MBBS in Netherlands for Indian Students 2026: Universities, Fees, and Eligibility for Indian Students

Studying MBBS in Netherlands costs between Rs.1.8 crore and Rs.2.2 crore over six years and comes with a challenging language reality: clinical rotations from Year 4 onwards are conducted entirely in Dutch at every university, including Groningen and Maastricht. Only two universities offer the BSc Medicine track in English. If you are an Indian student evaluating the Netherlands for the 2026 or 2027 intake, this guide covers tuition and living costs in INR, the numerus fixus selection process, NEET and NMC compliance requirements, and whether a Dutch medical degree is usable in India.

There are medicine programs at six Dutch universities. Not all of them teach in English. This difference is crucial for Indian applicants: if you can’t get into an English-medium track, you will need to be almost fluent in Dutch before Year 1 starts.

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For a broader comparison of Dutch universities across disciplines, see the top universities in the Netherlands guide.

Counselor insight: The University of Groningen and Maastricht University are on the shortlists of most Indian students because they offer English-medium BSc Medicine programs that are open to international students. The first year of medicine at the Universities of Amsterdam, Leiden University/LUMC, Utrecht University, and Radboud University in Nijmegen is mostly or entirely taught in Dutch. These cities are excellent places to start if you don't speak Dutch: Groningen and Maastricht.

You must know the full cost before you apply. Too many families only plan to pay for tuition, and when living costs, insurance, and the trip back come up in Year 2, they don't have enough money.

A one-way flight from major Indian cities (Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad) to Amsterdam averages Rs.55,000 to Rs.80,000, depending on season and airline.

For a comparison of the Netherlands against other affordable MBBS destinations, see the cheapest MBBS abroad guide for Indian students.

Counselor insight: The same-sized housing in Groningen will usually cost Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 15,000 less per month than the same-sized housing in Amsterdam. That difference exceeds 7–10 lakhs over 6 years. When comparing colleges, you should look at both tuition and the cost of living in each city.

The selection process includes a high school GPA assessment, a BAMA aptitude and motivation test, and a weighted lottery component; it is not merit-only.

Indian students must have passed Class 12 (10+2) with Math, Science, and Biology (PCB). Each university has a different minimum aggregate for PCB, but most require at least 70% to 80%. Some schools have lowered the requirements in the past, but because of the competition for numerous fixed-quota seats, students with 75% or higher are more likely to be accepted.

The NEET is not a requirement for getting into Dutch universities. They don't want to know your NEET score. However, NMC India rules say that Indian students who want to study MBBS abroad must have passed NEET before they can enroll. Not a competitive rank, but a qualifying score is what sets the bar. Anyone who has graduated from college but does not have a valid NEET qualifying score cannot take the FMGE/NExT in India. This means they cannot work as a doctor in India. If you want to work as a doctor in India, you have to pass the NEET.

For programs taught in English (Groningen, Maastricht):

• IELTS Academic: minimum 6.5 overall, no band below 6.0
• TOEFL iBT: minimum 90 overall

These are the bare minimums; they are not competitive standards. Check the official admissions page of each university to see what the program-specific requirements are, as they can be different.

It is not necessary to enroll in English-track programs for the first time. But clinical rotations in hospital wards are done in Dutch from Years 4 to 6. The doctors talk to patients, do ward rounds, and watch over patients, all in Dutch. Universities strongly advise students to reach at least the B1 level of Dutch language skills before Year 3. The truth is that if you want to apply to Groningen or Maastricht for English-medium medicine, you should start taking Dutch classes in India (at least at the A1 or A2 level) before you go. Duolingo won't help you get ready for working in a clinical setting by itself.

This part is what most articles skip. Read the section carefully if you want to go back to India after getting your Dutch degree and working as a doctor.

Step 1: Check the WDOMS listing. Check the World Directory of Medical Schools (wdoms.org) to see if your school is listed before you sign up. The NMC will not accept your degree for licensing if the school is not listed as having active recognition.

Step 2: Be eligible for NEET-UG before signing up. Before you can start school in the Netherlands, you need to achieve a certain score on the NEET-UG exam in India. If you enroll without a NEET qualification, you won't be able to practice law in India later, even if you got good grades in the Netherlands.

Step 3: Do well on the NExT and leave the country. You have to pass the NExT (which replaced the FMGE) after you finish your 6-year Dutch program. This test is both for getting a license and for getting into graduate school. To pass, you will need to add to your Dutch clinical training medical subjects that are specific to India.

Step 4: Finish the CRMI in India. If you pass the NExT, you have to do a 12-month Compulsory Rotatory Medical Internship (CRMI) in an Indian hospital approved by the NMC. Even though you did clinical rotations in the Netherlands, you still have to do this internship in India.

Step 5: Register with the State Medical Council. After your Indian internship is over, you can apply to your state medical council for permanent registration. This makes it legal for you to work as a doctor in India.

Counselor insight: Many students skip this 5-minute step of verification. Do not skip it. Over time, universities' names and levels of recognition change, and WDOMS does not always automatically add new campuses or branches. Verify not only the name of the parent school but also the name of the campus you are enrolling in.

The total cost goes down with scholarships, but it's still there. The Dutch government does not fully fund a 6-year medical degree outside of the EU. Plan your finances regardless of whether or not you get a scholarship, and think of any scholarship as a way to lower your overall debt, not as the main source of your funding.

