Hiring Employees in the Netherlands: A Comprehensive Guide (2026)

The Netherlands consistently ranks among Europe's most attractive talent markets. A stable, civil-law legal system, near-universal English proficiency, a central European logistics hub, and deep expertise across technology, finance, agrifood, and life sciences make the Dutch workforce an asset for any global company.

Rotterdam is the continent's largest port; Amsterdam is a major financial services center; Eindhoven and the Brainport region have built a dense technology and semiconductor cluster. The talent is here. The question for most international employers isn't whether to hire in the Netherlands — it's how.

The Dutch employment framework is sophisticated and strongly protective of employees. It combines a strict employment-status classification system, mandatory payroll tax registration, a payroll withholding system (loonheffingen) that combines income tax and national insurance contributions into a single employer-withheld stream, two years of statutory sick-pay obligation, and dismissal rules that require either a formal Uitvoeringsinstituut Werknemersverzekeringen (UWV — Employee Insurance Agency) permit or a subdistrict court order for most involuntary terminations.

Add the upcoming Wet toelating terbeschikkingstelling van arbeidskrachten (WTTA) reform — creating a mandatory admission regime for employer of record (EOR) and staffing providers from January 2027 — and the renewed Wet Deregulering Beoordeling Arbeidsrelaties (DBA Act) enforcement crackdown on false self-employment since January 2025, and companies hiring in the Netherlands for the first time face a substantial compliance workload.

Most international employers encounter these realities only after they've already committed to a hire, when the cost of getting it wrong has become real. A misclassified ZZP'er, a missed KvK registration, a late pension-fund enrollment, or an incorrectly handled termination can translate into retroactive social contributions, fines, and employment disputes that take months to resolve.

This guide covers the requirements for compliant hiring in the Netherlands in 2026 — from employment law and payroll mechanics to statutory benefits, EOR, visas, step-by-step onboarding, and offboarding. Whether you're making your first Dutch hire or scaling a local team, this is the reference to have before you start.

Netherlands employment law: what every employer must know

Dutch employment law sits within a civil-law tradition built on the Burgerlijk Wetboek (Civil Code) and supplemented by a dense framework of statutory protections, sector-level collective agreements, and European directives. The practical effect is a system that protects employees from day one and imposes real obligations on employers — not just at termination, but throughout the employment relationship.

Employers must understand the legal categories, documentation obligations, and key reforms changing Dutch employment law in 2026. Errors in any of these areas can lead to financial penalties and reputational damage.

Employee vs. ZZP'er vs. agency worker

The Netherlands legally distinguishes multiple worker categories, and getting this right isn't optional. Misclassification exposes employers to retroactive wage taxes, social contributions, and penalties.

Employment contract types

Dutch law allows fixed-term contracts (tijdelijk contract), but chains of more than three fixed-term contracts over a period exceeding three years automatically convert to an open-ended contract (contract voor onbepaalde tijd). This ketenregeling (chain rule) is actively enforced.

Day-one written statement

Dutch law requires employers to provide a written statement of employment terms on or before the first day of work. This must cover the job description, salary, working hours, holiday entitlement, notice periods, probationary period (if any), and the applicable collective labor agreement (CAO). Failing to issue this document on time exposes employers to claims.

Minimum wage

The Dutch statutory minimum hourly wage (wettelijk minimumloon) is set twice per year by the government and graduated by age.

Source: Belastingdienst 2026 rates. The minimum wage applies to employees and to some agency workers depending on their phase in the uitzendregime; ZZP'ers have no minimum-wage protection.

Working-time rules

The Dutch Working Hours Act (Arbeidstijdenwet) sets limits for every type of worker. The maximum is 12 hours per shift and 60 hours per week, with an average of no more than 48 hours per week over any 16-week reference period.

Statutory holiday entitlement

Employees are entitled to at least four times their weekly working hours in paid annual leave — equivalent to 20 days for a full-time (40-hour/5-day) employee. This is a statutory floor; collective agreements in most Dutch sectors grant 25–28 days.

