The 14-day rule in the Dutch Embryo Act
The Health Council of the Netherlands recommends that the 14-day rule for embryo research be extended to a 28-day rule.
The Dutch Embryo Act specifies conditions for scientific research with human embryos that are donated to science after IVF treatments. These conditions include a demonstrable need for the research and an impossibility to obtain the knowledge otherwise. The Act also specifies that it is prohibited to allow embryos to develop outside the human body for longer than 14 days after fertilisation.
During the last evaluation of the Embryo Act, it was questioned whether compelling reasons exist to extend the 14-day limit. The Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport of the Netherlands has asked the Health Council to address this question. Based on an elaborate weighing of the embryo’s worthiness of protection, the interests embryo research serves and the public perspective, the Council has come to the recommendation to extend the 14-day rule to a 28-day rule.
Download "executive summary The 14-day rule in the Dutch Embryo Act"
Download "advisory report The 14-day rule in the Dutch Embryo Act*"
Download "background document on the scientific importance of embryo research beyond 14 days"
*Erratum 30 June 2025: A sentence on page 42 was changed after publication as the English translation contains a slight but crucial mistranslation. It stated: As long as it is scientifically impossible to rule out that ELS which represent entire embryos can develop into a human being, the committee believes it is necessary to ensure that such ELS have the same level of protection as classic embryos. However, the original sentence in Dutch reads: Zolang het vermogen om uit te groeien tot een mens niet op redelijke gronden valt uit te sluiten, vindt de commissie het noodzakelijk om ELS die intacte embryo’s nabootsen op eenzelfde wijze te beschermen als klassieke embryo’s. Literally, this means: as long as the capacity to develop into a human being cannot be ruled out on reasonable grounds. Ruling out the capacity to develop into a human being on the basis of scientific impossibility would be considerably more restrictive than ruling out on the basis of reasonable grounds. To avoid any misunderstanding about the Health Council’ views on this matter, the sentence was changed to: As long as the capacity to develop into a human being cannot be ruled out on reasonable grounds, the committee believes it is necessary to ensure that ELS which represent entire embryos have the same level of protection as classic embryos.