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A dispute over additional work (meerwerk) with a Dutch contractor usually turns on one rule: a contractor can only charge a higher price for additions or changes the client wanted if it warned the client in time that the price would go up, unless the client should have understood that itself (Article 7:755 Dutch Civil Code). Before you pay or refuse an additional-work invoice, have your position checked against the contract and that rule.
This page is for foreign developers, investors, manufacturers and companies that build or renovate in the Netherlands, and for contractors working for them. You will read what counts as additional work, when a contractor may charge it, what the Supreme Court decided in 2022, how the UAV 2012 deals with changes, what you can do with a disputed invoice and how such disputes are settled. For disputes with a contractor in general, see our page on a dispute with a Dutch contractor.
What counts as additional work under Dutch law?
Additional work is work that the client wants on top of, or instead of, the agreed work: additions or changes to the work after the contract was signed (Article 7:755 Dutch Civil Code). Whether an item is additional depends on what the contract, the specifications and the drawings include.
A construction contract under Dutch law is a contract for work: the contractor undertakes to build and deliver a work of a material nature for a price in money (Article 7:750). Additional work must be distinguished from two other situations that lead to a higher price: cost increases that arise after signing without the contractor being to blame (Article 7:753) and a target price that is exceeded (Article 7:752).
| Situation | Rule | What the contractor must do |
|---|---|---|
| Client wants additions or changes | Article 7:755 | Warn in time that the price will rise, unless the client should have understood that itself |
| Costs rise after signing, not attributable to the contractor | Article 7:753 | Warn as soon as possible; price adjustment by the court, or by the contractor itself if the client supplied incorrect data |
| Only a target price was agreed | Article 7:752(2) | No more than 10% over the target price, unless the contractor warned in time of a further excess |
| Error in the client’s plans or materials | Article 7:754 | Warn of errors it knew or should have known; for buildings in writing and unambiguously |
When may a contractor charge for additional work?
Only if it warned the client in time of the need for a price increase resulting from the additions or changes, unless the client should have understood that need by itself (Article 7:755). The rule cannot be set aside to the client’s detriment, except in a standard arrangement as referred to in Article 6:214 Dutch Civil Code.
The purpose is to protect the client: consenting to additional work does not automatically mean consenting to a higher price. In practice the warning is given before the work is carried out, in writing, with an estimate or at least a clear statement that the work will be charged.
What did the Dutch Supreme Court decide on additional work in 2022?
That the exception in Article 7:755 only requires that the client should have understood the need for a price increase. It is not necessary that the client also had insight into the size of the increase or the expected costs (HR 1 July 2022, ECLI:NL:HR:2022:989).
Once the client was warned, or should have understood that the work would cost more, it is up to the client to discuss the amount with the contractor before deciding whether to order the work. If no price was agreed for the additional work, the client owes a reasonable price (Article 7:752 Dutch Civil Code), as the Supreme Court held in the same judgment. For clients this means: when you ask for something extra, ask for the price before the contractor starts.
How does the UAV 2012 deal with additional work?
Many Dutch construction contracts declare the UAV 2012 applicable. It provides for settlement of additional and reduced work in specified cases, such as changes to the specifications, deviations from provisional sums and deviations in estimated or settleable quantities (UAV 2012, paragraph 35).
For changes the client wants, the UAV 2012 contains the same warning rule as Article 7:755 (paragraph 36(1a)). Changes are settled at amounts or prices agreed before they are carried out, or as soon as possible if that is not possible (paragraph 36(4)). If reduced work exceeds additional work at the final settlement, the contractor is entitled to 10% of the difference (paragraph 35(5)). Read more on the UAV 2012 for Dutch construction contracts.
Facing an additional-work invoice that was never announced? Have a Dutch construction lawyer check the invoice against the contract before you pay or refuse it, because both choices have consequences.
Who has to prove that additional work was agreed and announced?
The contractor that claims payment. It must show that the work falls outside the agreed scope, that the client wanted it, and that it warned the client of the price increase or that the client should have understood it (Article 150 Dutch Code of Civil Procedure).
Evidence includes the contract and specifications, change orders, site meeting minutes, e-mails and messages, and photographs. A client that disputes an invoice should, in turn, keep its own record of what it asked for and what it was told. In larger projects, a signed change order for every addition prevents most disputes.
What can a client do with a disputed additional-work invoice?
Pay the undisputed part, dispute the rest in writing with reasons, and if necessary suspend payment of the disputed amount. Suspension is allowed if the other party fails to perform, but only to the extent the failure justifies it (Article 6:262 Dutch Civil Code).
- Ask for a breakdown: which work, which order, when the warning was given, and how the price was calculated.
- Check the contract and specifications: is the item really outside the agreed scope?
