Mayor Femke Halsema wants to officially remove the ban on sleeping outside in Amsterdam.
People sleeping outdoors have not received fines for the past year, but the mayor now wants to remove the offence from the city rulebook entirely.
Halsema called fining homeless individuals shameful in 2021, leading to a policy where fines were only issued if outdoor sleeping caused a nuisance.
Despite that change, authorities issued an estimated 1,800 fines between 2021 and 2024.
The mayor stated that fines fail to change behaviour and do not effectively prevent nuisance on the street.
Neighbourhood petition against the change
Residents in the Plantagebuurt have launched a petition opposing the formal removal of the ban.
Petitioners Dennis de Vreede and Job Schuring expressed concern that dropping the rule will encourage more people to sleep outside and lead to greater disruption.
The residents acknowledged that fines are ineffective because homeless people cannot pay them, but they warned that removing the legal basis leaves police unable to intervene when problems arise.
Schuring added that vulnerable people sleeping in tents during bad weather need direct help rather than neglect.
Focus on shelter and care
Bianca Koster of support organisation De Regenboog Groep agreed that fining rough sleepers accomplishes very little.
She noted that penalties merely target the visibility of homelessness instead of solving the underlying problem.
Koster argued that the city should focus on providing more emergency shelters, tailored care, and permanent housing rather than continuing to punish people on the street.
For more context on housing options, read our guide to social housing in Amsterdam.