Right-to-work verification

Every employer must verify the right to work of every new hire before employment starts.

The Dutch Aliens Employment Act (Wet Arbeid Vreemdelingen, WAV) places the obligation — and the penalty for non-compliance — squarely on the employer.

GDPR and data protection

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) applies to all personal data processed during hiring, onboarding, and employment, including background check data, identity documents, and BSN numbers. The Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens, AP) enforces GDPR in the Netherlands.

2026 employment law reforms HR leaders must track

Dutch employment law is changing significantly in 2026. Two reforms in particular affect how international companies hire and engage workers.

ZZP'er and platform worker reclassification

The enforcement moratorium on the DBA Act ended on January 1, 2025. Dutch tax authorities now actively assess whether contractor relationships are genuinely independent or constitute disguised employment.

The assessment turns on three criteria:

1. gezagsverhouding (authority and direction)

2. persoonlijk werk (personal performance)

3. loon (remuneration)

If all three are present, a statutory employment relationship exists — regardless of the label on the contract. The Dutch Supreme Court's ruling in the Deliveroo case reinforced this substance-over-form approach.

WTTA (Wet toelating terbeschikkingstelling van arbeidskrachten)

The WTTA admission system is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2027, with Labour Inspectorate penalty enforcement beginning January 1, 2028. Once live, EOR providers and staffing agencies must obtain formal admission from the Dutch government, meeting conditions including: a Certificate of Good Conduct (VOG), a €100,000 financial-security deposit, and continuous compliance with Dutch labor, tax, and social-security obligations.

Confirm your EOR or staffing provider's WTTA preparation status before the January 2027 admission window opens. Deel is preparing for WTTA admission as part of its Netherlands EOR operations.

Payroll, tax, and employer costs explained

The Dutch payroll system is built around loonheffingen — a combined payroll-tax withholding mechanism that folds together income tax (loonbelasting) and national insurance contributions (premies volksverzekeringen) into a single withholding stream.

Employers deduct loonheffingen from each employee's gross salary and remit it to the Belastingdienst (Dutch Tax and Customs Administration) monthly.

Income tax bands and employer withholding obligations

Dutch employment income falls under Box 1 of the income tax system (inkomstenbelasting). The Belastingdienst publishes updated rates annually. The 2025 brackets below are provided as a reference — always confirm current 2026 rates directly with the Belastingdienst before running payroll.

Employer contributions and withholding obligations

• Loonbelasting (wage tax): Withheld from employee gross salary on each payroll run and remitted monthly to the Belastingdienst.

• Premies volksverzekeringen (national insurance premiums): Combined with loonbelasting in the loonheffingen withholding. Covers the state pension (AOW), survivor benefits (ANW), and long-term care insurance (WLZ).

• Premies werknemersverzekeringen (employee insurance premiums): Employer-paid contributions covering unemployment insurance (WW) and disability/incapacity cover (WIA/ZW). These are additional employer costs on top of gross salary.

• WAB differentiated WW premiums: The Wet Arbeidsmarkt in Balans (WAB) introduced differentiated unemployment insurance premiums. Permanent open-ended contracts attract a lower WW premium rate; fixed-term and flexible contracts attract a higher rate.

• Holiday allowance (vakantiegeld): Employers are legally required to pay a statutory vacation allowance of 8% of the employee's gross salary. This is typically paid in May or June as a lump sum. It's a mandatory employer cost — failing to pay it creates a wage claim.

• Payroll cycle and payslip requirements: Dutch payroll most commonly runs monthly. Every payslip (loonstrook) must show the gross salary, all withholdings, holiday allowance accrued, and the net payment amount. Payslips must be provided electronically or on paper every pay period.

• Expense reimbursements and the WKR: The Dutch Werkkostenregeling (WKR — work-cost regulation) governs tax-free employer expense reimbursements. Employers receive an annual tax-free budget within which they can reimburse employee costs tax-free. Reimbursements above the WKR budget attract a flat-rate employer levy of 80%.

