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Knowledge migrant

Would you like a highly educated foreign employee to come to the Netherlands to work for your company? That is possible! In this blog, you can read about the conditions under which a highly skilled migrant can work in the Netherlands.

Knowledge migrants with free access

It should be noted that knowledge migrants from certain countries are not required to have a visa, residence permit, or work permit. This applies to all countries that are part of the European Union, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. If you intend to bring highly skilled migrants over from one of these countries, the highly skilled migrant only needs a valid passport or identity card.

Knowledge migrants from outside Europe

If you want to bring over a highly skilled migrant who does not originate from one of the countries mentioned in the previous paragraph, stricter rules apply. They will need a visa and a residence permit. As the employer, you are responsible for requesting these documents from the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND). In addition, the employer must be recognized as a sponsor by the IND. Before allowing highly skilled migrants to come to the Netherlands, you must apply for this recognition as a sponsor. You, as a company, must meet several conditions to obtain this status, including a sufficient guarantee of the continuity and solvency of the organization, payment of the application fee, and reliability of the organization, the directors, and other (legal) persons involved. Even after your company has been recognized as a sponsor, there are several obligations you must fulfill, namely the duty of administration, the duty of information, and the duty of care.

Salaries of knowledge migrants

For you, as an employer, it is also relevant that the level of salaries for knowledge migrants has been determined to a certain extent. No distinction is made between the highly-skilled migrants with free access and the highly-skilled migrants from outside Europe. The salary established may differ per individual, depending on the age of the knowledge migrant and whether the specific case qualifies for a reduced salary criterion. The actual amounts can be found on the IND website. In any case, the highly skilled migrant’s income must be at least equal to the standard amount that applies to that highly skilled migrant. 

European Blue Card

Having a highly skilled migrant come over based on the European Blue Card is also possible. Different conditions apply to this than those discussed above. The EU Blue Card is a combined residence and work permit with a validity of 4 years. It is intended for highly skilled workers with a nationality from outside the EU, EEA, or Switzerland. In contrast to the residence permit mentioned above, the employer is not required to be a recognized sponsor when applying for an EU Blue Card. There are, however, a number of other conditions that must be met before the Blue Card is granted. Among other things, the employee must have entered into an employment agreement for at least 12 months, and the employee must have completed at least a 3-year bachelor’s program in higher education. In addition, in the case of an EU Blue Card, there is also a salary threshold that must be met. However, this is different from the criterion described in the previous paragraph.

When employing a highly skilled migrant, you can get tangled up in a maze of rules. Are you considering bringing a highly skilled migrant to the Netherlands? Then do not hesitate to contact Law & More. Our lawyers specialise in immigration law and will be happy to guide you through the steps to be taken. 

Law & More