Constitution of 2022/2023

Constitutional Amendments of 2022 and 2023

Since the major revision of the Constitution in 1983, the Constitution has been amended several times. The most recent revision took place in 2022 and 2023. It involved the addition of a general provision and a number of minor (editorial) adjustments. The most notable change is the provision allowing Dutch nationals living abroad to influence the composition of the Senate (Eerste Kamer) via an electoral college.

An overview of the amendments that came into effect in 2022:

• inclusion of a general provision preceding Article 1 stating that the Constitution safeguards democracy and the rule of law
• Article 13: modernization of the provision on the secrecy of correspondence, replacing terms such as 'telegraph' with 'telecommunications'
• Article 17: inclusion of a provision stating that everyone has the right to a fair trial
• Article 55: granting Dutch nationals living abroad the right to vote for the Senate via an electoral college
• Article 137: clarification or 'recalibration' of the procedure for amending the Constitution.

Several obsolete transitional provisions were also repealed.

Finally, in January 2023, the Senate concluded the second reading of an amendment to the prohibitions on discrimination in Article 1. 'Disability' and 'sexual orientation' were added as grounds for non-discrimination.