Employer cost example — a €70K salary broken down

This table illustrates approximate employer-cost components for a Netherlands-based employee on a €70,000 annual gross salary. Actual figures depend on the applicable CAO, contract type, and pension fund.

These are illustrative estimates only. Use Deel's Employee Cost Calculator for a role-specific figure, or consult a Dutch payroll specialist before committing to an offer.

Pension contributions

Pension contributions deserve special attention. Most Dutch employees must participate in a sector-wide pension fund (bedrijfstakpensioenfonds) or a company pension plan. The employer pension contribution reached 15.2% in certain funds in 2026, but rates vary considerably by fund and sector.

The OECD Taxing Wages report for the Netherlands provides independently verified data on effective tax wedges, employer social contribution rates, and net-to-gross ratios — useful for benchmarking your cost model against OECD data.

Statutory benefits and leave entitlements

Dutch law sets a substantial floor of statutory entitlements. Collective agreements often go significantly further — always check the applicable CAO for your sector and employee profile before drafting offer letters.

Annual leave

• Statutory minimum: 20 days per year for full-time employees (four times weekly working hours). Part-time entitlement is prorated.

• CAO entitlements: Most Dutch sector agreements grant between 25 and 28 days per year.

• Leave carryover: Statutory minimum days expire six months after the end of the leave year in which they were earned; contractual days above the minimum can carry over for up to five years.

• Leave accrual during sick leave: Employees continue to accrue annual leave entitlement while on sick leave — even during the full two-year sick-pay period.

Sick leave

• Employers must continue to pay sick employees for up to 104 weeks (two years) of illness.

• Statutory sick pay is 70% of the employee's applicable daily wage, subject to the statutory maximum daily wage.

• In year one, pay must be topped up to at least the statutory minimum wage if 70% falls below it. This top-up is not required in year two.

• Contractual or CAO terms are frequently more generous — many Dutch collective agreements require 100% pay in year one.

• ARBO Act obligations: Employers must actively support the employee's return to work, including contracting a certified occupational health service (arbodienst), conducting a Risk Inventory and Evaluation (RI&E), facilitating contact with a bedrijfsarts (occupational physician), and implementing a reintegration plan within eight weeks of the start of sick leave.

Maternity, paternity, and parental leave

Pension

Most Dutch employees must be enrolled in a pension scheme from day one of employment.

• Bedrijfstakpensioenfonds (BPF): Mandatory industry-wide pension funds in sectors such as construction, healthcare, and metalworking. Non-participation creates retroactive liability.

• Company pension plan (ondernemingspensioenfonds): Used by larger companies; requires a trust structure and regulatory approval.

• APF (General Pension Fund): A flexible multi-employer pension vehicle, commonly used by EOR providers and multinational employers.

• The employer pension contribution rate in 2026 reached 15.2% in certain pension funds — confirm the applicable rate for your sector before finalizing cost models.

Works council (ondernemingsraad)

Companies with 50 or more employees in the Netherlands must establish a works council elected by employees. The works council has consultation rights on major decisions including restructuring and outsourcing, and consent rights on specific HR policies. Decisions taken without proper consultation can be challenged and reversed.

Collective labor agreements (CAOs)

Sector-wide CAOs declared "generally binding" (Algemeen Verbindend Verklaard, AVV) by the Dutch government apply to all companies in that sector, regardless of whether they signed. Check whether the primary CAO for your sector has AVV status before making your first hiring offer.

Training and development obligations

Some Dutch sector agreements require employers to contribute to sector-specific training funds (Opleidings- en Ontwikkelingsfondsen, O&O fondsen). Beyond sector obligations, the ARBO Act requires employers to ensure employees receive the training necessary to safely perform their work.

Hiring without a Netherlands entity — how an Employer of Record works

Setting up a Dutch legal entity — typically a Besloten Vennootschap (BV, the Dutch private limited company) — involves notarial incorporation, KvK registration, a corporate bank account, Dutch accounting obligations, payroll-tax registration, and often a mandatory pension fund enrollment. From initiation to first payroll run, this typically takes four to eight weeks or more, and creates ongoing administrative overhead regardless of headcount.

