Dutch visas and residence permits: which route applies to your move?

Whether you need a Dutch visa depends on two things: your nationality and how long you will stay. For a visit of up to 90 days in any 180-day period a short-stay Schengen visa may be enough, and some nationalities do not even need that; for anything longer you need a residence permit, usually combined with an entry visa (machtiging tot voorlopig verblijf, MVV), unless you are an EU, EEA or Swiss national or come from one of the countries exempt from the MVV.

Do you need a visa, a residence permit or both?

Moving to the Netherlands involves two different documents, and confusing them is the most common source of delay. A short-stay visa covers visits; a residence permit covers living here.

A short-stay Schengen visa allows a stay of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. You apply for it at a Dutch embassy or consulate (or the visa service provider it uses), and it is not a route to living here: you cannot turn it into a residence permit from within the Netherlands. Anything longer requires a residence permit issued by the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND), and for most nationalities also an MVV, the entry visa that goes with it.

Nationals of EU and EEA member states and of Switzerland need neither. They may live and work here freely and only register with the municipality. Nationals of Australia, Canada, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, South Korea, the United Kingdom, the United States and Vatican City are exempt from the MVV, but they still need a residence permit to stay longer than 90 days. Everyone else needs both.

When is a short-stay Schengen visa enough?

A Schengen visa is enough for tourism, family visits, short business trips and conferences of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. It gives access to the whole Schengen area, which since 1 January 2025 consists of 29 countries.

• Purpose: tourism, visiting family or friends, short business trips, or attending a conference. A short-stay visa is not meant for living or settling here.
• Conditions: you must show the purpose of your visit, sufficient means to support yourself, and travel medical insurance covering at least 30,000 euros in medical costs in the whole Schengen area. You must also show that you intend to leave the Schengen area before your visa expires.
• Timing: under Article 9(1) of the EU Visa Code you can apply no more than six months, and as a rule no later than 15 calendar days, before the start of your trip. In practice it is wise to apply well before that last date.
• Where: you normally apply at the Dutch embassy or consulate in your country of residence, or at the visa service provider it works with. You fill out an application form and provide supporting documents; sometimes an interview follows.

Whether you need a Schengen visa at all depends on your nationality; nationals of many countries can visit the Schengen area for short stays without one. The Dutch government’s NetherlandsWorldwide website has a questionnaire that tells you what applies to you. Since 12 October 2025 the EU Entry/Exit System (EES) may record the data of non-EU travellers on a short stay. A separate online travel authorisation (ETIAS) is planned for visa-exempt travellers, but applications could not yet be made when this article was updated.

How do the MVV and the residence permit work together?

For stays longer than 90 days, most non-EU nationals need an MVV to enter and a residence permit to stay. Both are normally requested in one procedure, which your sponsor in the Netherlands starts.

The MVV is an entry visa that allows you to travel to the Netherlands to collect your residence permit. The application for the MVV and the residence permit is usually combined in the entry and residence procedure (Toegang en Verblijf, TEV). Your sponsor, such as an employer, an educational institution or a family member, normally submits the application to the IND. Once the IND approves it, you collect the MVV at the Dutch embassy or consulate and travel to the Netherlands.

The purpose of stay determines the conditions and cannot be changed casually. Work with a recognised sponsor, study, family reunification, self-employment and the orientation year for graduates each have their own requirements, fees and processing times. If your purpose changes, for example from study to work, you need a residence permit for the new purpose.

Which route applies if you come to work?

For most professionals the route is the highly skilled migrant permit, through an employer recognised by the IND. The EU Blue Card, the combined residence and work permit, the orientation year and the self-employed and start-up permits are the main alternatives.

Highly skilled migrant

Your employer must be a sponsor recognised by the IND and listed in its public register. You must earn at least the salary threshold the government sets every year, and your salary must be in line with the market rate for the job. For 2026 the IND lists these gross monthly amounts, excluding holiday allowance: 5,942 euros if you are 30 or older, 4,357 euros if you are younger than 30, and 3,122 euros under the reduced criterion for recent graduates and people coming from an orientation year.

EU Blue Card

The EU Blue Card does not require the employer to be a recognised sponsor. You need either a higher education diploma from a programme of at least three years that fits the job, or at least five years of relevant work experience at that level (three years for IT professionals). Your employment contract must be valid for at least six months. For 2026 the IND lists a salary threshold of 5,942 euros gross per month, or 4,754 euros for recent graduates.

Combined residence and work permit

Where neither route applies, the employer applies for a combined residence and work permit (gecombineerde vergunning voor verblijf en arbeid, GVVA). This adds a labour market test: according to UWV, the employer must first search for at least three months for a suitable candidate in the Netherlands, the EU/EEA or Switzerland, and report the vacancy at least five weeks before the application. That usually adds months to the process.

Orientation year

If you graduated in the Netherlands, or from a foreign university ranked in the top 200 by at least two of three recognised rankings (Times Higher Education, QS or ShanghaiRanking), you can apply for the orientation year permit (zoekjaar hoogopgeleiden). You must apply within three years of completing your studies. The permit is valid for one year, during which you may work freely without your employer needing a work permit. You can use it only once per completed programme.

Self-employment and start-ups

For self-employment, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) assesses your application on a points system covering your personal experience, your business plan and the added value for the Netherlands. American and Japanese nationals can rely on treaty rules with much lighter conditions, focused on an investment in the business. The start-up permit gives a founder of an innovative business at most one year to develop it, under the guidance of a reliable mentor (facilitator); after that you can apply for the self-employed permit if you meet its conditions.

What applies if you come to study?

To study at a Dutch university or university of applied sciences for more than 90 days you need a student residence permit. Only the educational institution, as recognised sponsor, can apply for it on your behalf.

