Social hygiene (Sociale Hygiëne) exam in English: computer exam, oral exam and register

Under the Dutch Alcohol Decree (Alcoholbesluit), social hygiene means knowledge and insight about the effects of alcohol, also combined with drugs or medicines; alcohol abuse and addiction and their social effects; slot machines and the risk of gambling addiction; the rules on alcohol and the industry codes; the technical and structural facilities of the premises; and the different types of business and guests. Who needs it is explained on our page about the certificate and register.

The SVH lists two kinds of Sociale Hygiëne exam with their own languages. The computer exam has 40 multiple-choice questions and takes 40 minutes; you pass with at least 29 correct.

The SVH does not run the computer exams itself. You choose a provider of computer exams, each with its own locations, and you pick the location, date, language and time yourself. The provider's website explains how payment works.

The oral exam is in the SVH web shop. There, the standard oral exam is listed at €360.00, the English version at €421.00 and the version with an interpreter at €725.00 (checked on 22 October 2026).

The SVH states that exams must be paid for at once through iDEAL (a Dutch online-banking payment method); paying by invoice is not possible.

Passing the exam is not the last step. To show that you have enough knowledge of social hygiene, you need a diploma recognised by the Lcsh and a registration in the Register Sociale Hygiëne. The SVH Diploma Sociale Hygiëne is on the register's list of valid proofs (for the issue dates, see our page about the certificate and register). Without a recognised diploma you can't register.

Online, you register with DigiD (the Dutch government login), but the register's English page points out that the online application is in Dutch. If you have no DigiD or can't speak Dutch, use the application form in English. Registering with a diploma recognised by the Lcsh costs €93.29 (checked on 24 October 2026). If your application is approved, you receive a positive decision; the register says it also counts as the Verklaring Sociale Hygiëne (social hygiene statement).

If you obtained a social hygiene diploma in another EU member state, you can register if it is equivalent in content and level to a Dutch diploma. You send, among other things, a diploma supplement that lists the learning outcomes (eindtermen) and a copy of a valid ID. It must be clear that the diploma covers learning outcome 1 (Sociale Hygiëne) and 6 (Alcohol); the ten outcomes are in the table on our page about the exam.

Registering with a foreign diploma costs €253.50 (checked on 24 October 2026); the register's English page names the same amount for foreign work experience, which our page about the certificate and register explains. If your foreign diploma doesn't qualify, the register mentions an Lcsh-recognised diploma through a (short) course as an option. For a diploma from outside the EU, ask the register.