- Check whether the UAV 2012 or other standard terms apply, and what they say about change orders.
- Do not withhold more than is in dispute; disproportionate suspension can itself be a breach.
- Raise defects separately: after delivery the contractor is released from defects the client should reasonably have discovered at delivery; for buildings, however, the contractor remains liable for defects not discovered at delivery unless they cannot be attributed to it (Article 7:758(3) and (4)).
Read more on the right of suspension in the Netherlands.
Can a client stop or reduce the work to limit the cost?
Yes. The client may terminate the contract in whole or in part at any time, but must then pay the price for the whole work, less the savings resulting from the termination (Article 7:764 Dutch Civil Code).
That is why the warning duty in Articles 7:752, 7:753 and 7:755 matters: it gives the client the chance to limit or simplify the work, or to terminate, before the costs are made. A client that is warned and lets the contractor continue without objecting will find it hard to dispute the price later.
How are additional-work disputes settled in the Netherlands?
Most are settled after a breakdown and a meeting. If not, the contract decides the forum: many construction contracts refer disputes to arbitration, often before the Arbitration Board for the Construction Industry (Raad van Arbitrage voor de Bouw); without such a clause, the Dutch civil courts have jurisdiction.
An arbitration clause must be invoked before any other defence if the other party goes to court (Article 1022 Dutch Code of Civil Procedure). A claim for a defect in the delivered work becomes time-barred two years after the client protested, and in any event twenty years after delivery for buildings (Article 7:761). See also terminating a construction contract under Dutch law.
Practical example: a foreign investor and a warehouse fit-out
Suppose a Belgian logistics company has a Dutch contractor fit out a warehouse for a fixed price, with the UAV 2012 applicable. During the works, its site manager asks by e-mail for extra loading dock levellers and heavier floor finishing in one hall. The contractor carries out the work and sends an invoice for the additions at the end of the project.
The client argues that no price was ever mentioned. The contractor argues that an experienced logistics company must have understood that extra levellers cost extra. Under HR 1 July 2022 that argument can succeed: the client did not need to know the amount, only that there would be a price increase. If the contractor wins on that point but no price was agreed, the client owes a reasonable price under Article 7:752, and the contractor must justify its calculation. Had the site manager asked for a quote by return e-mail, the dispute would have been about numbers, not about principle.
When should you involve a Dutch construction lawyer?
Before you sign a construction contract, when change requests start to accumulate during the works, and as soon as an additional-work invoice arrives that you did not expect. Early advice keeps a dispute about a few items from turning into a dispute about the whole project.
MAAK Advocaten in Amsterdam advises foreign clients and contractors on Dutch construction contracts, change orders and additional-work claims, and acts in proceedings before the Dutch courts and in construction arbitration. See also construction contracts in the Netherlands.
Frequently asked questions about additional work disputes in the Netherlands
Does a contractor always get paid for additional work?
No. For additions or changes the client wanted, the contractor can only charge a higher price if it warned the client in time of the need for a price increase, unless the client should have understood that itself (Article 7:755 Dutch Civil Code).
Must the contractor state the amount of the price increase?
Not necessarily. The Supreme Court held that it is sufficient that the client should have understood that the price would increase; insight into the size of the increase is not required (HR 1 July 2022, ECLI:NL:HR:2022:989).
What price do I owe if no price was agreed for the additional work?
A reasonable price, taking into account the prices the contractor usually charged and the expectations it created (Article 7:752(1) Dutch Civil Code), as the Supreme Court confirmed in 2022.
Can I withhold payment of a disputed additional-work invoice?
You may suspend payment of the disputed part if the contractor has not performed, but only to the extent the failure justifies it (Article 6:262 Dutch Civil Code). Pay the undisputed part.
Does the UAV 2012 change the rules on additional work?
It contains the same warning rule for changes the client wants (paragraph 36(1a)) and adds rules on how changes are priced and settled, including a 10% payment if reduced work exceeds additional work (paragraph 35(5)).
Primary sources
Dutch statutes are only officially available in Dutch, on wetten.overheid.nl. Judgments can be found on rechtspraak.nl by their ECLI number. Legal position checked on 28 October 2026.
- Dutch Civil Code, Book 6: Article 6:262; Book 7: Article 7:750, Article 7:752, Article 7:753, Article 7:754, Article 7:755, Article 7:758, Article 7:761, Article 7:764
- Dutch Code of Civil Procedure: Article 150, Article 1022
- Uniform Administrative Conditions for the Execution of Works and Technical Installation Works 2012 (UAV 2012), paragraphs 35 and 36
- Supreme Court 1 July 2022, ECLI:NL:HR:2022:989 (Article 7:755: insight into the size of the increase not required; Article 7:752 applies to the price)
