University Museum free during UIT, but not after that

Those who have a UU student card can visit the Botanic Gardens for free, but the same can't be said about the University Museum, which costs 7 euros per person – although it does offer a discount for students. Why is that? One of our readers asked us this question a while back. UU employees can visit both for free.

Both are public institutions aimed at a wide audience. The Botanic Gardens have plants from all over the world, as well as tropical greenhouses, a butterfly garden and an evolution garden. The University Museum, which reopened last year after a thorough redesign, covers animals, Medicine and Psychology. It also features labs where visitors can run experiments themselves.

Students could enter the museum for free before it closed for renovations. Since September 2023, that is no longer the case. According to spokesperson Marieke Verhoeven, this is due to the museum not serving an educational purpose. "In addition to being open to the public, the Botanic Gardens also serve educational and research purposes. The University Museum doesn't, which is advantageous to it from a financial point of view, as it can deduct VAT taxes charged by suppliers. The Botanic Gardens are not allowed to do that," explains Verhoeven.

She continues: "If the museum would give students free access, the tax rules would change and the institution would not be able to deduct as much VAT. Giving students free access would cost the museum much more than the tickets it currently gives away. That is why the museum agreed with the tax authorities that it would charge admission from students when reopening in September 2023." 

The tax rule mentioned above does not apply to UU employees, which explains why they can visit the museum for free. Verhoeven says it is a shame that students are not allowed to enter the museum free of charge, but data from before the redesign showed that students rarely went to the museum anyway. It should also be noted that, after the renovation, the museum is mostly targeted at families.

Students registered to participate in the introduction week (UIT) are allowed to visit the museum for free. Verhoeven: “They paid to come to UIT and a visit to the museum is part of the programme. The ticket is not ‘funded’ by the tuition fee, so it is not seen as an educational activity by the Tax Authorities.”