Employment contracts in the Netherlands may be oral or written. They may either be indefinite or for a fixed term, which may not be longer than three years. The major provisions of an employment contract are:

• the term of the contract if it is for a fixed term,

• the workplace,

• salary details,

• working hours and overtime,

• termination notice period,

• the employee’s duties, and

• whether a collective labor agreement applies.

In the Netherlands, the minimum wage (wettelijk brutominimumloon) for employees 21 years and over is € 2,317.83 per month.

The standard working week in the Netherlands may be no longer than 45 hours. This is commonly 40 hours per week of 8 hours per day over 5 days.

Overtime

If work time limits are passed, overtime compensation is compulsory. The maximum number of overtime hours is per the employee’s collective agreement/employment contract.

Remote Work

While it is not a legal right, employees may request to work (partly) from home under the Flexible Working Act, particularly if they have concerns regarding their health. As an employer, you must have valid reasons for rejecting such a request, such as scheduling conflicts or the inability to perform work duties elsewhere. Additionally, specific conditions must be met for employees to work from home, including having at least 10 employees, being employed for a minimum of six months, and submitting a written request at least two months before the intended start date.

To ensure safe and proper working conditions, health and safety regulations apply, and you should provide information and a suitable workspace for employees. Work from home compensation is not required by law, but the employer can give employees who work from home an untaxed allowance of up to EUR 2.15 per day as of 2023 — even if employees work at home for part of the day. However, there is an important exception to this. Employers may only provide one of the two allowances: either the tax-free work-from-home allowance, or the mileage allowance of EUR 0.23 per kilometer. The employee cannot have both allowances at the same time.

If an employee is unfit to work due to illness, the employer is obliged to pay at least 70% of their last earned wages plus holiday allowance up to a maximum of two years. Which concrete percentage applies depends on the content of the employment contract and/or CLA provisions. It is possible to pay a higher percentage of wage (normal in the Netherlands is first year 100%).

The employer must pay 70% of the employee’s regular wages during the first year of illness (capped at 70% of the Dutch maximum premium wage) If this is less than the minimum wage, then a supplement is required up to the minimum wage amount, 1,995 Euros per month ( July 2023)

During the second year of illness the employer must pay 70% of the employee’s regular wages. There is no need to supplement if the amount is less than the minimum wage.

It is common practice (and, as such, is set out in most CLAs) to pay 100 % of the full salary during the first year of illness and 70 % of the full salary during the second year.

Maternity Leave

A pregnant employee is entitled to 16 weeks of paid maternity leave; maternity leave consists of two periods: prenatal leave and postnatal leave.

Prenatal leave: An employee must take 4-6 weeks leave before the expected due date (zwangerschapsverlof).

Postnatal leave: A employee must take the remaining 10-12 weeks (bevallingsverlof) which starts from the date of the birth of the child.

Maternity pay is 100% of the workers daily wage based on the previous years average earnings, capped at 256.54 Euros per day. Employers will make the payment but can reclaim a portion of it from The Employee Insurance Agency (Uitvoeringsinstituut Werknemersverzekeringen, UWV).

In the event that pregnancy or childbirth results in incapacity for work, the employee is eligible for benefits equivalent to 100% of her salary for the maximum of a year after the date of birth.

Paternity/Partner Leave

Partners are entitled to 1 week of ‘birth leave’, which must be taken within the first 4 weeks following the birth. This leave entitlement applies to both full time and part time workers and can be used in one block or spread over the 4 weeks.

Full pay must be given by the employer during ‘birth leave’.

Partners have the right to Extended Partner Leave of up to 5 weeks (25 days), to be taken within the 6 months following the birth. Leave can be taken in one block or spread over 6 months.

Extended Partner Leave is unpaid but workers might be eligible to claim up to 70% of pay from The Employment Insurance Agency (UWV).

