Expat worker rights in the Netherlands: employment, dismissal and permits

As an expat employee in the Netherlands, you have the same employment rights as a Dutch colleague: Dutch employment law does not distinguish by nationality. The one real difference arises if your residence permit depends on your job, because then losing that job also affects your right to stay.

In practice you are protected against dismissal without a valid reason, you keep receiving at least 70 percent of your salary when you are ill, and you are entitled to paid holiday and a holiday allowance. Below we explain the main rules, where expats run into problems and what you can do if something goes wrong.

Does Dutch employment law apply to you?

If you normally work in the Netherlands, Dutch employment law generally applies, even if your contract was signed abroad or names another country’s law. Under Article 8 of the Rome I Regulation, a choice of foreign law cannot take away the protection of the mandatory Dutch rules.

The core rules are in Title 10 of Book 7 of the Dutch Civil Code (BW), on wetten.overheid.nl. Most are mandatory, so a contract with less favourable terms does not bind you. Before you start work you must register with the municipality (gemeente) to receive a citizen service number (BSN), which your employer needs for payroll.

How do you get permission to work in the Netherlands?

If you are a national of the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, you do not need a permit to work. Other nationals usually need a residence permit that allows work, most often the highly skilled migrant permit, which your employer applies for.

The highly skilled migrant route has two key conditions. Your employer must be a recognised sponsor (erkend referent) with the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND), and your salary must meet the income threshold that the IND sets each year. Your employer submits the application through the accelerated procedure for recognised sponsors.

A sponsor must keep records and inform the IND of relevant changes, such as the end of your employment. If it fails to do so, the IND can impose a fine or withdraw the recognition.

What salary do you need as a highly skilled migrant?

For 2026 the IND requires a gross monthly salary of at least EUR 5,942 if you are 30 or older, and EUR 4,357 if you are under 30. A reduced threshold of EUR 3,122 applies to recent graduates, for example after an orientation year.

These amounts are gross per month, excluding the holiday allowance. The IND adjusts them every year on 1 January, and the threshold applies not only to the first application, but also to an extension and to a change of employer. Your contract must show a salary that meets the threshold for your age group; it is one of the first things the IND checks. You can check the current figures on the IND page on income requirements.

The EU Blue Card is an alternative route with its own salary threshold and conditions, such as a recognised higher education qualification. Which route suits you depends on your education, your salary and your plans. Our article on the work visa requirements in the Netherlands explains the process step by step.

What does the good employer principle mean for you?

Your employer must act as a good employer (goed werkgever) under Article 7:611 BW, in hiring, day-to-day management and when the employment ends. That does not allow your employer to change your salary or hours at will.

A unilateral change requires a written change clause and a serious employer interest that outweighs yours (Article 7:613 BW). Without such a clause, a change requires your consent, or a proposal so reasonable that refusing it would itself be unreasonable.

Does a collective labour agreement apply to you?

A collective labour agreement (cao) applies if your employer is a member of the signing employers’ organisation, or if the Minister of Social Affairs and Employment has declared it generally binding for the sector. Many cao’s give more holiday, supplement sick pay to 100 percent in the first year or include a pension scheme; your contract should state which cao applies.

What must your employment contract contain?

Your employer must give you the key terms in writing, the most important items within one week of your first working day (Article 7:655 BW). These include your salary and pay date, working hours, job description, notice period, holiday entitlement and whether a cao and pension scheme apply; if they are missing, the subdistrict court (kantonrechter) can order your employer to provide them.

How long can fixed-term contracts continue?

Your employer may offer at most three consecutive fixed-term contracts within three years. A fourth contract, or a chain longer than 36 months, becomes a permanent contract (Article 7:668a BW); a gap of more than six months breaks the chain, and a cao may deviate for certain functions.

The Senate adopted the Act on more security for flexible workers (Wet meer zekerheid flexwerkers) on 7 July 2026. From 1 January 2028 the gap needed to break a chain becomes three years and zero-hours contracts are replaced by contracts with a minimum and maximum number of hours; equal terms for agency workers apply from 31 December 2026.

