Kingdom act
A Kingdom Act is an act of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which scope goes beyond the constituent country the Netherlands, and which is effective in the other constituent countries Aruba, Curaçao and/or Sint Maarten. Kingdom Acts are used for specific areas of law set out in the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, or for those areas where countries in the Kingdom of the Netherlands cooperate voluntarily.
Field of application
Ordinary Kingdom Acts
Kingdom Acts are used in areas defined as Kingdom Affairs in the Charter for the Kingdom:- maintenance of the independence and the defence of the Kingdom of the Netherlands;
- foreign relations;
- Netherlands nationality;
- regulation of the orders of chivalry, the flag and the coat of arms of the Kingdom;
- regulation of the nationality of vessels and the standards required for the safety and navigation of seagoing vessels flying the flag of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, with the exception of sailing ships;
- supervision of the general rules governing the admission and expulsion of Netherlands nationals;
- general conditions for the admission and expulsion of aliens;
- extradition.
- The safeguarding of fundamental human rights and freedoms, legal certainty and good governance shall be a Kingdom Affair.
Consensus Kingdom Acts
On the basis of article 38 of the Charter, the countries of the Kingdom can decide to adopt a Kingdom Act outside of the scope of the aforementioned areas. Such acts are referred to as Consensus Kingdom Acts, as they require the consent of the parliaments of Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten.An example of a Consensus Kingdom Act is the Kingdom Act on Financial Supervision of the Constituent Countries Curaçao and Sint Maarten, which was adopted as part of the package of legislation pertaining to the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles.