News

Change in invoicing when withdrawing a national application

We would like to inform you about our revised policy regarding invoicing for the withdrawal of applications for admission and/or plant breeders’ rights in the Netherlands.

This change aligns with the CPVO system and ensures a uniform and transparent invoicing process.

As of now, the following fees apply when withdrawing your national application:

25% of the DUS examination fee if the national application is withdrawn:

• before the first year of testing, after the closing date for the species in question, or
• 3 months before the deadline for submission of identity material when the period between the closing date and the date of submission of identity material is shorter than 3 months, or
• less than a month before or on the anniversary date for the submission of identity material in any subsequent year of testing.

100% of the DUS examination fee if the national application is withdrawn:

• after the deadline for submission of identity material in the first year of testing, or
• after the anniversary date for the submission of identity material in any subsequent year of testing.

An exception are national applications examined by a foreign research institute. If these national applications are withdrawn, we will charge the costs charged to us by the foreign research institute.

In this way, we adopt a uniform working method

We believe this makes it clear to you as an applicant what costs you can expect when withdrawing a national application.

This also ensures that the costs incurred by Naktuinbouw in preparation for the DUS-examination are reimbursed.

Starting January 1, 2026, we will introduce a new procedure for paying application fees for applications for listing and/or plant breeders’ rights in the Netherlands.
This new procedure ensures faster and more efficient processing of your submitted applications.

The Gazette is the government publication sheet. The new Gazette is published every month.

The Gazette is the government publication sheet. The new Gazette is published every month.

The fees of the Board for Plant Varieties are set annually by the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature. The fee proposals are jointly prepared by Naktuinbouw and the Board for Plant Varieties. This announcement concerns the proposed application fees for plant breeders’ rights, variety registration, and DUS testing for 2026.

Fee indexation compared to 2025
• Average indexation: 6% increase on all 2025 fees.

Explanation on the indexation

Naktuinbouw adjusts wage and personnel costs annually based on the average of three collective labor agreements within the sector: Open Cultivation, Greenhouse Horticulture, and Garden Seeds.

For 2026, a wage indexation of 5% is assumed, partly based on recent collective labor agreement developments.

In addition, periodic scale increases are included, bringing the total increase in wage costs to 6%.

This adjustment ensures that Naktuinbouw remains in line with the market and that personnel costs are managed in a transparent and responsible manner.

Online application fee, also the same for all sectors in 2026

• New fee proposal: a single online application fee of €354 for all sectors, as virtually all national applications are submitted online.

The Gazette is the government publication sheet. The new Gazette is published every month.

The Gazette is the government publication sheet. The new Gazette is published every month.

This year, prolongation can be applied for vegetable and agricultural varieties that were listed in 2017. This also applies to vegetable varieties that were listed in 2004 and 2005.

Great news! The previously reported technical issues with the NRR (Dutch Variety Register) have now been resolved. You can once again use the register as you are accustomed to. Unfortunately, the field "prolongation requested" is currently missing in the NRR. This will be fixed.

We sincerely thank you for your patience and understanding during the recovery period.

If you still have any questions or comments, please contact us via teamsupport@rasraad.nl