# More young adults end up as organ donors by default

> On 1 January 2026, 8.2 million adults were in the Donorregister, and the rise comes from people who made no choice, Statistics Netherlands (CBS) figures show.

Society · published 2026-10-28 05:52 · https://nlnow.nl/a/more-young-adults-end-up-as-organ-donors-by-default/

More than 90,000 more adults were registered as organ donors in the Donorregister on 1 January 2026 than a year earlier, bringing the total to 8.2 million, CBS says. The growth is driven by people who made no choice, above all 18- to 25-year-olds.

Adults who make no choice are registered automatically as 'no objection' to organ donation. That now covers 3.4 million people (25%). Another 4.8 million (34%) have given consent, so 58% of adults are registered as donors. A further 1.5 million (11%) let a relative or other close person decide, and 4.4 million (31%) do not give consent.

The number registered as 'no objection' has risen in recent years, while the number giving consent has been falling for longer.

**The 'no objection' share has risen most among 18- to 25-year-olds since 2022** (% of each age group registered as 'no objection', 1 January; source: CBS)

- 18 to 25: 36.4 to 43.1
- 25 to 35: 31.3 to 31.6
- 35 to 45: 26.9 to 27.8
- 45 to 55: 23.5 to 24.1
- 55 to 65: 19.4 to 20.8
- 65 to 75: 14.3 to 15.3
- 75 and older: 15.6 to 13.9

Young people choose less often than older people. The 'no objection' share rose in 2026 in every age group up to 75, and the increase was strongest among 18- to 25-year-olds, at 1.9 percent. Among young people it has been rising since 2022.

Children aged 12 to 18 can also register, but those who make no choice are not listed as 'no objection', unlike adults. On 1 January 2026, 5,000 children had made a choice, against 15,000 in 2022. Just over 1,000 gave consent and 3,600 did not.

Residents of Amsterdam and Urk, municipalities with relatively many young people, make a choice least often: about a third are registered as 'no objection'. Groningen and Rozendaal have the highest share of registered donors (68%), followed by Wageningen (67%). Neder-Betuwe has the lowest (43%).

People can change their registration at any time. In 2025, 73,000 did so, almost 10,000 more than a year earlier. The largest group, 21,500, moved from 'no objection' to 'no consent'. Another 16,000 went from 'consent' to 'no consent', and 14,000 chose consent.

## Background

- **Donorregister**: The Donorregister is the Dutch national register where people record whether they agree to donate their organs and tissue after death, or refuse to. Hospitals check it when a donation is considered, so the entry counts for the decision. It matters because people who have not made a choice are also recorded in the register under the rules set by law, which affects how many donors are counted.

From NLnow, news from the Netherlands in English. How stories are made: https://nlnow.nl/about/