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A massive passport scandal has rocked Dutch football, resulting in the suspension of 25 players across domestic leagues, including four key members of the Indonesia national team.
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Indonesia naturalized player Justin Hubner of Fortuna Sittard. Photo by Instagram/@justinhubner5 |
On April 1, the Dutch Immigration and Naturalization Service published an official list of 25 players whose current work permits do not legally match their active passports.
This group mostly consists of professional footballers who recently renounced their Dutch citizenship in favor of representing nations like Suriname, Cape Verde or Indonesia on the international level.
As a result, these players have been temporarily banned from playing in official matches and training with their respective clubs until the matter is fully resolved.
According to CNN Indonesia, suspended Indonesia players include Dean James of Go Ahead Eagles and Justin Hubner of Fortuna Sittard, both of whom compete in the top-tier Eredivisie, while Nathan Tjoe-A-On of Willem II and Tim Geypens of FC Emmen play in the second tier.
All four of them have Dutch and Indonesian heritage and were born and raised in the Netherlands.
The passport controversy started when NAC Breda filed a formal complaint with the Royal Dutch Football Association, following a heavy 0-6 defeat to Go Ahead Eagles during a league match on March 15.
Breda accused their opponents of fielding an ineligible player, James. They demanded the match to be replayed if the association determined that he violated the league's eligibility requirements.
James acquired his Indonesian citizenship in March 2025. Because dual citizenship is not permitted under Dutch law, he automatically relinquished his Dutch citizenship during the naturalization process.
Following this official change in nationality, the defender should have been registered by his club as a non-EU worker. However, his team records reportedly still listed him as a Dutch citizen.
To be legally considered a non-EU worker in Dutch professional football, a player must obtain a valid work permit and earn a minimum salary of €600,000 (US$692,000) per year.
James's current salary is reportedly only around €190,000.
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Indonesia naturalized player Dean James of Go Ahead Eagles. Photo by Instagram/@deanjames |
Breda's complaint also paved the way for other clubs to take similar action. Tilburg subsequently made a formal request for a match replay after losing to Willem II, the club of Tjoe-A-On.
Not all Indonesia players in the Netherlands were caught up in this scandal. Goalkeeper Maarten Paes of Ajax, center-back Mees Hilgers of FC Twente and striker Miliano Jonathans of Excelsior were absent from the immigration authority's suspension list.
In Paes's specific case, the goalkeeper had to return to the U.S. and apply for a temporary residence permit, which acts as an entry visa for non-EU citizens wishing to live and work for more than 90 days.
Due to the large number of professional players involved across multiple leagues, the Dutch media has dubbed the incident a "passport scandal."
The Royal Dutch Football Association has actively urged all involved clubs to collaborate and find the best possible legal solution for the common good of the league system.
According to the Dutch version of ESPN, several involved parties are exploring avenues to help players who grew up in the Netherlands quickly obtain permanent residence permits.
"There is much hope that the affected players will be eligible to play again in the coming weeks, without being subject to the regulations for non-EU players," the site wrote.