Parental Leave

Parents are entitled to take time off for childcare for a maximum period of 26 x the length of their working week. The first 9 weeks must be used within the first year of the child’s life and are paid by The Employment Insurance Agency (UWV), up to 70% of their daily wage capped at 256.54 Euros per day.

The remaining 17 weeks are unpaid (unless stated otherwise in a Collective Labour Agreement or Employment Contract) and can be used until the child reaches the age of 8.

Adoption Leave

Parents who adopt or foster a child are entitled to up to 6 weeks leave; this leave can be taken in one block or spread out over the first 26 weeks since the child was brought home. Workers can apply for an adoption allowance during this period from The Employment Insurance Agency (UWV). At least 3 weeks notice must be given before taking this leave.

A full-time employee is entitled to 20 working days of paid annual leave per year. However, in the Netherlands, it is common practice to offer 25 or even 32 days of paid annual leave.

Also, any leave accrued from the previous year must be used by July, and the employer must inform the employee if this is about to expire (although this requirement is only for the statutory minimum number of days)

Care Leave

Workers are entitled to leave to take care of a sick relative. The types of carer’s leave are:

Emergency Leave of 1 day with payment is available for unexpected urgent reasons.

Short-term Care Leave is available at up to twice the weekly working time (maximum of 2 weeks) to take care of a sick parent, child or partner if there is no one else but the worker able to provide this care. During this leave the employer continues to pay up to 70% salary.

Long-term Care Leave is available at up to six times the weekly working time (maximum of 6 weeks) to take care of a seriously ill parent, child or partner. This leave is unpaid.

Public holidays falling on weekends are lost. Public holidays are not necessarily a paid leave day, as this depends on the employer’s policy or collective labor agreement (CLA).

Date Day Holiday Notes

1 Jan 2024 - Monday - New Year’s Day

29 Mar 2024 - Friday - Good Friday - Applicable depending on company policy/per CBA

31 Mar 2024 - Sunday - Easter Sunday

1 Apr 2024 - Monday - Easter Monday

27 Apr 2024 - Saturday - King’s day

9 May 2024 - Thursday - Ascension Day

19 May 2024 - Sunday - Whit Sunday

20 May 2024 - Monday - Whit Monday

25 Dec 2024 - Wednesday - Christmas Day

26 Dec 2024 - Thursday - 2nd Day of Christmas

The Netherlands provides universal healthcare through a combination of public and private systems. Much of the healthcare system is funded through taxes, but all citizens and legal residents must purchase health insurance from private insurers.

The termination process varies according to the Employment Agreement and Collective Agreement in place and on the type of contract and reason for termination. However, no termination due to economic reasons or long-term disability may take place without the Employee Insurance Agency (UWV).

Notice Period

The statutory minimum notice period for termination in the Netherlands is one month, however, it is dependent on the employee’s length of service as below:

Less than 5 years – 1 month noticeBetween 5-10 years – 2 months’ noticeBetween 10-15 years – 3 month’ noticeMore than 15 years – 4 months’ notice

Severance Pay

Severance pay regulations are arranged by law, under what’s known as ‘transition payment’.

The statutory transition payment is due when the employment agreement has been terminated, and the amount is based on years of service: 1/3 of 1 month’s salary (including holiday allowance and, if any, fixed end-of-year bonus and/or average bonus of the last 3 years and/or commission of the last 12 months) for each calendar year that the employment agreement has lasted, and a pro rata amount for a period where the employment agreement has lasted less or longer than a calendar year.

The maximum transition-payment amount is EUR94,000 gross, or, where an employee earns over EUR94,000 per annum a maximum of one year’s salary.

Probation Period

Probation or trial periods are generally set within the collective agreements and contracts of the employee; however, the standard practice is:

• Indefinite contracts can have a maximum of 2 months probation

• Temporary contracts under 6 months may not include a a probation period

• Temporary contracts of 6 months to 2 years can have a maximum of 1 month probation

During the probation period, there is no notice period

Employer Payroll Contributions
5.46% to 7.54% - WAO/WIA Aof : Invalidity Insurance Fund 5.49% (small employers) to 7.11% (medium to large employers), applied on income up to 71,628 EUR annually.

