Employment Based Visas in the Netherlands

There are several employment based visas in the Netherlands. Below is an outline of the most common employment visas including information on the conditions that must be met, the length of the application procedure, and the initial validity of the relevant permit.

Highly Skilled Migrant Visa

Any application for a highly skilled migrant visa must be made on your behalf by your employer. There is no IND policy on the exact qualifications needed to be a highly skilled migrant, so it is up to employers to set out recruitment qualifications. Highly skilled migrants typically have a high level of education and have specialized knowledge on a particular subject.

Conditions

1. You have a valid employment contract with an employer in the Netherlands who is listed on the IND recognized sponsor list.
2. Your gross salary must meet the criteria as determined by your age. The following amounts are valid for 2024 and are subject to yearly adjustment. For individuals 30 years old and older, the salary must be €5.331,00 per month, exclusive of 8% holiday allowance. For individuals under the age of the 30, the salary must be € 3.909,00 per month. Individuals who held a search year visa the year preceding their application must earn € 2.801,00 per month. PhD students can be eligible for an exemption from the salary requirements.
3. The salary you receive must be considered a reasonable level of compensation for the job function you perform. A professional with a similar job title in the Netherlands should earn an amount comparable to your salary.
4. The salary must be paid out to your bank account on a monthly basis. Not adhering to this rule can lead to strict consequences.

Length of Application Procedure

Two to three weeks, subject to extension by the IND

Permit validity period

The permit will be valid for the length of your job contract, up to a maximum of 5 years. The period can be extended so long as you continue to fulfill the conditions. After you have lived in the Netherlands for 5 years, you may be eligible to apply for permanent residence. See: permanent residence.

European Blue Card

The European Blue Card applies to highly qualified migrants in the Netherlands. The European Blue Card differs from the Highly Skilled Migrant visa in two important ways. First, the salary requirement is higher for a Blue Card holder than for a Highly Skilled Migrant. Second, while the employer of a Highly Skilled Migrant must be a recognized sponsor, the employer of a Blue Card holder does not necessarily have to be (although the application decision will often be made faster if they are).

The European Blue Card is currently (early in 2024) undergoing important changes because the EU directive which forms the basis of the policy has been amended. This directive will likely soon be implemented in the Netherlands. Below are the conditions as they can still be found in the existing, national legislation. If you are interested, please read our article on these changes. We will update this article once the new rules have come into force.

Conditions

1. The employee must hold a valid employment contract for work in the Netherlands with an employment term of at least 6 months.
2. The employee must be a graduate of a 3 year higher education program that relates to the job the employee does.
3. The gross salary of the employee must be at least €6.245,00 per month plus 8% holiday allowance (this amount is valid in 2024 and is subject to change). The salary must be strictly be paid out on a monthly basis.
4. The company must not have received a tax fine or fine for violating the Foreign Nationals Employment Act within the 5 years prior to the application.

Length of Application Procedure

The IND will decide on the application within 90 days.

Permit validity period

This visa is valid for 3 months after the last date on your employment contract, up to a maximum of 4 years. The permit can be extended so long as the conditions remain fulfilled.

Intra-Corporate Transfer Permit

The intra-corporate transfer permit is available for employees who live outside of the EU, EEA, or Switzerland and who want to move within their company to work at their company’s Dutch office. The permit can be obtained for trainees, managers, or specialists.

Conditions

1. The employee lives outside of the EU at the time of the application
2. The employee will work for the company in the Netherlands either as a manager, specialist or trainee.
3. The employee has worked for the company for at least 3 months prior to the application
4. The employee has a valid work contract including details on the length of the stay in the Netherlands, the salary, the work conditions, etc.
5. The employee has a salary that is in line with the market level. If the salary is at least equal to the thresholds mentioned in the Highly Skilled Migrant policy (see above) such remuneration is deemed to be competitive, and it will simplify application procedures if the salary indeed complies with those benchmarks.
6. The employee has reasonable qualifications and experience for the job they will be doing. If the employee is a trainee, they must hold a master-level education.
7. The company must not have received a tax fine or fine for violating the Foreign Nationals Employment Act within the 5 years prior to the application.

Length of Application Procedure

The IND aims to make a decision within 90 days of submitting the application.

Permit validity period

This permit is valid for one year if the employee is a trainee. For managers and specialists, the permit can be granted for up to three years. Stay under this policy, however, is strictly temporary in nature, and does not count towards obtaining the EU Long Term residence permit.

