Deposits go missing at the exact moment a tenant has the least leverage: keys handed back, a new place already paid for, and no obvious way to apply pressure. The statutory deadline and the question of which body handles deposit disputes are what turn a stalled email chain into a process.
Fourteen days — that's the statutory norm since the 2023 deposit-cap law, which also capped waarborgsom at twice the base rent. It can stretch to 30 days if the landlord's genuinely calculating damage or arrears deductions, but silence past that isn't normal. If you handed the keys back with no arrears and the place in decent condition, send a written demand — aangetekende brief (registered letter) works best — citing the 14-day rule, giving a short deadline, and noting you'll add wettelijke rente (statutory interest) if it drags on. Keep your move-out photos and any inspection report handy, since the burden of proving damage sits with the landlord, not you. If that letter gets ignored, the kantonrechter handles deposit disputes (not the Huurcommissie) — it's a low-threshold small-claims process, no lawyer strictly required.