monarch never makes a decision on his own. Every decision, every decree must be countersigned by the responsible minister(s).

The monarch and the law of the land

Technically, the monarch has a lot of practical power. For instance, no proposal of law actually becomes a law until signed by the monarch – and there is no legal requirement for the monarch to sign. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 87 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) In practice, the monarch will always give assent since most proposals of law are made by the government "by or on behalf of the King". Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 82 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) And while proposals of law must be ''approved'' by the States-General, a lot of the practical running of the country is done by royal decree (in Dutch: ''Koninklijk Besluit''). These royal decrees are used for all sorts of things, ranging from appointments of civil servants and military officers to clarifications of how public policy is to be executed to filling in the details of certain laws. Royal decrees create ministries, Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 44 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) dissolve the houses of the States-General, Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 64 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) and appoint & fire ministers. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 43 (Dutch edition of WikiSource)

However, royal decrees are made by the responsible minister. And while the monarch must sign laws and royal decrees before they come into effect, the constitution determines that the responsible ministers and state secretaries must countersign. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 47 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) That, given the fact that the ministers have the authority, really means that they decide and it is the monarch who countersigns (the minister asks the monarch for permission, that is, royal authority, and as upholder of the Constitution, the monarch signs first; the minister is politically responsible for the Act and countersigns. This is an Act of the Crown: monarch and minister together). Even that is a formality. Also, while the monarch may technically propose laws ("by or on behalf of the King"), ministerial responsibility means that he never does. And even though the government may refuse to sign a States-General approved proposal into law, this is practically unheard of and the monarch refusing to sign on his own is even rarer (and would cause a constitutional crisis).

There is one special case in which the monarch has, if possible, even less power than normal: the appointment of his ministers. Ministers are appointed by royal decree, which have to be countersigned by the responsible minister. The royal decree to appoint a minister, however, is countersigned by ''two'' responsible ministers rather than one: the outgoing minister responsible for the ministry and the Prime Minister. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 48 (Dutch edition of WikiSource)

Formation of the government

Though the powers of the monarch of the Netherlands are limited, he or she does not have a ceremonial role. The monarch has a role relating to the formation of a new government after parliamentary elections. This power is not directed in the constitution.

After the parliamentary election there follows a period of time in which the leaders of the political parties in parliament seek to form a coalition of parties that can command a majority of the newly elected parliament. The current nationwide party-list system, combined with a low threshold for getting a seat (two-thirds of one percent of the vote), makes it all but impossible for one party to win an outright majority. Thus, the bargaining required to put together a governing coalition is as important as the election itself.

This process of negotiations, which can last anywhere from two to four months (more on occasion), is coordinated in the initial stages by one or more informateurs, whose duty it is to investigate and report upon viable coalitions. After a likely combination is found, a formateur is appointed to conduct the formal coalition negotiations and form a new Council of Ministers (of which the formateur himself usually becomes the Prime Minister). If the negotiations fail, the cycle starts over. The informateurs and formateur in question are all appointed to this task by the monarch. The monarch makes his own decision in this, based on advice from the leaders of the different parties in parliament, as well as other important figures (the speakers of the new parliament and the senate are among them).

There is usually some popular discussion in the Netherlands around the time of these negotiations about whether the authority of the monarch in this matter should not be limited and whether or not the newly elected parliament should not make the appointments that the monarch makes. These discussions usually turn (to varying degrees) on the argument that decision by a monarch is undemocratic and there is no parliamentary oversight over the decision and the monarch might make use of this to push for a government of his or her liking.

On the other hand, it is somewhat questionable that the monarch really has much opportunity here to exert any influence. The informateur is there to investigate possible coalitions and report on them. He could technically seek "favorable" coalitions, but the political parties involved are usually quite clear on what they want and do not want and the first choice for coalition almost always is the coalition of preference of the largest party in the new parliament. Besides, the monarchs and (particularly) the queens have traditionally known better than to appoint controversial informateurs, usually settling for well-established yet fairly neutral people in the political arena (the deputy chairman of the Dutch Council of State is a common choice). Once a potential coalition has been identified the monarch technically has a free rein in selecting a formateur. However, the formateur almost always become the next Prime Minister, and in any case it is a strong convention that a government must command the support of a majority of the House of Representatives in order to stay in office. These considerations mean that the selected formateur is always the party leader of the largest party in the potential coalition.

