New rules covering debt registration in the Netherlands do not go far enough and thousands of people remain on the official list of debtors, even though they have paid off all they owe, the Dutch privacy watchdog Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens said on Tuesday.

The credit registry Bureau Krediet Registratie currently maintains a note next to the names of people who have cleared their debts for five years, and this makes it difficult for them to apply for a new loan or a mortgage, the AP said.

“This has led to idiotic situations,” said AP board member Katja Mur. “Perhaps a debt collection agency was brought in because you were late in paying for a Playstation years ago, and now you can’t get a mortgage. This is out of all proportion.”

The new rules will reduce the five year notification period to three, but that does not go far enough, Mur said. “The BKR should have nothing on you if you have paid your debts,” she said. “If you have cleared your debts, why should you remain in the register?”

Some 10 million names are included in the BKR register, which includes people who have been in the red with their bank and been behind with loan repayments, as well as the size and duration of all loans.

A legal industry has sprung up to help people remove their names from the register. “Our experience is that they always say no,” Deepak Thakoerdien from legal advice bureau Dynamiet Nederland told broadcaster NOS. “They only start moving when we threaten them with legal action.”

The AP is also concerned that subscriptions to streaming services such as Neflix may also be included in the register, pointing out that the new regulations do not exclude this from happening.

Two years ago the BKR said it wanted to include all mortgages in its registers, not just those in arrears. It also wants to add in student debts.

The register currently lists arrears of at least three months with banks and mortgage providers, defacto loans for mobile phones and debts with other official credit agencies.