In the Netherlands the standards concerning the legal bindingness of advance decisions are codified in the "Termination of Life on Request and Assisted Suicide (Review Procedures) Act" which came into effect in 2002. The attending physician is obliged to ascertain whether there is an advance decision of the affected patient by means of a central register. Under adherence to the legal diligence criteria, Dutch physicians are allowed to assist patients in suicide or provide them with active euthanasia.