Under the current rules, an employer who calls you in on a zero-hours or min-max contract must give at least four days’ notice (Article 7:628a BW). After twelve months, the employer must offer a contract with fixed hours based on the average hours worked.

How long can a trial period be?

A trial period (proeftijd) must be agreed in writing and is not allowed for a contract of six months or less (Article 7:652 BW). The maximum is one month for a fixed-term contract shorter than two years and two months for a longer or permanent contract; a longer trial period is void in its entirety.

When is a non-compete clause valid?

A non-compete clause (concurrentiebeding) must be agreed in writing (Article 7:653 BW). In a fixed-term contract it is only valid if the employer explains in writing which substantial business interests require it, and the court can set aside or limit any clause that unfairly restricts you.

What salary are you entitled to?

You are entitled at least to the statutory hourly minimum wage, adjusted on 1 January and 1 July (current amounts on government.nl), plus a holiday allowance (vakantiebijslag) of at least 8 percent of your gross salary. There is no general legal right to overtime pay; the Working Hours Act (Arbeidstijdenwet) caps work at 12 hours per shift and 60 hours in a single week.

As a highly skilled migrant (kennismigrant), your salary must also meet the IND income requirement, which is updated every year. If your salary drops below it, for example because your hours are reduced, your residence permit may be at risk.

The 30% ruling lets your employer pay part of your salary tax-free. It is handled by the Belastingdienst, its conditions depend on when the ruling started, and for your tax position you should consult a tax adviser.

How much holiday and leave do you get?

You are entitled to at least four times your weekly working hours in paid holiday per year, 20 days for a five-day week (Article 7:634 BW). Statutory days expire six months after the year in which you built them up, unless you could not reasonably take them (Article 7:640a BW); extra days expire after five years.

Under the Work and Care Act (Wazo), pregnant employees receive at least 16 weeks of pregnancy and maternity leave, paid by UWV at 100 percent up to the maximum daily wage. The partner gets one week of birth leave with full pay, then up to five weeks of additional birth leave at 70 percent from UWV.

Each parent is entitled to parental leave (ouderschapsverlof) of 26 times the weekly hours until the child turns eight. Nine of those weeks are paid by UWV at 70 percent of the daily wage if taken in the child’s first year.

What happens to your salary when you are ill?

Your employer must continue to pay at least 70 percent of your salary for up to 104 weeks, and at least the minimum wage in the first 52 weeks (Article 7:629 BW). Many cao’s pay 100 percent in the first year.

You work with the company doctor (bedrijfsarts) and your employer on a plan for your return to work; refusing reasonable reintegration efforts without good reason can lead to suspension of your salary. During the first two years of illness your employer may not dismiss you on account of that illness (Article 7:670 BW).

Are you protected against discrimination?

Yes. The General Equal Treatment Act (Algemene wet gelijke behandeling) prohibits distinction on grounds such as nationality, race, religion, sex and sexual orientation, and separate acts cover age, disability, chronic illness, working hours and contract type. The Netherlands Institute for Human Rights (College voor de Rechten van de Mens) can give an opinion on a complaint.

Your employer must also have a policy on undesirable behaviour under the Working Conditions Act (Arbowet). The Whistleblower Protection Act (Wet bescherming klokkenluiders) protects you against retaliation if you report wrongdoing.

Can your employer simply dismiss you?

No. Your employer needs a reasonable ground listed in Article 7:669 BW and, as a rule, prior permission from UWV (economic redundancy, long-term incapacity) or a decision of the subdistrict court (for example poor performance, culpable conduct or a disrupted working relationship).

The employer must prove the ground and show that reassignment to another suitable position is not possible. For poor performance, the employer must have told you in good time what was wrong and given you a real opportunity to improve; courts regularly reject requests because the file is too thin.

