Visitors from countries without agreements on collecting parking fines will receive an immediate wheel clamp from July 1, 2026, if they do not pay their parking fees.
The measure targets cars with foreign license plates from countries such as France, Poland, Hungary, and Luxembourg. These countries do not exchange name and address details with the Netherlands, so visitors only receive a paper ticket on their windshield. These fines are rarely paid. Currently, only 24 percent of foreign visitors pay the paper ticket. For French visitors, this is even just 21 percent.
15,000 Additional Wheel Clamps
To address this, we are deploying 3 extra clamp teams, in addition to the 2 already active. Together, they will place about 15,000 wheel clamps annually, of which approximately 10,000 will be on foreign vehicles. For this expansion, we are allocating a one-time €50,000.
Visitors who receive a wheel clamp must pay the parking fee, the ticket, and the clamp costs before they can continue driving. This costs around €250 in total.
Parking Ticket by Mail
Since 2024, visitors from 13 European countries do receive a parking ticket by mail, thanks to reciprocal agreements. These countries are Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Finland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Austria, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. From January 1, 2026, the United Kingdom will also join this list.
In the coming months, an information campaign will start to inform foreign visitors about the new approach.
We Choose a Firm Approach
Alderman Melanie van der Horst (Traffic and Transport): “That some defaulters can so easily avoid a parking ticket has long been a thorn in many peoples side. That is why we are now choosing a firm approach that makes enforcement much fairer for everyone. We will take the next six months to warn people. Because ideally, I want all visitors to simply pay their parking fees properly, so we dont have to issue any fines at all.”
