Destination · European Union

Working in Netherlands,
permit by permit.

Netherlands is in the European Union. If you qualified inside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, free movement replaces this half of the answer entirely and no work permit is involved. Everything below is for a qualification obtained outside that area.

Permits sourced
3
Professions answered
1
Official sources
10
Last checked
2026-08-03

Recognition

Whether Netherlands has to
approve your qualification.

Only some professions are regulated, and the difference is not a detail: a regulated one needs a decision from a named authority before you may hold the job at all. These are the professions we can answer for Netherlands today, and no others.

No licence decision

Software developer

Not regulated · no recognition decision required

No authority approves this qualification before you take the job in Netherlands. That is a sourced finding, not an absence of research.

All destinations for this profession →

Work authorisation

Every permit we can source
for Netherlands.

Every permit we source →

Highly Skilled Migrant (kennismigrant)

The IND (Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst), acting only on an application submitted by an employer the IND has recognised as a sponsor (erkend referent)

Checklist
Salary floor
EUR 5,942 a month (2026 figure)The IND publishes three gross monthly tiers, valid from 1 July to 31 December 2026 and excluding the 8% holiday allowance: €5,942 for a migrant aged 30 or older, €4,357 for one younger than 30, and a reduced criterion of €3,122 for someone who completed a higher-education degree within roughly the last three years or is moving on from a residence permit for orientation year. The IND states these amounts change every year on 1 January; confirm the figure in force on the date of your application with the IND or your sponsor before relying on it.
Qualification
No degree or credential-evaluation requirement is published for this route. Eligibility rests on the salary the recognised sponsor pays you, not on an assessment of your qualification.
IND decision
Up to 90 days, the IND's stated decision period
Application
€423
The procedure, step by step →

4 steps · 2 possible outcomes · 5 official sources

EU Blue Card

The IND (Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst)

Checklist
Salary floor
EUR 5,942 a month (2026 figure)The IND's standard gross monthly floor, valid from 1 July to 31 December 2026 and excluding the 8% holiday allowance. A reduced floor of €4,754 applies to a graduate of a higher-education degree, provided the sponsor applies within three years of the graduation or doctoral defence date. The IND states these amounts change every year on 1 January; confirm the figure in force on the date of your application before relying on it.
Qualification
A higher-education diploma from a course of study lasting at least three years, appropriate to the job, evaluated by Nuffic if issued outside the Netherlands — or, in its place, at least five years of relevant work experience at the level of a higher-education diploma. The IND publishes a shorter three-year experience window for a defined list of occupations; ask the IND or your employer whether your case falls on that list before relying on it.
IND decision, employer recognised as sponsor
30 days
IND decision, employer not recognised as sponsor
90 days
Application
€423
The procedure, step by step →

4 steps · 2 possible outcomes · 3 official sources

Orientation Year for Highly Educated Persons (zoekjaar)

The IND (Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst) — you apply yourself; no employer or sponsor is involved

Checklist
Qualification
Completion, within roughly the last three years, of an accredited bachelor's or master's degree at a Dutch institution, a Dutch post-master's course of at least one academic year, or a master's, doctoral or post-master's course at a foreign institution that ranks in the top 200 of at least two of three named league tables (Times Higher Education, QS, ShanghaiRanking), by overall or by-subject ranking. An Erasmus Mundus Joint Master's degree also qualifies.
IND decision
Up to 90 days
Orientation year permit
1 year
Application
€254
The procedure, step by step →

3 steps · 2 possible outcomes · 2 official sources

Written out in full

Guides for Netherlands.

Each of these takes one profession into Netherlands and runs both branches end to end, including the paperwork your country of qualification adds.

Verified route

Netherlands Work Visa for Software Developers

highly skilled migrant visa Netherlands

Read this one →

Evidence

Every claim on this page, and where it came from.

10 official pages, each with the jurisdiction it speaks for and the date a human last opened it. The oldest of them is 2026-08-03, and that is the date this page is only as fresh as.

Your case, not the general case

What Netherlands asks of you specifically.

Which permit fits and what your country of qualification adds to it both depend on where you qualified. The planner only offers combinations it can answer.

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