Recovery Organizations: Radar, SGH and MijnHerstel — State-Funded Inadequate Compensation

Executive Summary

The Dutch state funds three external organizations to support childcare benefits victims: Radar Advies Groep (OTB for approximately 950 victims abroad), Stichting Gelijkwaardig Herstel (SGH, using a forfaitary compensation model) and MijnHerstel (an online portal launched December 2025). Victims receive only 15-31% of actual damages. In one court case, a victim claimed €654,159 but received €30,000 (4.6%). Contract values are undisclosed. Average processing time is 3-5 years and total recovery is expected to take 5-10 years (2020-2030).

What Happened

The Uitvoeringsorganisatie Herstel Toeslagen (UHT) coordinates recovery across three external routes. Radar Advies Groep runs the Ondersteuningsteam Buitenland (OTB) since July 2022, providing casemanagement for victims in approximately 40 countries. SGH, operational since 2023, uses a forfaitary model based on personal injury law, with standard amounts that do not cover individual losses. MijnHerstel launched on 2 December 2025 as an online self-service portal. The deadline for additional compensation applications was 1 April 2026 (Staatsblad 2026, 32). Around 9,000 cases remain in the CWS (Commissie Werkelijke Schade) queue.

Evidence

The Rechtbank Noord-Holland ruled on 19 June 2025 that a victim claiming €654,159 received only €30,000 under the Catshuis scheme, a ratio of 4.6%. According to the 22nd Progress Report (February 2026), 69,000 applications have been assessed and 23,675 recovery plans issued. Radar’s OTB has documented failures including five casemanager changes without handover in a single case, 550 days of waiting and an AVG breach involving personal data shared without legal basis. Radar refuses classification as a functional administrative body (art. 1:1 lid 3 Awb), which would make its decisions subject to objection and appeal. Business damage compensation stands at 0-4% across all routes.

Analysis

The structural under-compensation violates Article 6 ECHR (right to a fair trial) and Article 13 ECHR (effective remedy) because none of the three routes offer judicial review. Settlement agreements (VSOs) close off the civil litigation route and novum clauses are routinely rejected. Radar may qualify as a functional administrative body given it is fully state-funded, acts with government authority and victims have no alternative support. If so, its decisions would be subject to administrative law protections. The government’s refusal to disclose contract values for Radar, SGH and MijnHerstel contravenes transparency principles. The 30-40% country-based deduction for foreign victims raises equality concerns under Article 1 of the Grondwet.

Frequently asked questions

Which three organizations handle recovery for childcare benefits victims?

The Dutch state funds Radar Advies Groep, which has run the Ondersteuningsteam Buitenland since July 2022 for approximately 950 victims in around 40 countries, Stichting Gelijkwaardig Herstel, operational since 2023 with a forfaitary compensation model, and the online portal MijnHerstel, live since 2 December 2025. The UHT coordinates the three routes.

What percentage of their damages do victims receive on average?

On average, victims receive only 15 to 31 percent of their actual damages, and business damage compensation stands at no more than 0 to 4 percent across all routes. In a ruling of 19 June 2025, a victim claiming €654,159 under the Catshuis scheme received only €30,000, a ratio of 4.6 percent.

What went wrong at Radar’s Ondersteuningsteam Buitenland?

Documented failures at the OTB include five casemanager changes without handover in a single case, a waiting time of 550 days and a GDPR breach in which personal data was shared without legal basis. Radar also refuses classification as a functional administrative body (art. 1:1 lid 3 Awb), which would make its decisions subject to objection and appeal.

How many applications have been assessed in the recovery operation?

According to the 22nd Progress Report of February 2026, 69,000 applications have been assessed and 23,675 recovery plans issued. Around 9,000 cases remain in the queue of the Commissie Werkelijke Schade. The deadline for additional compensation applications was 1 April 2026, laid down in Staatsblad 2026, 32.

Read also

• Why justice is kept out — why the cabinet keeps the prosecution service out
• The accountability matrix 2017-2026 — who knew what about the data vault, and who is still there
• The full data vault timeline — the full timeline, 2019-2026
• The discovery of 64 million files — the discovery and the nine-month delay

Sources

• herstel.toeslagen.nl (UHT Herstel Toeslagen)
• hetotb.nl (OTB/Radar Advies Groep)
• schadeherstel.toeslagen.nl/routes/stichting-gelijkwaardig-herstel/
• Staatsblad 2026, 32 (uiterste aanvraagdatum 1 april 2026)
• 22e Voortgangsrapportage via TaxLive (16-02-2026)
• Consultancy.nl: Radar OTB (29-07-2022)
• ECLI:NL:RBNHO:2025:8961 (Rechtbank Noord-Holland, 19-06-2025)
• NOS: Datakluis (16-04-2026), Inspectie OE (22-04-2026)
• Catshuis-akkoord 22 december 2020