On Tuesday 26 May 2026, Steve Heylen of Belgium was elected new President of the European Association of Registrars (EVS). The election took place in Ostend during the organization’s annual congress, which was hosted in Belgium this year. On 1 June, he will succeed Simon Rijsdijk of the Netherlands, who is retiring. Steve Heylen has already served as Vice-President of the association since 2018 and has been a board member since 2010. As President, he intends to focus on cooperation, substantive strengthening and closer European connections within the field of civil status and family law.
In his first remarks, Steve Heylen expressed his sincere gratitude for the confidence placed in him by the members. He described the presidency as both an honour and a challenging responsibility. In his view, despite its modest scale, the EVS faces important European challenges. “Together with the board and the members, I want to continue building a strong EVS that brings professionals, knowledge and countries in Europe even closer together,” he said in his acceptance speech. At the same time, Heylen paid tribute to the work of his predecessors. He referred with appreciation to several former leading figures of the association, including Cees Meesters, Paride Gullini and Jürgen Rast, and paid special tribute to Simon Rijsdijk, who has helped shape the EVS in recent years.
The new President stressed that he does not want to take on this responsibility alone. He said he looks forward to working with Vice-Presidents Kristi Kail of Estonia and newly elected Renzo Calvigioni of Italy, as well as with Secretary General Gerhard Bangert of Germany. He counts on the proposals of the EVS expert committee to tackle the substantive challenges for registrars in their daily tasks.
Looking ahead, Heylen sees several clear priorities for the years to come. He wants to further strengthen the EVS membership base, preserve the association’s congresses as a place for meeting and exchanging knowledge, and continue exploring ways to keep those gatherings feasible and accessible. He also wants to broaden the EVS network by deepening contacts with other European countries and strengthening cooperation with the ICCS/CIEC and the European Commission. With a strong focus on human rights, which were central to the congress in Ostend, and on services to citizens, he aims to help advance further harmonization in civil status and family law across Europe.