Note: Most scholarship windows for the September 2026 intake have now closed (April 2026). The deadlines listed reflect annual cycle patterns; use them to plan for the September 2027 intake. Verify current open windows at nesoindia.org and individual university portals

For the full list of available funding, read the scholarships in Netherlands for Indian students and the NL Scholarship guide.

Counselor insight: Many Indian students don't know how to apply for OTS. You first use Studielink to apply to the college. Then, fill out the OTS form from Nuffic NESO India and email it to ots@nesoindia.org along with proof that you have applied to the college. These are two different submissions. You have not applied for OTS just because you have applied to the university. The most common mistake our counselors see with scholarship applications is that people forget to do this step.

This choice isn't right for everyone. Here are three real student profiles that show the kinds of problems our counselors see most often.

Scenario 1: If you are a Class 12 student with a 75% or higher on the PCB and a qualifying NEET score, and you are willing to spend Rs.1.8 to Rs.2.2 crore over 6 years on tuition and living costs, the Netherlands could be a good choice. But only if you are determined to learn Dutch before Year 3. If you want to practice in India after graduation, make sure the university you want to attend is on the WDOMS list and plan to prepare for the FMGE/NExT during your last two years.

Scenario 2: You can't go to a Dutch university after finishing one or two years of an MBBS program in India. Some Indian MBBS programs do not accept credits from Dutch medicine programs. You start over at Year 1 if you move to the Netherlands. Think about how long this will take and how much it will cost altogether before you decide.

Scenario 3: If you don't want to go back to India and instead want to practice in Europe or around the world, the Netherlands is one of the best places to go in Western Europe. If you have a Dutch medical degree and pass the Dutch licensing exams, you can apply to residency programs all over the EU. European hospital systems, such as the PBL-based curriculum used by Dutch universities, allow students to conduct research. That is, you would still have to meet the requirements of the Dutch BIG-Register instead of FMGE/NExT.

Counselor insight: For most Indian students, the question about the Dutch language is what makes the difference. In Groningen and Maastricht, you can do your pre-clinical years in English. All Dutch universities, even those with English-language BSc tracks, do clinical rotations in Dutch. This includes hospital ward rounds, patient consultations, case presentations, and supervisions. Students who don't know any Dutch before they start have a challenging time fitting in with the other students in the clinical setting. It is not a suggestion that you start learning Dutch at the A1 level in India before you go on vacation; it is a necessity. Start with structured Dutch A1 courses that you can take online before you leave.

This calendar is for Indian students who have already finished Class 12 and want to start school in September 2026. Several early deadlines have passed since today is April 2026.

This is what you need to do if you haven't already: Most of the deadlines and scholarship windows for Studielink have passed. Check with Groningen and Maastricht to see if there are any late or rolling admissions spots available for September 2026. If there are no slots available, the next realistic goal is September 2027. Use that year to prepare for the Dutch A1–B1 exams, get a better IELTS score, and submit your Studielink early in October 2026.

If you want to know more about how to get a student visa for the Netherlands, read the Netherlands student visa guide for Indian students.

• You missed the due date for Studielink. Dutch medicine only starts in September. You can't choose spring or January. Take the IELTS test again if you need to, and then reapply in October of the following year. Some students use this time to do more work that helps them improve their numerus fixus profile.
• Your IELTS Score Is Less Than 6.5: Dutch medical schools do not make offers based on English scores. You should book a retake right away. Most British Council and IDP centers in India can do retakes in 3 to 5 weeks. Most applications will be turned down if they receive a 5.5 in any one band. Do not send the threshold below; it is a waste of the fee and the cycle.
• You were not chosen for the Numerus Fixus position. Reapplication is not blocked by rejection. Look over any feedback the university gives you, work on the parts of your application that you did poorly on, and apply again in October of the following year. To lower the risk of a single outcome, apply to two or three Dutch universities at the same time.
• Your application for a visa was either denied or held up. The university sends the MVV application to IND for you. Usually, delays happen because financial documents aren't complete or the MEA attestation is missing. If your MVV hasn't progressed by July for a September start date, please reach out to the international office at your university as soon as possible. Common reasons for refusal are not enough financial proof, documents that have not been attested, or documents that are not in English and have not been certified as translated.
• Your NEET score was not satisfactory. A low NEET score doesn't stop Dutch people from getting in. However, you must have a qualifying NEET score before you can enroll in any MBBS program outside of India. This requirement is because of the NMC India rules. If you failed, you need to take NEET again before you can enroll. If you don't, your Dutch degree won't count for FMGE/NExT in India.

• Before you pay the application fee to any Dutch university, check the World Directory of Medical Schools (WDOMS) to make sure that the school is still listed. In order to join NMC India, you must pass this test. In India, you can't get into FMGE/NExT with a degree from a university that isn't on the WDOMS list, and no other credential can make up the difference.
• Since 2026–27, the University of Groningen has been the only medical school in the Netherlands that is sure to offer a BSc Medicine track in English. This school year, Maastricht ended its English-language program. Groningen is your only real choice if you can't study in Dutch. Amsterdam, Leiden, Utrecht, and Radboud are the only Dutch medical schools that teach medicine in English from the very first day.
• Before you book your flight, take Dutch A1 classes in India. At every Dutch university, clinical rotations like ward rounds, patient consultations, and case presentations are all done in Dutch. Students who don't know any Dutch when they start have a hard time in Years 4 through 6. In India, structured A1-A2 preparation for six months makes the difference between being able to fit in with the clinical setting and falling behind.

Verified by LeapScholar's Netherlands counseling team. Have questions? Book a free session with a LeapScholar counselor.