Hire in the Netherlands in 3 easy steps
Tulips, clogs, cheese and windmills. And of course, bicycles. These are a few things that probably come to your mind when you think of the Netherlands. But did you know it’s also home to one of the most qualified workforces in Europe? Let us show you how to hire employees in the Netherlands in a compliant and cost-effective way.
Onboard your talent in the Netherlands in 10 minutes
If you’re considering hiring your next candidate in the Netherlands, you’re in the right place. At WorkMotion, we have helped scores of businesses onboard their remote hires, and we have achieved excellent expertise in the country. Our tech solutions and team of experts will make this incredibly easy for you.
Guidance & payroll management
Receive process support by an experienced team of experts & pay your talent on time and in their local currency.
Equipment management
Send laptops and other devices to your remote employees in the Netherlands through our platform with just a few clicks.
Expense check
Identify taxable talent expenses easily. No more manual sorting & human errors. Get 100% protection from tax liabilities
Accelerated onboarding
Fast-track your talent onboarding while ensuring 100% compliance with local regulations.
Hire in the Netherlands through an EOR
Easily onboard your remote talent in the Netherlands through our Employer of Record (EOR) solution. Our subsidiaries and network partners make this process fast and 100% compliant.
A quick overview of the Netherlands
Time zone
UTC+1
Paid leave
20 days
Minimum wage
€ 13.27
Currency
EUR
Public holidays
10 days
Payroll frequency
Monthly
What makes the Netherland's talent great?
The Dutch workforce is known for its digital skills, multilingualism and diversity. Working professionals in the Netherlands are technically skilled, highly adaptable and well-trained. They have access to various training programmes for young workers at different career levels.
Workers in the Netherlands as per industry sectors are as follows: service (82%), manufacturing (16%) and agriculture (2%).
Exceptional education system
The Netherlands has a robust network of universities that produce some of the smartest graduates in Europe. In the QS World University Rankings 2023, 11 universities in the Netherlands were ranked within the world’s top 250.
A skilled & multilingual workforce
The Netherlands ranks the highest among European countries for digital skills including proficiency in using computers, software and the internet. On the English Proficiency Index, the Dutch are recognised as the best in the world.
Great for business expansion
The Netherlands is a great country of choice if you’re looking to hire talent and expand your business in a new region. This is due to the stability and transparency of their labour relations. The Netherlands is also ranked highly in terms of competitiveness.
Basic facts
The Netherlands (also known as Holland), is located in northwestern Europe. The kingdom includes its former colonies in the Lesser Antilles: Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten. Around 2,500 square miles (6,500 square km) of the country consists of reclaimed land. The Netherlands ranks among the highest in international indices of press and economic freedom, human development, and quality of life as well as happiness. *Please note that the official currency is the currency of remuneration when employed through WorkMotion in the Netherlands.
Capital
Amsterdam
Population
17.53 M
VAT - standard rate
21%
Statutory holidays
There are eight public holidays. Bridge days apply for religious holidays to create long weekends. The national holidays mentioned below are valid for the year 2024.
| Date | Holiday Name |
|---|---|
| January 1 | New Year's Day |
| March 29 | Good Friday |
| March 31 | Easter Sunday |
| April 1 | Easter Monday |
| April 27 | Kings Day |
| May 5 | Liberation Day |
| May 9 | Ascension Day |
| May 19 | Whit Sunday |
| May 20 | Whit Monday |
| December 25 | Christmas Day |
| December 26 | Boxing Day |
Contract sharing time
The approximate time for sharing the contract with an employee in the Netherlands is 4 business days assuming no special requests or changes to our standard employment contract. Any such requests or changes would need to undergo internal and external review, directly leading to a time delay. NOTE: The estimated Contract Sharing Time begins from the moment that WorkMotion has received all required information from both the client and the employee. If all talent data is available, the contract can be generated immediately.
Note
This number is subject to change and is only an estimation of the Contract Sharing Time. The estimated Contract Sharing Time begins from the moment that WorkMotion has received all required information from both the client and the employee.