Summary dismissal (ontslag op staande voet) requires an urgent reason, such as theft or fraud, communicated immediately (Articles 7:677 and 7:678 BW). You can challenge it in court within two months (Article 7:686a BW).

What notice period and severance apply?

Your employer must observe a notice period of one to four months depending on your length of service (Article 7:672 BW); you normally give one month. In the UWV route the procedure time may be deducted from the notice period, provided at least one month remains.

If your employer ends the employment or does not renew a fixed-term contract, you are entitled to a transition payment (transitievergoeding) of one third of a monthly salary per year of service (Article 7:673 BW). In 2026 the maximum is €102,000, or one annual salary if that is higher. If your employer acted in a seriously culpable way, the court can award an additional fair compensation (billijke vergoeding).

Should you sign a settlement agreement?

Many employment relationships end with a settlement agreement (vaststellingsovereenkomst). After signing you have 14 days to withdraw without giving reasons; if the agreement does not mention this right, the period is three weeks (Article 7:670b BW).

To protect your unemployment benefit, the agreement should state that the initiative came from the employer, that you are not to blame and that the notice period is observed. If your permit is linked to your job, also check the end date against your search period.

Are you entitled to unemployment benefit?

You can receive unemployment benefit (WW) from UWV if you worked at least 26 of the 36 weeks before you became unemployed. The benefit is 75 percent of your previous daily wage for the first two months and 70 percent after that, up to a maximum, for three to 24 months depending on your work history; resigning without an urgent reason usually means no benefit.

What happens to your residence permit if you lose your job?

As a highly skilled migrant you generally have a search period (zoekperiode) of three months to find a new job with a recognised sponsor. Your employer, as recognised sponsor (erkend referent), must report the end of your employment to the IND within four weeks.

EU, EEA and Swiss nationals do not need a residence or work permit, but must register with the municipality if they stay longer than four months. Non-EU nationals generally need a permit that allows work, and often a work permit (tewerkstellingsvergunning) from UWV unless an exception such as the highly skilled migrant scheme applies. The partner of a highly skilled migrant may usually work without a separate work permit; see our article on the partner of a highly skilled migrant.

What should you check as an expat employee?

Most disputes can be prevented by checking these points early and in writing.

• Does your contract state your salary, hours, notice period and the applicable cao?
• Does your salary meet the IND threshold for your permit, also after a change in hours?
• Is the trial period or non-compete clause valid under Articles 7:652 and 7:653 BW?
• Have you calculated your transition payment and checked the 14-day withdrawal period?
• Do you know the end date of your employment and of your three-month search period?

What should you check as an employer of expats?

An employer of international staff carries both employment and sponsor obligations.

• Do you provide the written terms within one week of the first working day (Article 7:655 BW)?
• Does the salary stay above the IND threshold throughout the employment?
• Do you report the end of employment to the IND within four weeks?
• Do you have a dismissal file that supports a ground under Article 7:669 BW?
• Do you pay salary on time, avoiding the statutory increase of up to 50 percent (Article 7:625 BW)?

What can we do for you with your rights as an expat worker?

Our employment lawyers advise expats and international employers in English, together with our immigration lawyers where your permit is involved. For housing, family and business questions after your move, see our expat legal services.

• We review your employment contract or settlement agreement within the 14-day withdrawal period.
• We calculate your transition payment and assess a claim for fair compensation.
• We draft a demand for unpaid salary, including the statutory increase.
• We challenge a summary dismissal before the subdistrict court within the two-month deadline.
• We check how a dismissal or change in terms affects your residence permit and search period.

Summary

• As an expat you have the same employment rights as Dutch employees, and mandatory Dutch law cannot be excluded by a foreign contract.
• Your employer needs a statutory ground and permission from UWV or the court to dismiss you.
• When ill, you receive at least 70 percent of your salary for up to two years and cannot be dismissed for that illness.
• Deadlines are short: two months to challenge a summary dismissal, three months for a dispute about a transition payment.
• If your permit depends on your job, plan the end date and the three-month search period carefully.

Frequently asked questions