An Employer of Record (EOR) removes this constraint. The EOR becomes the legal employer on record in the Netherlands, taking on the employment contract, payroll registration, benefits obligations, and compliance responsibilities — while the client company retains full management and direction of the employee's work.

Here is how the control-versus-responsibility split works in practice:

ZZP misclassification risk and the DBA platform-worker test

Since the DBA enforcement moratorium ended on January 1, 2025, the Dutch tax authority applies a substance-over-form assessment to every contractor relationship. Companies that use ZZP'ers for activities that look like employment face growing enforcement risk. Consequences include:

• Retroactive reclassification of the contractor relationship as employment

• Back-payment of employer social contributions (WW, WIA, WLZ) for the full period of the relationship

• Retroactive loonheffingen assessments on the gross equivalent of contractor fees

• Fines under the WAV and DBA Act

• Employee protections triggered retroactively — including dismissal rights and back-pay claims for statutory sick leave and holiday allowance

An EOR arrangement can mitigate this classification risk by employing the worker as an employee from day one, with the legal relationship clearly defined under the EOR's employment contract.

EOR vs. own Netherlands entity

What makes Deel's EOR different

Deel manages the full Dutch employment lifecycle — loonheffingen payroll registration, Belastingdienst monthly filings, statutory benefits enrollment (including pension scheme participation under the applicable sector fund), ARBO compliance coordination, the 30% ruling process through its Dutch partner Limes, and compliant offboarding including transition payment calculation.

Read more about Deel's EOR in the Netherlands and how it compares to setting up your own entity.

Step-by-step guide to hiring an employee in the Netherlands

Hiring in the Netherlands follows a predictable sequence once the legal framework is clear. The seven steps below apply whether hiring directly through a Dutch entity or via an EOR — the responsible party for each compliance obligation changes, but the sequence is the same.

Step 1: Choose your hiring model (EOR vs. direct entity vs. contractor)

The hiring model determines every compliance obligation that follows. The three main options are:

• EOR: Use Deel or another recognized EOR provider if there's no Dutch entity. The EOR is the legal employer; the client manages the work. Best for first-time market entry and 1–10 employees.

• Direct hire through a Dutch entity: If a BV is already registered and a payroll-tax number obtained, direct hiring is possible. The company assumes all payroll, benefits, and compliance obligations.

• Contractor (ZZP'er): Only viable where the relationship is genuinely independent — the worker operates for multiple clients, sets their own hours and methods, and does not perform core business activity under direction. Given the current DBA enforcement environment, a Dutch legal review is advisable before relying on this model for any ongoing or substantial engagement.

Step 2: Verify right to work (EU/EEA vs. non-EU; IND checks)

Every new hire requires right-to-work verification before the employment starts.

• EU/EEA and Swiss nationals: Free movement applies; no work permit is required. Verify and retain copies of identity documents confirming nationality.

• Non-EU/EEA nationals: A gecombineerde vergunning voor verblijf en arbeid (GVVA — combined permit for residence and work) or another appropriate permit is required before the first working day. The Highly Skilled Migrant (Kennismigrant) route covers most skilled-worker cases (covered in the visas and right-to-work section below).

• UK nationals: Post-Brexit, UK nationals no longer benefit from EU free movement for new arrangements. A work permit is required.

• IND recognition: To sponsor most work permits, the company (or its EOR) must be a recognized IND sponsor. Deel holds recognized-sponsor status and handles IND sponsorship on behalf of clients for EOR hires.

