Members of the Royal House

Members of the royal family and the Royal house

In the Netherlands, a distinction is made between the royal family and the Royal House. The royal family is the family of Orange-Nassau.

Since 2002 the law has specified that membership of the Royal House is reserved to relatives of the monarch in the first and second degree of consanguinity. This does not apply to those who were already members of the Royal House in 2002. They retain their membership under the former rules.

The following members of the royal family form the Royal House:

• the head of state (the King);
• the former head of state;
• relatives of the head of state in the first and second degree of consanguinity, such as children, grandchildren and siblings, who are eligible for succession to the throne;
• the spouses of these members;
• members of the royal family who are members of the Royal House on the basis of the transitional arrangement provided for by the Membership of the Royal House Act.