2.64% to 7.64% - Unemployment Fund (lower: indefinite contracts, High: temporary contracts/on-call employees), applied on income up to 71,628 EUR annually.

6.57% - ZVW : Healthcare Insurance Act,  applied on income up to 71,628 EUR annually.

0.11 % to 3.36% - WHK: Work Resumption Fund and Sickness Benefits Act applied on income up to 71,628 EUR annually. Applied percentage varies by sector, company size and sector.

0.50% - Child Care Premium, applied on income up to 71,628 EUR annually.

Variable - Pension (mandatory under certain setups only, such as EoR circa 16%)

8.00% - Holiday allowance accrued on a monthly basis and paid to employees in May.

23.49% to 33.29% Total Employment Cost

Employee Income Tax
9.32% - Up to 38,098 EUR annually

36.97% - 38,098 EUR- 75,518 EUR annually

49.50% - Over 75,518 EUR annually

Note: Special tax rates applies on one-time payments like bonuses, commissions and the annual holiday allowance. The taxation rate is based on the tables published by the Dutch Tax Authorities (DTA); the exact tax rate that will apply depends on the personal circumstances of the worker.  The annual wage amount and special rate percentage will be indicated on the worker’s pay slip.

30% Ruling for Foreign Workers and Expats

Foreign workers in the Netherlands might be eligible for an employer approved tax-free reimbursement of ‘extraterritorial costs’, applied as 30% tax-free salary.The criteria for eligibility of this 30% ruling is:

• Workers employed from 2024 will be subject to the new tax ruling:

  • A maximum of 30% of the Dutch taxable income for a maximum of the first 20 months

  • A maximum of 20% of the Dutch taxable income for a maximum of the following 20 months

  • A maximum of 10% of the Dutch taxable income for a maximum of the next 20 months.

• Workers already receiving the 30% rule (as of December 2022) fall under a transitional arrangement which means that this limitation does not take effect until January 2026.

• The 30% tax ruling applies to the annual taxable salary of more than 46,107 euros. For a worker under 30 years of age who holds a qualifying master’s degree, their annual taxable salary must be more than 35,048 euros. The 30% ruling will be capped at a maximum taxable salary of 233,000 euros per annum.

• The worker must have lived at a distance of more than 150 kilometers from the Dutch border for more than 16 months in the 24 months prior to their first day of work in the Netherlands.The worker may therefore not live in Belgium, Luxembourg, parts of Germany, France, or the United Kingdom.

• In order for foreign workers to be eligible for the 30% ruling it is crucial that the worker registers with the Netherlands authorities only after signing the employment contract, not before.

Payroll Cycle

In the Netherlands, the payroll frequency is monthly. Work between the first and last day of the month is typically paid on the last day of the month.

13th Salary

13th-month salary payments are customary in the Netherlands and should be paid in November or December of each year; this is stipulated in the employee’s employment contract or collective agreements.

Authority Payments

Authority Payment Paid To Due Date Method

Belastingdienst Apeldoorn - End of the following month - Wire Transfer

Hafkamp gerechtsdeurwaarders - Employer Contribution and Income tax - No recurring payment, therefore there isn’t any due date

There is no formal requirement for EU/EEA/Swiss nationals to obtain a residence or work permit. Still, they do need to obtain a residence permit to be eligible for social security benefits.
Nationals of the USA, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and all non-EU/EEA/Swiss foreign nationals who wish to stay longer than three months in the Netherlands must obtain an “authorization temporary stay” (MVV) from the Dutch embassy or consulate in their home country before entering the Netherlands.

The employer must submit a work permit application to the Social Security Office (UWV), providing evidence that they have made every effort to recruit a Dutch/EU/EEA/Swiss national in the first instance. No applicant is allowed to work in the Netherlands until their work permit has been approved.

The standard rate of VAT in the Netherlands is 21%.