Step 3: Draft and issue a compliant employment contract (required clauses under Dutch Civil Code)

The Burgerlijk Wetboek (Civil Code) specifies what a Dutch employment contract must contain, and the written statement of terms must be provided on or before day one. A compliant contract includes:

• Job title and description

• Start date and, if fixed-term, end date and the ground for fixing the term

• Gross salary and holiday allowance (8%)

• Working hours per week

• Notice periods — the statutory minimum varies by length of service (1 month for under 5 years, 2 months for 5–10 years, 3 months for 10–15 years, 4 months for 15+); contractual periods can be longer

• Applicable CAO — if a collective agreement applies, name it explicitly

• Pension scheme — confirm which scheme applies and how contributions are structured

• Probationary period — maximum two months for permanent contracts; prohibited for contracts of six months or less

Fixed-term vs. permanent contracts: The ketenregeling (chain rule) limits the number and duration of fixed-term contracts before they automatically convert to a permanent open-ended contract — a maximum of three fixed-term contracts over a period not exceeding three years. After the third contract or after three years — whichever comes first — the next contract must be permanent.

IP and confidentiality clauses: Dutch courts enforce non-compete and non-solicitation clauses, but only under certain conditions — non-competes must be in writing, signed by the employee, and (for fixed-term contracts) include a compensation payment to be enforceable.

For EOR hires, Deel provides a Dutch-law employment contract that meets all statutory requirements, including clauses that comply with the ketenregeling and applicable CAO terms.

Step 4: Register with Belastingdienst and KvK

Before running payroll, every employer must have a loonheffingennummer (payroll-tax registration number) from the Belastingdienst. Companies establishing a Dutch BV also register with the KvK (Kamer van Koophandel — Chamber of Commerce), which maintains the official companies register.

• Annual wage tax statements (jaaropgave): Every employer must issue each employee an annual wage statement (jaaropgave) by January 31 of the year following the tax year.

• Monthly payroll filing deadlines: Loonheffingen payments and declarations are due monthly (or four-weekly for some employers), with filing deadlines typically one month after the payroll period closes. Late filings attract interest and penalty surcharges.

For EOR hires, Deel handles all payroll registrations, monthly filings, and annual jaaropgave issuance through its existing Dutch legal entity — the client company does not need its own loonheffingennummer.

Step 5: Set up pension and benefits enrollment (APF or sector fund)

Before the first payroll run, determine whether the employee's sector has a mandatory bedrijfstakpensioenfonds (BPF). If so, participation is compulsory from day one with no grace period. Seek written confirmation from the relevant fund before payroll runs — or let Deel handle this assessment as part of EOR onboarding.

Health insurance note: The Netherlands does not have a statutory employer-provided health insurance scheme. Every Dutch resident purchases individual basic health insurance (basisverzekering) from a private insurer. Some CAOs require a contribution to supplemental health costs — check the applicable agreement.

Step 6: Run the onboarding workflow (BSN collection, ARBO, IT provisioning)

The BSN (Burgerservicenummer — Dutch citizen service number) is required before payroll can run at the normal withholding rate. Without it, the employer must apply the anonymous withholding rate — currently the highest marginal rate — on every payroll run until the BSN is provided.

ARBO onboarding obligations from day one include:

• ARBO policy briefing: new hires must receive a health-and-safety orientation covering workplace risks and emergency procedures

• Arbodienst contract: the certified occupational health service must be engaged before employees start, not after a first sick day

• Risk Inventory and Evaluation (RI&E): must be in place for every workplace, including home working conditions for remote hires

• Mandatory health and safety training: Dutch employees must receive periodic training relevant to their role

Beyond the legal minimums, effective Dutch onboarding also covers: confirming the bank account for salary payment, setting up the expense and leave management systems, briefing the new hire on any applicable CAO provisions, and confirming that the 30% ruling application deadline has been flagged to any eligible internationally recruited employee — applications submitted within four months of the employment start date apply retroactively from that date.

