The Netherlands requires a residence permit for longer postings of non-EU workers

Check whether your Dutch assignment is a posting

This route is for a non-EU, non-EEA and non-Swiss worker sent to a Dutch client by an employer established elsewhere in the EU, EEA or Switzerland. You remain employed abroad. The Dutch government’s posting guidance says the employer must do substantial business in its country of establishment and that you must usually work there. Someone hired there and immediately sent on to the Netherlands should ask the employer to verify that the proposed arrangement qualifies.

A useful check is to ask who hired you, who directs the assignment and who contracted with the Dutch client. The Dutch government describes a service posting as a foreign company delivering an assignment under its own supervision. It also describes separate patterns for intra-group postings and agency work. If the Dutch client will hire you directly, confirm the rules for that employment with the IND before using a form for a posted worker.

Count the days and obtain the notification number

The Dutch posting portal says the foreign employer must report an eligible third-country worker before arrival. That includes short postings. For more than 90 days in a 180-day period, the portal also directs the employer to apply to the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service, or IND, for a cross-border service residence permit. Keep a record of earlier Dutch stays and run your proposed work dates past the employer before agreeing to an extension.

Ask the company to share the registration number and confirm that the notification covers the assignment actually agreed with the client. The IND employee form asks for that number. Your usual country’s residence and work permits must stay valid throughout the Dutch assignment. The Dutch permit is tied to the client and covers the length of the work up to two years. Check both expiry dates before planning any continuation.

The Dutch client checks the posted-worker notice through the same portal. The client has five working days after the assignment begins to complete the check. If the details are wrong, the client flags them and the employer receives a request to correct the filing. If your project dates change, tell your employer so the updated notice can also be checked.

Gather documents and check the entry visa rules

For an employee applying without a provisional entry visa, the IND links form 7522. The cross-border section asks for proof of the right to live and work in the employer’s country and a copy of the contract covering the temporary work. The form also asks for passport copies, including stamped pages, and a signed declaration about your record. Use the relevant appendix for the fingerprint and photo procedure.

The IND also gives a separate filing route for applicants who need a provisional entry visa, called an MVV. Its general MVV page explains how to check the exemptions. Start there if you and your employer are unsure which application to prepare. The IND cross-border permit page gives a 90-day decision period and says it can extend that period, for example if the application is incomplete.

Check the fee and your working conditions before departure

The IND fee table lists €85 for a standard first application and €85 for an extension under cross-border service provision. It lists €254 for a holder of EU long-term resident status in another member state. If your card has that status, confirm the applicable application and fee before sending the form. Keep enough time between the intended project start and the official decision for the required immigration steps.

The government’s employee guide says posted workers are entitled to core Dutch conditions such as minimum wages, rest breaks and paid leave. It says more favourable conditions in the country where you normally work continue to apply when they are better for the particular right. Ask for the pay and work schedule in writing and check whether a Dutch collective agreement applies. For a dispute the worker guide points to the trade union or Netherlands Labour Authority.