However, in March 2012 the States-General altered its own procedures, such that any subsequent government formation is done without the monarch's influence. No more than a month later, the government coalition collapsed, triggering early elections in September 2012. As no formal procedures had been outlined as to how a government formation without monarch should take place, it was initially feared the subsequent government formation would be chaotic. However, a new government coalition was formed within 54 days – surprisingly early for Dutch standards. Instead of the monarch, the Speaker of the House of Representatives appointed the informateur – whose function was renamed to 'scout'. After the negotiations, the installation ceremony of ministers – the only duty still left to the monarch – was held in public for the first time in history.

The monarch and the States-General

The one branch of government over which the monarch has no control is the legislative branch, formed by the States-General of the Netherlands. This parliamentary body consists of two chambers, the ''House of Representatives'' (also commonly referred to as ''Parliament'') and the '' Senate''. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 51 (Dutch edition of WikiSource)

As in most parliamentary democracies the States-General are dually responsible for overseeing the government in its executive duties as well as approving proposals of law before they can become as such. In this respect, it is vital for the government to maintain good relations with the States-General and technically the monarch shares in that effort (although the monarch never officially speaks to members of the States-General on policy matters due to ministerial responsibility).

Constitutionally, the monarch deals with the States-General in three areas: lawmaking, policy outlining at the opening of the parliamentary year and dissolution.

Of the three, policy outlining is the most straightforward. The parliamentary year is opened on the third Tuesday of September with a joint session of both houses. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 65 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) At this occasion the monarch addresses the joint states in a speech in which he sets forth the outlines for his government's policies for the coming year (the speech itself is prepared by the ministers, their ministries and finally crafted and approved by the prime minister). This event is mandated by the constitution in Article 65. Tradition has made more of this occasion than a policy speech though, and the event known as ''Prinsjesdag'' has become a large affair with much pomp and circumstance, in which the States-General and other major bodies of government assemble in the ''Ridderzaal'' to hear the King deliver the speech from the throne after having arrived from the Noordeinde Palace in his golden carriage. Both in constitutional aspects and in ceremony the event has much in common with both the British State Opening of Parliament and the American State of the Union.

Lawmaking is the area in which the monarch has the most frequent involvement with the States-General (although he still has very little to do with it in practice). Laws in the Netherlands are primarily proposed by the government "by or on behalf of" the monarch (this phrase is repeated often in the constitution). Technically, this means that the monarch may propose laws in person, hearkening back to the days of the first monarchs of the Netherlands when monarchs really could and did control this. However, this possibility is at odds with ministerial responsibility and modern monarchs have always avoided the issue by never proposing laws personally. The monarch must still sign proposals into law though, as historical deference to the fact that the law of the land is decreed by the monarch.

While the king has no practical involvement anymore in lawmaking other than a signature at the end, one might get a different impression from reading the communications between the government and the States-General regarding such affairs. All communication from the States-General to the government is addressed to the monarch and correspondence in the opposite direction formally from the monarch (it is also signed by the monarch, without a ministerial countersignature – such communication is not a decision or decree, so does not require a countersignature). The formal language still shows deference to the position of the monarch, with a refusal of the States-General to approve a proposal of law for example becoming "a request to the King to reconsider the proposal". The constitution prescribes a number of the forms used: Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article XIX (Dutch edition of WikiSource)

* If the government accepts a proposal of law and signs it into law, the language is that "The King accedes to the proposal".
* If the government refuses a proposal of law, the language is that "The King shall keep the proposal under advisement".

A law, once passed, is formulated in such a way as to be decreed by the monarch.

The final involvement of the monarch with the States is dissolution. Constitutionally, the government is empowered to dissolve either house of the states by royal decree. This means that a minister (usually the prime minister) makes the decision and the monarch countersigns. The signing of such a royal decree constitutionally implies new elections for the house in question and the formation of a new house within three months of dissolution.

The constitution prescribes a number of cases in which one or more houses of the States are dissolved (particularly for changes to the constitution); this is always done by royal decree. In addition, traditionally a collapse of the government is followed by dissolution of the House of Representatives and general elections. Before World War II, before it became common to form new governments with each new parliament, it would happen from time to time that a Council of Ministers found itself suddenly facing a new and unfriendly parliament. When the inevitable clash came, it was an established political trick for the Prime Minister to attempt to resolve the problem by dissolving the parliament in name of the monarch in the hope that new elections brought a more favorable parliament (but it was also possible for the trick to backfire, in which case the new, equally hostile and far more angry parliament would suspend the budget to force the resignation of the government).

