Enforcement of English judgments in the Netherlands after Brexit

Before 31 December 2020, Dutch courts enforced UK judgments under the Brussels I Recast Regulation. The procedure was quick and largely automatic. For “old” cases, this regime can still apply. If the court proceedings began before the end of the transition period, Article 67 of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement keeps Brussels I Recast in place for recognition and enforcement.

From 1 January 2021, there was a gap. The UK did not (re)join the Lugano Convention. The European Commission advised in May 2021 that the EU should not give consent, and that position has stood. As a result, Dutch parties could not rely on Lugano for UK–NL traffic.

In that period, the main treaty tool was the 2005 Hague Choice of Court Convention. This Convention helps only when there is a truly exclusive jurisdiction clause. The EU’s guidance says it applies between the EU and the UK only to exclusive clauses concluded on or after 1 January 2021 (the date the UK became a party in its own right). Clauses that are non-exclusive or asymmetric fall outside the Convention. Dutch case law after Brexit confirms that view. In Juno (Rb. Amsterdam, 15 November 2022), the court held that an asymmetric clause was not “exclusive” for the Convention and that no older UK–NL enforcement treaty had revived after Brexit.

If no treaty applies, Dutch law provides a national route. The creditor can start a new claim under Article 431(2) of the Dutch Code of Civil Procedure. The Dutch court does not re-try the case in full, but it checks core recognition standards, including international jurisdiction, proper process, and public policy. If these are met, the court will usually grant a Dutch judgment that mirrors the foreign one. The Supreme Court set out this framework in its landmark ruling Gazprombank (HR 26 September 2014).

The most important new development is the 2019 Hague Judgments Convention. The Convention entered into force for the EU (including the Netherlands) on 1 September 2023 and for the UK on 1 July 2025. Between the Netherlands and England, it applies to judgments in proceedings started on or after 1 July 2025, because of the Convention’s transitional rule in Article 16.

This Convention is broader than the 2005 Hague Convention. It does not require an exclusive clause. It lists several bases for recognition, such as the defendant’s habitual residence or the place of performance. But it also has clear limits. It excludes, among other things, arbitration, insolvency, defamation, much of IP, carriage of goods, and interim measures. National procedure still governs how you obtain and enforce the exequatur in the Netherlands.

For Dutch practice in 2025, the order of thinking is simple:

• First, check when the foreign proceedings started. If before 31 December 2020, use Brussels I Recast via the Withdrawal Agreement.
• Second, for proceedings started on or after 1 July 2025, use the 2019 Hague Judgments Convention if the subject matter is within scope.
• Third, where the 2019 Convention does not apply—because of timing or exclusions—consider the 2005 Hague Convention if there is a truly exclusive clause concluded on or after 1 January 2021.
• If neither treaty helps, fall back on Article 431(2) Dutch Code of Civil Proceedings and the Gazprombank standards. This restores a largely treaty-based path for most new civil and commercial judgments, but it is not a full return to the pre-Brexit Brussels regime.