 Kieftenbeld made his first appearance in international football for the Netherlands Beloftenelftal (Promises Team), an under-21 team providing a stepping-stone between the under-19 team and the full under-21 team, in March 2010. He played the first half of a 2 – 1 defeat in a friendly match against Slovenia U21. After Leroy Fer and Dirk Marcellis were requisitioned for the senior squad in August 2010, Kieftenbeld received his first under-21 call-up, and made his debut as a second-half substitute in a 2011 European Championship qualifier against Liechtenstein, He also played against Spain in September with the group already won: taking the field after 66 minutes, he was sent off 12 minutes later for a foul on Ander Herrera. He made his first start for the under-21s in a friendly against Denmark in November 2010, playing at right back in a 3 – 1 win; his through ball set up Bas Dost for the third goal. He played in two more U21 friendlies, against the Czech Republic and Germany, and was an unused substitute in four Euro 2013 qualifiers in 2011 and 2012. His last international appearances were at the 2012 Toulon Tournament, at which the Netherlands were represented by the Beloftenelftal; he played in four of their five matches.