Step 7: Maintain ongoing compliance (CAO updates, works council, annual wage indexation)

Dutch employment law and the collective agreements that sit on top of it are not static. Ongoing compliance requires:

• CAO monitoring: Track CAO expiry dates, wage indexation clauses, and renegotiated terms — these are legally binding if the CAO applies

• DBA Act compliance monitoring: Reassess any contractor relationships at least annually given the full resumption of DBA enforcement in 2025

• WTTA preparation: Confirm that the EOR or staffing provider is preparing for WTTA admission before the January 2027 regime takes effect

• Works council: If Dutch headcount reaches 50, hold works council elections and consult the council before any major organizational decision

• Annual wage indexation and salary reviews: Factor in CAO-mandated minimum increases plus Dutch market salary data

• Annual payroll reconciliation: Confirm all employee BSNs are on file, loonheffingen filings match payroll records, and any 30% ruling arrangements remain valid

Hiring internationally into the Netherlands — visas and right to work

The Netherlands is a significant destination for internationally recruited skilled workers. Understanding which visa route applies to a hire — and how to sponsor it — is essential before making an offer to a non-EU candidate.

Key visa routes for skilled workers

• Kennismigrant (Highly Skilled Migrant) visa: The primary route for internationally recruited professional talent. Requirements include IND recognized-sponsor status and salary thresholds (monthly gross, including 8% vacation allowance, effective January 1, 2026):

  • €6,417.36/month for applicants aged 30 and over

  • €4,705.56/month for applicants under 30

  • €3,371.76/month for eligible recent Dutch-partner university graduates

  • Processing time: typically two weeks for recognized sponsors — one of the fastest EU work-permit routes

• ICT (Intra-Company Transfer) permit: For employees being transferred from a non-EEA company to a Dutch entity for a temporary assignment. The employee must have been employed by the sending company for at least three months.

• Orientation year visa (Zoekjaar): Highly educated graduates from recognized universities who studied outside the Netherlands can apply for a one-year orientation visa to search for work or start a business.

• EU Blue Card: An alternative to the Kennismigrant route for highly qualified workers, with EU-wide portability. Less commonly used in the Netherlands given how competitive the Kennismigrant route already is.

• EU/EEA free movement: Citizens of EU member states, EEA countries, and Switzerland have the right to live and work in the Netherlands without a permit.

• UK nationals post-Brexit: British citizens no longer benefit from EU free movement for new arrangements. A GVVA or appropriate permit is required.

How Deel handles IND sponsorship: Deel operates as a recognized IND sponsor in the Netherlands. When a client hires an internationally recruited, non-EU employee through Deel's EOR solution, Deel coordinates and submits the Kennismigrant permit application on the employee's behalf — without the client company needing its own recognized-sponsor status. Read more about how to hire Highly Skilled Migrants in the Netherlands.

The 30% ruling for incoming internationally recruited workers

The 30% ruling is a Dutch tax concession for employees recruited from abroad who possess scarce skills or expertise. If approved, the employee can receive up to 30% of their taxable salary tax-free.

Key facts:

• The employer must submit the application within four months of the employment start date for the ruling to apply retroactively from that date.

• Eligibility requirements include living more than 150 km from the Dutch border for at least 16 of the 24 months before recruitment.

• For employees hired through Deel's EOR solution, Deel coordinates the application through its Dutch partner Limes and applies the ruling in payroll once the Belastingdienst approves it. Eligibility is not automatic — each employee must meet the substantive criteria.

• The 30% ruling affects net-pay calculations and total compensation benchmarking. If a Dutch hire is eligible, factor this into the offer-letter design.

Termination, redundancy, and offboarding

The Dutch dismissal framework is one of the most employee-protective in Europe. Employers cannot unilaterally terminate an employment contract without meeting a specific ground for dismissal and following the prescribed procedure for that ground.

Fair-dismissal grounds under Dutch law

• Business-economic grounds (bedrijfseconomische redenen): Reorganization, position elimination, or financial restructuring. Requires prior authorization from the UWV (Uitvoeringsinstituut Werknemersverzekeringen — Employee Insurance Agency). The UWV assesses whether the business case is genuine, whether alternative positions were considered, and whether the correct redundancy selection order (afspiegelingsbeginsel) was followed.

• Long-term incapacity: An employee has been incapacitated for work for at least two years, and reintegration has genuinely failed. Also requires UWV authorization.

• Personal grounds — poor performance: The employee consistently underperforms despite a documented performance improvement plan (PIP), coaching, and warnings. These cases go through the subdistrict court (kantonrechter).