Startup Visa

The startup visa is for non-EU nationals who wish to run a business within the Netherlands.

 Conditions

1. You must own at least 25% of the share capital of the business.
2. Your idea must be innovative. Innovativeness can be mean that your product is unique or that you have an inventive organizational structure or workflow.
3. You must have a summary business plan (step-by-step plan) that includes, among other things, details on the structure of the organization, an explanation of the essential personnel, details on how the business fills a gap in the Dutch market, and steps on how the business will become operational in the Netherlands.
4. Your business must be registered within the Dutch Chamber of Commerce (KVK).
5. You must work with a business facilitator in the Netherlands. This facilitator must have a KVK number, have experience with guiding startups, and be financially stable. The facilitator cannot be a family member of the applicant. A list of eligible facilitators in the Netherlands can be found here.
6. You must have sufficient money to stay in the Netherlands without reliance on public funds. A sufficient income, in this case, is equivalent to “70% of the standard amount for single persons under the Minimum Wage Act”. As of 1 July 2022, the minimum wage is €1,756.20 per month, meaning your required income would be €1,229.34 per month. If you wish to support dependent family members in the Netherlands, the income threshold is higher.  Your financially stability must be proven with bank statements.

Length of application procedure

The IND aims to make a decision within 90 days of submitting the application.

Permit validity period

The permit is initially valid for a period of one year, after which one can apply for a self-employment visa (see below). In assessing your eligibility for the self-employment visa, the IND will consider your facilitator’s evaluation of your involvement in the business. It is important that your facilitator provides a report stating that you have been actively participating in the business for at least three months.

Self-Employment Visa

A self-employment visa is meant for individuals who wish to work in the Netherlands as a freelancer or business owner and do not qualify under the startup visa because the business is not innovative or you do not work together with a facilitator (see above).

Conditions

1. You must have a sufficient income from your business activities. This means you must be able to afford to live and work in the Netherlands without reliance on public funds.
2. Your services must be of interest to the Dutch economy. The IND will assess whether your work meets this threshold by looking at your personal experience, your business plan, and your arguments for why the service does add value to the Netherlands. The business plan must be thoroughly documented and researched and should perform a meticulous assessment as to why you should be admitted. To read more about this assessment, please see this article: self employment visa.

Length of Application Procedure

90 days, subject to extension by the IND

Permit validity period

The permit will be valid for a period of 2 years. The visa can be extended if you can prove you have a sustainable income from these business activities.

Search Year Permit

The Search Year visa is a residence permit that allows certain graduates to the live in the Netherlands for 12 months. With a Search Year visa you are allowed to work in the Netherlands, and you can travel throughout the entire Schengen area without the need of a visa. Transferring to another type of employment based residence permit after the is also easier if you have a Search Year Visa. For more information on the Search Year visa, please visit our site www.searchyear.co.uk.

Conditions

If you meet any of the below conditions, you are eligible for a Search Year: 

1. You have obtained a degree for higher education at a bachelor or master's level from a Dutch university.
2. You have completed a postdoctoral education of at least 12 months in the Netherlands.
3. You have performed scientific research in the Netherlands on the basis of a scientific researcher permit or a highly skilled migrant visa.
4. You ahve obtained a master's degree, PhD, or post doctorate from a foreign university which ranked within the global top 200 in the year that you graduated.

In addition to meeting one of the above conditons, you must meet the following conditions:

1. Your diploma must have been obtained recently and in any case no longer than three years prior to the day you apply for the Search Year Visa.
2. You must show your basic proficiency in the English language. If your university education was completed in English, then you automatically fulfil this requirement. If your university degree was not completed in English, you will need to prove your English proficiency by showing that you obtained a 6.0 or higher score in the International English Language Testing System, Cambridge English test, TOEFL, TOEIC, or equivalent English language test.

Length of Application Procedure

The IND aims to make a decision within 90 days of submitting the application.

Permit validity period

This visa is valid for one year. The visa cannot be extended. However, it is possible to apply for a second Search Year if you first became eligible for the second Search Year after the expiry of the first Search Year. For example, you could be eligible for a Search Year visa after you complete your master’s degree and then again after having completed a PhD.

Questions?

Do you have questions on any of these employment based residence permits in the Netherlands? Mynta Law has experience handling these types of applications and can similarly guide you through the application process. Please contact us today.