Illness and healthcare

If you are coming to work in the Netherlands for the first time, you must immediately register with the municipality of the town you are living in. This registration is necessary to get a BSN (citizen service number). You need this number to be able to live and work (for a Dutch employer) in the Netherlands. It is also important for taking out a health insurance.

If you are coming to live and work in the Netherlands for a Dutch employer, then you are obliged by law to have a Dutch health insurance. Sometimes your employer or employment agency can arrange this for you. Then your employer gives you your health insurance documents: a policy and an insurance card. You don’t need these documents to obtain healthcare in the Netherlands (your name and BSN is enough to visit the doctor).

Only if you are a posted worker, that is when you are working in the Netherlands temporarily for an employer abroad, you are allowed to be insured in your home country.

If you are going to arrange your health insurance yourself, do so as soon as possible and at least within four months of coming to work here. You will have to pay medical expenses during the period in which you are not insured.

Have you become ill? Report it by telephone to your manager (or to his/her deputy) as soon as possible. If nobody picks up the phone, then leave a voicemail message. Your employer can then find a replacement for you.

Read everything you need to know at workinnl.nl:

• How can I check my health insurance?
• What does my health insurance cover?
• What should I do in case of illness?
• How will my wages be paid during my illness?
• What do I need to know about the sickness benefit?