Even though the monarch never speaks with members of the States-General formally, it was tradition until 1999 that the queen would invite the members of parliament a few times a year for informal talks about the general state of affairs in the country. These conversations were held in the strictest confidence due to ministerial responsibility. The tradition was suspended in 1999 though, after repeated incidents in which MPs divulged the contents of the conversations, despite agreeing not to (and embarrassing the Prime Minister in doing so). In 2009, an attempt was made to resume the tradition, but this failed when Arend Jan Boekestijn resumed the tradition of revealing the contents of his conversation with Queen Beatrix anyway.

Other functions of the monarch

The monarch has several functions in addition to the duties and responsibilities described in previous sections. Some of these are (partly) constitutional; others are more traditional in nature.

The monarch is the head of state of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. As such, the monarch is the face of the kingdom toward the world: ambassadors of the Netherlands are emissaries of the monarch, foreign ambassadors represent foreign heads of state to the monarch. It is the monarch that makes official state visits to foreign heads of state as representative of the Netherlands. He or She represents the monarch whose face is shown on Dutch stamps and Dutch euro coins.

Constitutionally, the monarch is the head of the Dutch Council of State. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 74 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) The council is a constitutional body of the Netherlands that serves two purposes. First, it is an advisory council to the government which advises on the desirability, practicability and constitutionality of new proposals of law.

Second, it is the Supreme court for the Netherlands in matters of administrative law. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 73 (Dutch edition of WikiSource) The position of the monarch as constitutional head of this Council means two things for the constitutional position of the monarch:

# The monarch is constitutionally and directly involved with practically all aspects of lawmaking except approval by the States-General (which is representative of the electorate). From inception of the law through proposal to the States to finally signing into law, the monarch is involved. This involvement is derived from the days when the monarch was an absolute ruler and really made law. Originally, with the creation of the first constitutions, the monarchs strove to maintain power by maximum involvement with all aspects of lawmaking. Over time this has grown into a more advisory role.
# The monarch is constitutionally involved with at least part of the judicial branch of government as well.

The role played by the monarch in the council is largely theoretical due to ministerial responsibility. While the monarch is officially chairman of the council, in practice the king never votes in Council meetings and always turns over his responsibility as chair of the meetings to the deputy head of the council. He is still presumed to be part of the discussions, though.

Despite the limitations on the role the monarch may play in the council, his involvement is seen as valuable due to the experience and knowledge that a monarch accrues over the years. Reciprocally, being part of the Council deliberations is considered invaluable training and preparation for the role of monarch, which is why the heir-apparent is constitutionally an observer-member of the council from the time he comes of age.

The monarch is also the Grand Master of the Dutch orders of knighthoods: the Order of Orange-Nassau,Wet instelling van de Orde van Oranje-Nassau
law regarding the Order of Orange-Nassau, Article 3 the Order of the Netherlands LionWet instelling van de Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw
law regarding the Order of the Dutch Lion, Article 3, par. 1 and the Military William Order.Wet instelling Militaire Willems-Orde
law regarding the Military William Order, Article 3

Lastly, the monarch plays a prominent but equally unofficial role in the running of the country as advisor and confidant to the government. This duty traditionally takes the form of a weekly meeting between the Prime Minister and the monarch in which they discuss government affairs of the week, the plans of the cabinet and so on. It is assumed that the monarch exerts most of his influence (such as it is) in these meetings, in that he can bring his knowledge and experience to bear in what he tells the Prime Minister. In the case of Queen Beatrix, several former Prime Ministers have remarked that her case knowledge of each and every dossier is extensive and that she makes sure to be fully aware of all the details surrounding everything that arrives on her desk.

Perhaps somewhat surprisingly for a monarchy, the monarch is not nominally the commander-in-chief of the military of the Netherlands. He was until 1983, but a large overhaul of the constitution that year shifted supreme command of the armed forces to the government as a whole. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 97 (Dutch edition of WikiSource)

Remuneration and privileges

Stipend

Article 40 of the constitution states that the monarch is to receive an annual stipend from the kingdom (in other words wages, except that it cannot be called that since it implies the monarch is employed by the government, but rather it is the opposite). The exact rules surrounding these stipends are to be determined by law, as is the list of members of the royal house who also receive them. Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Article 40 (Dutch edition of WikiSource)