What you need to know
- A Holiday allowance that is 8% of the employee’s gross yearly wage is paid to the employee in the month of May, or at the end of employment (whichever comes first).
- An employee must receive a permanent contract after three consecutive temporary contracts, or after temporary contracts over a period of three years. A fourth contract (i.e. a third extension), or contract exceeding the three-year mark, will automatically turn into a permanent one.
- For temporary contracts, the employer-paid contribution to the unemployment benefit plan is 5% higher than on permanent contracts. When the employer instructs the employee to work from home, the employer must ensure that the work can be done from home.
Labour conditions
Working Hours
Overtime
Probation Period
Termination Notice Period
Working Hours
40
hours
is the maximum working time per week
12
hours
are the maximum working hours per day
is the maximum no. of hours workers under the age of 18 may work
08
hours
Overtime
60
hours
the statutory maximum hours the employee can work, which is 12 hours per day or 60 hours per week. The law does not state how much extra pay the employee must receive for overtime. Employers can make their own arrangements for this in the terms of employment, or there may be overtime provisions in the CAO.
Probation Period
The employer and the employee can agree on including a trial period in their employment contract. The duration of a trial period depends on the duration of the employment contract. However, it may never exceed a two-month period. The same period applies to both the employer and the employee. Also, the probation periods differ as per employment contracts:
| EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT | DURATION OF CONTRACT | MAXIMUM TRIAL PERIOD |
| Fixed-term | 6 months to 2 years | 1 month |
| Temporary contracts | 6 months to 2 years | 1 month |
| More than 2 years | 2 months | |
| Permanent contracts | Not applicable | 2 months |
Termination Notice Period
The length of the notice period for an employer depends on the duration of the employment contract, with a maximum duration of four months.
In case of an indefinite contract, both the employer and employee are obliged to adhere to notice periods ranging between one to four months depending on the employment duration.
Leave / time off
Annual
Sick
Parental
Other Types
Unpaid
Annual
The minimum number of holiday days in the Netherlands is set at 20. The statutory number of leave hours per year is at least four times the number of weekly working hours. Employees may choose to spend the holidays within six months after the end of the year.
Sick
If an employee is out sick, the employer is obliged to pay at least 70% of their last earned wages for a maximum period of two years. This percentage needs to be stated in the employment contract. During the first year of illness, 70% of the employee’s normal wages must be paid. Should this amount to less than the minimum wage, the employer has to supplement the payment up to the minimum wage. During the second year of illness, 70% of the employee’s normal wages should be paid. However, the employer is not obliged to supplement the payment up to the minimum wage.
Parental
The government has decided to pay the first nine weeks of parental leave as of August 2022. Parents can take up to 26 weeks’ leave. The Employee Insurance Agency (Uitvoeringsinstituut Werknemersverzekeringen, UWV) pays 50% of an employee’s daily wages during parental leave, up to 50% of the maximum daily wage. Parents will have to use the nine weeks’ paid leave in the first year after the child is born.
Maternity leave
Pregnant employees are entitled to six weeks of paid pregnancy leave (before the due date) and at least ten weeks maternity leave (after childbirth) from the employer. In some cases, maternity leave can be longer than ten weeks. The employee also has a right to maternity pay. The employer applies for this benefit for the employee.
Paternity leave
If the partner of an employee gives birth, the employee has a right to one week of partner/paternity leave after the birth. This paid leave can be taken any time in the first four weeks after the birth of the child. During this period of leave, the employer must continue to pay 100% of the employee’s salary.
Other Types
Emergency leave (Calamiteitenverlof)
Emergency leave is intended for unforeseen personal circumstances for which an employee has to take time off immediately. For instance, to make arrangements for the care of a sick family member or in the event of a death in the family. The employer must always grant a reasonable request for emergency leave. During this period of leave, the employer continues to pay the employee’s salary. This lasts for just one day. Short-term care leave starts from the second day.
