Brexit: staff and organisation
British citizens working in the Netherlands and Dutch citizens working in the UK have to fulfil additional requirements. Some professional qualifications and regulated professions are no longer automatically recognised.
This information is based on the agreement between the EU and the UK.
To-do list
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.
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.
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.
Other considerations
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).
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.