Under current Dutch law the monarch receives their annual stipend which is part of the annual budget, as do the heir-apparent (if of age), the spouse of the monarch, the spouse of the heir-apparent, the former monarch, and the spouse of the former monarch.Wet financieel statuut van het Koninklijk Huis
Law on the financial statute of the royal house In practice, as of June 2019, this means King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima, and Princess Beatrix. The monarch receives this stipend constitutionally, the others because they are not allowed to work for anybody due to their positions. For example, the recipients of royal stipends in 2009 were Queen Beatrix (€813,000), Prince Willem-Alexander (the heir-apparent; €241,000) and Princess Máxima (€241,000)).
Argumentation for the law setting the royal house budget for the year 2009
For 2017 the stipends were; for the King €888,000, for the Queen €352,000, and for Princess Beatrix €502,000. These personal stipends are in addition to an allowance for each of those named to meet official expenditure, these were set at €4.6 million for the King, €606,000 for the Queen and just over €1 million for Princess Beatrix.

This stipend is linked to the development of the wages of Dutch civil servants. At the beginning of 2009 there was some upset in the parliament about the cost of the royal house and the lack of insight into the structure of those costs. At the insistence of the parliament the development of the stipends of the royal house members was then linked to the development of the salaries of the Dutch civil servants. During 2009 it was agreed collectively that the civil servants would receive a pay increase of 1%. In September 2009, at the first budget debate in parliament during the economic crisis, it was pointed out to the parliament that their earlier decision meant that the stipend to the queen would now also increase. This in turn was reason for the parliament to be displeased again.

Royal privileges

Under the constitution, royal house members receiving a stipend are exempt from income tax over that stipend. They are also exempt from all personal taxes over assets and possessions that they use or need in the execution of their functions for the kingdom. The monarch and the heir-apparent are exempt from inheritance tax on inheritances received from members of the royal house.

The monarch has the use of Huis ten Bosch as a residence and Noordeinde Palace as a work palace. In addition the Royal Palace of Amsterdam is also at the disposal of the monarch (although it is only used for state visits and is open to the public when not in use for that purpose), as is Soestdijk Palace (which is open to the public and not in official use at all at this time).Wet op het Kroondomein
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The monarch has the use of an airplane and a train for state visits (although the airplane is not exclusively reserved for the monarch anymore and the train spends most of its time on display at the Dutch Railway Museum). The monarch also has a small fleet of cars available, on which he may display the royal standard.

The monarch is protected by law against lèse-majesty. This is actively enforced, although the sentences tend to be light. . According to Dutch TV, in total 18 prosecutions were brought under the law between 2000 and 2012, half of which resulted in convictions.

Positions of other members of the royal house and royal family

The royal family has become quite extensive since the birth of Queen Juliana's children. By consequence so has the Dutch royal house (nominally the collection of persons in line for the throne and their spouses), to the extent that membership of the royal house was limited by a change in the law in 2002.Wet lidmaatschap koninklijk huis
Law on membership and titles of the Dutch royal house

Despite being a large clan, the family as a whole has very little to do officially with Dutch government or the running of the Netherlands. Constitutionally, an important role is played by the monarch. The heir-apparent is deemed to be preparing for an eventual ascent to the throne, so there are some limited tasks and a number of limits on them (particularly he/she cannot hold a paying job, since this might lead to entanglements later on). Since neither the monarch nor the heir-apparent may hold jobs, they receive a stipend from the government. Their spouses are similarly forbidden from earning an income and receive a stipend as well. But constitutionally that is the whole of the involvement of the royal family with the Dutch government.

In particular, members of the royal house other than the monarch and the heir-apparent have no official tasks within the Dutch government and do not receive stipends. They are responsible for their own conduct and their own income. They may be asked to stand in from time to time such as to accompany the monarch on a state visit if the consort is ill, but this is always a personal favor and not an official duty. In addition, they are not exempt from taxation.

Many members of the royal family hold (or have held) significant positions within civil societys, patron of the arts and similar endeavors. Some members of the royal family are also (or have been) avid supporters of some personal cause; Prince Bernhard for instance was always passionate about the treatment of World War II veterans and Princess Margriet (who was born in Canada) has a special relationship with Canadian veterans specifically. As a rule of thumb, the members of the royal family who are contemporaries of Princess Beatrix tend to hold civil society positions as a primary occupation whereas younger family members hold these positions in conjunction with a regular, paying job. A notable exception to this rule is Pieter van Vollenhoven (husband to Princess Margriet), who was chairman of the Dutch Safety Board