Short-term Care Leave (Kortdurend zorgverlof)
Short-term care leave can be taken to provide essential care to someone who is ill or otherwise in real need. For this leave, the employee must be the only person who can look after the ill person at that moment in time. During the period of leave, the employer continues to pay 70% of the employee’s salary. If this is less than the minimum wage, then the employer pays the minimum wage. The employee is entitled to a maximum of two times the number of hours they work per week, as agreed in the employment contract.
Unpaid
Employees do not have any legal entitlement to unpaid leave. However, it is possible for the CAO to include arrangements relating to unpaid leave.
Long-term Care Leave
If a child, partner, or parent of one of the employees is seriously (i.e. life-threateningly) ill and requires care, they can request long-term care leave. During this period of leave, the employer does not have to continue paying the employee’s salary. The employee is entitled to a maximum of six times the number of hours they work per week per 12 months.
Statutory benefits
There are two types of social insurance schemes in the Netherlands:
Employee insurance (werknemersverzekeringen) is mandatory for every employee that works in the Netherlands and provides employment-related benefits. Thus, this is applicable to all employees in the Netherlands, in addition to the National Insurance.
National insurance (volksverzekeringen) is compulsory for those living in the Netherlands and covers social benefits, so applicable for all residents of the Netherlands.
The following table summarises the contributions for 2023:
| CATEGORY | EMPLOYER PREMIUM |
|---|---|
| Basic WAO/WIA premium |
Large and Medium-Sized Employers: 7.11% Small Employers: 5.82% |
| Adequate Pension | 15.8% |
| Unemployment insurance premium* |
General Unemployment Fund premium (Awf low): 2.64% Premium General Unemployment Fund (Awf-high): 7.64% |
The differentiated premium for the Resumption of Work Fund (Whk)** in 2023 is made up of 3 premium components:
|
Average Employer Risk Rate: 0.59% Average Employer Risk Rate: 0.42% |
| Childcare Allowance | 0.5% of gross salary |
| Employer’s Levy Health Insurance Act (ZVW) | 6.68% of gross salary |
Health insurance
In the Netherlands, there is no obligation for the employer to provide a healthcare insurance policy. There is, however, a levy on the health insurance Act that is paid by the employer at 6.68%. Every person who lives or works in the Netherlands is legally obliged to take out standard (basic) health insurance to cover the cost of, for example, consulting a general practitioner, hospital treatment, and prescription medication.
Accident insurance
In the Netherlands, there are no separate schemes for industrial accidents and occupational diseases. The rules for sick pay in the event of illness and work incapacity benefits apply to all cases of illness or incapacity for work. If an employee becomes ill and is in paid employment, the employer must continue to pay at least 70% of the pay for at least two years.
Unemployment insurance
The duration of the benefit depends on the number of years worked before becoming unemployed. The amount of the benefit depends on the income earned in the year prior to unemployment. The employee must have been employed at least 26 out of 36 weeks to be eligible. They must be available for work, under 65 years of age, and should not have lost their job due to their fault.
Other statutory benefits
According to the Dutch Childcare Act, parents, employers, and the government must jointly bear the costs of formal childcare. The government does so by imposing a childcare levy on all employers. The law assumes that the employers of the two partners together pay a third of the costs. The contributions by the employers and the government are paid out by the tax authorities by means of child care allowances. The childcare allowance is provided on a per-child basis, whereby an allowance is determined and provided for each child. The amount of the childcare allowance will depend on both the childcare costs and the family’s income situation. Each year, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment publishes tables for childcare allowance.
Disclaimer
The information contained in this Country Guide is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter. The contents of this Country Guide contain general information and may not reflect current legal developments or address your situation. You should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of any content included in this Country Guide without seeking the advice or representation of a licensed attorney. WorkMotion Software GmbH disclaims all liability for actions you take or fail to take based on any content included in this Country Guide.
Information provided in this Country Guide is provided “as is” without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including without limitation warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. WorkMotion Software GmbH periodically adds, changes, improves, updates, or removes information without notice, and assumes no liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in the contents of this Country Guide. This Country Guide may contain links to other websites. WorkMotion Software GmbH disclaims all liability for the privacy practices or the content of such websites.