• Purpose: full-time study at a recognised Dutch institution.
• Conditions: you need a letter of acceptance and must show that you have sufficient funds for the duration of your studies, measured against the IND income requirements for students.
• Procedure: the institution applies to the IND. Once the application is approved, you collect your MVV (if you need one) at the Dutch embassy and then travel to the Netherlands to collect your residence permit.
• Work alongside your studies: as an employee you may work up to 16 hours a week, or full-time in June, July and August. Your employer needs a work permit (TWV) for you. Self-employment is possible without a TWV if you register with the Chamber of Commerce and keep making study progress.

How does family reunification work?

A family reunification permit lets you join a partner or other family member who lives in the Netherlands. The sponsor must have Dutch nationality or a valid Dutch residence permit and, in most cases, sufficient and lasting income.

• Purpose: to live with a partner who is a Dutch citizen or holds a valid Dutch residence permit. Married, registered and unmarried partners can all qualify, each with their own evidence requirements.
• Income: the sponsor’s income must be sufficient, measured against the amount the IND publishes (for a partner, 2,337 euros gross per month according to the IND in 2026, excluding holiday allowance), and sustainable, which in principle means a contract valid for at least another 12 months.
• Civic integration: in most cases the partner must pass the civic integration exam abroad before the MVV application.
• Procedure: the sponsor in the Netherlands usually starts the application with the IND. The IND has a decision period of 90 days, which it can extend.

Some residence permits, such as those for au pairs, working holiday and seasonal work, do not allow you to bring a partner.

Which documents do you need, and how long does it take?

You need a valid passport and the documents that prove the conditions of your route. Official foreign documents often need legalisation and, unless they are in Dutch, English, French or German, a translation.

Foreign civil status documents such as birth certificates, marriage certificates and single status declarations generally have to be legalised before the IND accepts them. Documents in another language than Dutch, English, French or German must be translated into one of those languages; a translation made in the Netherlands must be done by a translator sworn in by a Dutch court. Obtaining and legalising documents in the country of origin often takes longer than the IND’s own procedure, so start early.

The IND must decide on a regular application within 90 days and may extend that period if further investigation is needed (Article 25 of the Aliens Act 2000, Vreemdelingenwet 2000). Applications filed by a recognised sponsor go through an accelerated procedure. Check the current IND fee and conditions before you file, because an incomplete application is refused.

What do you arrange in the first weeks after arrival?

Register with your municipality within five days of arrival if you will live here for more than four months. That registration gives you a citizen service number (BSN), which you need for almost everything else.

• Municipality: registration in the Personal Records Database (Basisregistratie Personen, BRP) is compulsory if you will live in the Netherlands for longer than four months, and must take place within five days of arrival.
• BSN: the citizen service number is required for a bank account, health insurance, your salary and contact with the tax authorities.
• Health insurance: if you live or work in the Netherlands you must in principle take out Dutch health insurance within four months. If you take it out later, you are not insured retroactively.
• Residence permit: if you entered with an MVV, collect your residence permit at the IND as instructed in your approval letter.

How do you keep your right of residence?

A residence permit is granted for a limited period and for a specific purpose. Apply for an extension before the expiry date on your residence card and keep meeting the conditions of your permit; a late application can be treated as a new first application.

A gap in lawful residence has consequences. For a permanent residence permit you need at least five consecutive years of lawful residence with a valid permit, you must always have extended your permit in time, and you must have passed the civic integration exam or be exempt from it. A late extension can therefore cost you years towards permanent residence or naturalisation.

What should you check as the applicant?

Check that your route matches your actual purpose and that your documents are complete. These points prevent most refusals and delays.

• Check whether you need an MVV or are exempt because of your nationality.
• Check that your salary or income meets the IND amount that applies on the application date.
• Have civil status documents legalised and, where needed, translated by a sworn translator before the application is filed.
• Register with the municipality within five days of arrival and take out Dutch health insurance within four months.
• Note the expiry date of your permit and apply for an extension before it.

What should you check as an employer or sponsor?

As a sponsor you take on legal duties towards the IND. If you employ a foreign national without the right to work, the Labour Inspectorate can fine you under the Wav.

• Check whether you are recognised as a sponsor by the IND, which is required for the highly skilled migrant route.
• Check that the agreed salary meets the 2026 threshold and the market rate for the job.
• Check the right to work on the residence document before the first working day and keep a copy in your records.
• Report relevant changes, such as the end of employment, to the IND within four weeks.
• For a GVVA, report the vacancy to UWV at least five weeks before the application.

What can we do for you with a visa or residence permit?

Our immigration lawyers assist individuals, families and employers with regular migration to the Netherlands.

• We determine which residence route fits your purpose of stay and whether you need an MVV.
• We check your documents and the income or salary requirement before the application is filed.
• We prepare the application for recognition as a sponsor, or the application for a family member.
• We draft the objection (bezwaar) to a refusal and file it with the IND within the four-week deadline.
• We ask the court for a provisional ruling (voorlopige voorziening) if you may not await the objection in the Netherlands.

Summary

• A Schengen visa covers stays of up to 90 days in any 180-day period; living here requires a residence permit.
• Most non-EU nationals also need an MVV, except nationals of Australia, Canada, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, South Korea, the United Kingdom, the United States and Vatican City; EU, EEA and Swiss nationals need neither.
• Your purpose of stay decides the conditions: highly skilled migrant, EU Blue Card, GVVA, orientation year, self-employment, study or family.
• Register with the municipality within five days of arrival if you stay longer than four months, and arrange health insurance in time.
• Extend your permit in time: gaps count against the five years needed for permanent residence.

Frequently asked questions