• Personal grounds — culpable conduct (verwijtbaar handelen): Serious misconduct, fraud, or other blameworthy behavior. Also goes through the kantonrechter.

• Disrupted employment relationship (verstoorde arbeidsverhouding): Irreconcilable breakdown of the working relationship. Goes through the kantonrechter.

• Mutual agreement (beeindigingsovereenkomst, VSO): The most common route in practice. Employer and employee agree in writing to end the employment. If genuinely mutual, the employee retains the right to WW unemployment benefit. The employee has a statutory right to revoke the agreement within two weeks of signing.

Dismissal protection restrictions

Certain groups carry additional dismissal protection:

• Sick employees: Cannot be dismissed during the first two years of illness (opzegverbod), except on specific grounds.

• Pregnant employees and those on maternity leave: Cannot be dismissed during pregnancy or maternity leave.

• Works council members and union representatives: Require additional procedural protection.

• Whistleblowers: Protected under the Dutch Whistleblower Protection Act (Wet bescherming klokkenluiders).

Redundancy process (business-economic grounds)

When dismissal is based on business-economic grounds, the employer follows a defined procedural sequence:

• Identify the affected role(s) and confirm the business rationale (reorganization, technology replacement, financial necessity).

• Apply the afspiegelingsbeginsel (mirror principle): Selection for redundancy must follow this statutory order — preserving the age-distribution balance within the group.

• Explore redeployment: Before filing with the UWV, demonstrate that no reasonable alternative position exists for the affected employee.

• File a UWV application: Submit the dismissal application with supporting documentation. The UWV opens a consultation window for the employee to respond.

• Await UWV decision: The process typically takes four to six weeks. If approved, serve the statutory notice period; if rejected, explore alternatives or apply to the kantonrechter.

• Serve notice and calculate transition payment: After UWV approval, serve the statutory notice period and process the transition payment.

Notice period table:

These are statutory minimums; contractual or CAO notice periods may be longer.

Transition payment (transitievergoeding): Every employee dismissed on employer initiative after a minimum period of service is entitled to a statutory transition payment. The calculation formula is set by law and accrues based on total length of service; the Dutch business.gov.nl portal provides the current formula and a calculation tool.

How Deel handles offboarding

When an employee hired through Deel's EOR solution is terminated, Deel manages the full offboarding process:

• Calculating and processing the statutory transition payment

• Issuing the required termination documentation (including the eindafrekening, the final payroll settlement statement)

• Handling the final payroll run and any outstanding leave payout

• Coordinating with the UWV where a formal dismissal procedure is required

• Processing any residency and work permit cancellations for non-EU employees

Read the full Deel termination guide for the Netherlands for a detailed walkthrough.

Hire in the Netherlands with Deel

Hiring in the Netherlands without a local entity is achievable — but doing it right requires deep familiarity with Dutch loonheffingen, ARBO obligations, the approaching WTTA admission regime, and a dismissal framework with limited tolerance for procedural error. Deel's EOR solution manages the applicable employer-side processes and coordinates compliant offboarding, helping companies navigate Dutch employment requirements without establishing their own BV.

With Deel, companies can:

• Hire compliantly in days — no BV incorporation, no notary fees, no Belastingdienst registration backlog, and no dedicated Dutch payroll team required

• Manage the full employment lifecycle — from employment contract to offboarding, with Deel managing applicable loonheffingen filings, pension enrollment, holiday allowance administration, and employer-side ARBO processes under the EOR arrangement

• Navigate visa and work-permit sponsorship — Deel can sponsor eligible Highly Skilled Migrant hires through its IND recognized-sponsor status, subject to IND requirements, without the client needing its own recognized-sponsor status

• Prepare for upcoming regulatory changes — from the WTTA admission regime taking effect in 2027 to active DBA enforcement, Deel monitors relevant regulatory changes and updates applicable EOR processes and documentation where required

Book a demo below to see how Deel handles Netherlands hiring end to end.