This information is based on the agreement between the EU and the UK.
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British citizens who live in the Netherlands must register with the Municipal Personal Records Database (Basisregistratie Personen, BRP) in their municipality of residence, and create an account on mijnoverheid.nl. This will enable them to receive digital post from the government. The Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) recommends British citizens also apply for a DigiD.
Do you employ British citizens? If they were living in the Netherlands before 1 January 2021, you do not need to apply for a work permit for them. These employees will not need a work permit, but they will need to apply for a residence document. They will be able to do so up to 1 October 2021.
What should you do?
- Your employees should apply for a residence document themselves. Make sure they know what they need to do in order to be able to stay in the Netherlands.
- Draw your employees’ attention to the fact they need to apply for a residence document.
- Find out what changes in terms of your employees’ income tax on the Dutch Tax Administration website (in Dutch).
What should your employee do?
- Your employee should apply for a residence document in order to live, work or study here. They can do so until 1 October 2021. The IND advises British citizens to apply for their residence permit as soon as possible.
- If your employee has been living here for under 5 years, they should apply for a fixed-term residence document.
- If your employee has been living for over 5 consecutive years in the Netherlands, they should apply for a long-term residence document.
- Neither type of document requires integration.
- If your employee has an EU residence document for long-term stay in the Netherlands, they will be able to exchange this document for a new residence document with the IND.
- Your employee can apply for a residence document until 1 October 2021. If they can prove the withdrawal agreement applies to them, they can hand in relevant documents before 1 October 2021. These include:
- A confirmation from the IND that they will receive a residence document together with proof of registration in the Municipal Personal Records Database (BRP);
- A contract or payslip that confirms your employee has been working for you (or another employer in the Netherlands) since before 1 January 2021.
Do you want to employ a British citizen who did not live in the Netherlands before 1 January 2021? New rules apply. In most cases you will need to apply for a residence permit and/or a work permit for your employee.
What should you do?
- If you want to apply for a work permit for your employee, there are a number of conditions to fulfill. These depend on the type and duration of the work they will perform.
- If your employee is staying for more than 90 days, you will need to apply for a combined residence and work permit (gecombineerde vergunning verblijf en arbeid, GVVA). If they are staying under 90 days, you will need a work permit (tewerkstellingsvergunning, TWV). Please note: this only applies to employees who did not work for you and did not live in the Netherlands before 1 January 2021.
- Make your application through werk.nl. You will find more information about the procedure and conditions there (in Dutch).
- Make sure your employee is informed about what they need to do in order to stay in the Netherlands. There will be some changes in the way your employee's income is taxed.
What should your employee do?
- British citizens wishing to live in the Netherlands indefinitely, after having lived in the Netherlands for at least 5 years, will need to pursue the civic integration process ('inburgeringsproces'). People coming to the Netherlands primarily to work do not have to integrate.
Do you have a branch office in the UK? EU citizens are no longer able to freely move to and work in the UK.
What you should do:
Make sure you are aware of the procedures EU citizens will need to follow to be able to live and work in the UK.What your employee should do:
- Has your employee been living in the UK for 5 consecutive years? They will be able to apply for for ‘settled status’, this means they have permission to stay indefinitely.
- Has your employee been living in the UK for under 5 years? They can apply for pre-settled status. This means they can stay in the UK until they have lived there for 5 years, then they will be able to apply for settled status.
- You can find out more about these statuses and application procedures through the British government. The deadline for application is 31 June 2021.
- Is your employee moving to the UK? Find out more about the UK’s Points-Based Immigation System.
- British self-employed professionals settled in the Netherlands before 1 January 2021 are allowed to stay and work in the Netherlands. They will have to apply for a residence permit through the IND.
- British self-employed professionals working in the Netherlands before 1 January 2021, but settled in the UK, should have finished their assignments before 1 January 2021.
British self-employed professionals will need a residence permit to work in the Netherlands after 1 January 2021 in most cases. You can find more information about this on the IND website.
Other considerations
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Cross-border workers or frontier workers are people who work in the Netherlands, but do not live there. If your employee has been working for you since before 1 January, they should apply for the Document for cross-border workers (document Grensarbeider) to the IND.
You or your employee must be able to prove that they were working in the Netherlands before 1 January 2021. You can do so with the cross-border workers document. This document will also allow your employee to travel easily to and from the Netherlands for their work.
To be eligible for the cross-border workers document, your employee must meet certain conditions. Work that falls under the freedom of movement (if it concerns an employee) or freedom of establishment (if it concerns a self-employed professional) is allowed. Cross-border workers working in the Netherlands under the freedom of services principle do not fall in this category, they are not eligible for the cross-border workers document. The IND will test if each application meets the requirements for cross-border work as formulated in the withdrawal agreement.
Do you want to employ a new British cross-border worker? You will need to apply for a work permit (in Dutch).
Free movement of services between the EU and UK is no longer possible. This means British citizens in the Netherlands cannot continue their services as before. New rules around apply to posted workers. Do you want to initiate a new posting? You can use the existing procedures for hiring non-EU citizens or avail yourself of the options for employing high-skilled employees that the withdrawal agreement offers. In most cases a work or residence permit will not be needed for highly skilled workers.
Do you want to employ British citizens with professionals qualifications? And does it concern a regulated profession? British employees will have to have their qualifications recognised in the EU before they can start working. The recognition procedure differs according to the type of profession or qualification. You can find more information about this through the IND website.
British citizens coming to the Netherlands to (temporarily) work, will be faced with changes in their duty to insure. The duty to take out insurance for employees and employers will be adapted to the withdrawal agreement. At this moment, it is not yet clear how the situation will change. For more information, check the website of the Social Insurance Bank (Sociale Verzekeringsbank, SVB). Please note: you will no longer be able to log in using ‘Gov.uk verify.’
Do you or your employees travel to the UK? Be aware there will be extra costs for data roaming. As of 1 January 2021, telecom providers will be allowed to charge roaming costs for using mobile data in the UK. Your current healthcare insurance may not cover all medical costs. If this is the case, you will need to take out additional travel or healthcare insurance. Keep an eye on the Government.nl website for more information about travel to the UK.
British employees working with children will be able to apply for an International Child Protection Certificate through the British ACRO Criminal Record Office. This is a certificate developed by the UK for people working with children. Employers who have staff working with children will be able to ask their British employees to provide them with this certificate. This comes on top of the Dutch Verklaring Omtrent Gredrag (VOG). Read more about this on the website of the Dutch screening authority Justis (in Dutch).
Q&A about the Brexit
There is an extensive Q&A about the Brexit Trade Agreement available on the website of the European Commission. It explains what the new rules mean for different sectors, such as trade in goods, fisheries and road transport. There are nine chapters in total and you can search per sector. At the top you can choose your language. You can find answers to questions such as: What was agreed to facilitate trade in automotive? How does the Agreement contribute to trade and sustainable development? Will air carriers still have the same rights to operate between and within the EU and the UK? Note that this Q&A was published in December 2020 and therefore speaks of a draft agreement.
