Foreign employer

Are you a foreign employer from the EU, the EEA or Switzerland with a duty to notify? And are you coming to perform a temporary service or assignment in the Netherlands? If so, you are required to submit a notification via the Dutch online notification portal.

Are you a self-employed person from the EU, the EEA or Switzerland? And are you coming to work in the Netherlands temporarily? In that case you too, sometimes have to notify. Find out whether this applies to you.

Please note:

Are your employees posted via a temporary employment agency in your home country? In that case, the rules are slightly different. Go to terms and conditions of employment for posted workers employed by a temporary employment agency – wHolandii

Notification is important

Notification allows the government to check whether posted workers are working under safe, healthy and fair employment conditions. This includes the right to a minimum wage, sufficient breaks, a safe workplace, equal treatment of men and women, and a minimum number of leave days.

The duty to notify is part of the Posted Workers in the European Union (Working Conditions) Act (Wet arbeidsvoorwaarden gedetacheerde werknemers in de Europese Unie, WagwEU). This Dutch Act is based on the European Posting of Workers Directive.

Rights and duties

Workers who are temporarily posted to the Netherlands are entitled to the statutory working conditions applicable here. You are obliged to offer this to them. In addition to offering the right terms and conditions of employment, you also have a number of administrative obligations. Read more about it on the ‘rights and duties’ page.

How the notification process works for you

It is easy to notify via the Dutch online notification portal. In this animation, we explain how to notify.

The notification process

Submitting a notification for posted workers consists of two steps. Together with the Dutch client, you must notify correctly. Make sure the notification is in order before the posted worker starts the assignment.

Important! Are there any changes to the assignment? You must report these changes in the notification portal. The client will recheck the changed notification.

FAQs

Why is notifying important?

When do I have to notify?

Submit a notification for the assignment and for your own workers concerned before you come to the Netherlands. The client will then check whether your notification is correct.

What if something changes in the meantime?

Is anything changing in your assignment? For example, is a new employee coming to work on the assignment or will you be working in the Netherlands for longer than planned? Then you must report this change in the notification portal. The client will again verify the amended notification.

What information do I need in order to notify?

Among other things, questions are asked about the type of work, the duration of the assignment, the work address, and the workers’ identities. To help you, this factsheet provides a handy checklist with the most important information that you, as an employer, must have at hand for the report. This way, you will be well prepared and able to submit the notification more quickly.

What happens if I do not submit a notification for workers, or if I notify incorrectly?

Notification is compulsory. If you fail to give notification of your workers, you risk being fined, and so does the client. View the fine amounts here.

The Netherlands Labour Authority checks this. Make sure the notification is in order before the posted worker starts the assignment. This way, you ensure that you are not fined and you will help create a fair labour market.

I am hiring a third party. How does notification work in that case?

Are you hiring a third party to work in the Netherlands? If so, that is called subcontracting. In that case, you are the client. The third party notifies their arrival and you check the report. Are you also posting your own workers? If so, you must submit a notification for them.

Exceptions to the duty to notify

Sometimes, you do not have to notify. You do not have to submit a notification for your workers if:

your company is based in the Netherlands and your workers have a Dutch contract;
you are posting workers within the Netherlands;
your workers work within certain sectors. An overview of these sectors can be found [here]
your workers are in the Netherlands to perform a certain type of incidental work. This includes business meetings, emergency maintenance and repairs, and attending conferences. An overview of this work and the associated rules can be found here.

Please note!

Are you a self-employed person? An overview of the sectors for which you must notify can be found here. Are you not working in any of these sectors? Then you do not have to submit a notification for the assignment in the Netherlands.
Different rules apply to the transport sector. You can find them here.
A notification must always be submitted for third-country nationals. Exceptions do not apply to this group.
Sometimes, you only have to notify once a year. This can be done through an one-year notification.
Are you, as a foreign employer or a self-employed person, hiring a third-party company or self-employed person from another Member State to work for your client in the Netherlands? We call this subcontracting. You are the subcontractor’s client at that time. The third-party company submits notifications for its own workers itself. The self-employed person submits a notification for themselves if they have a duty to notify. In this case, however, you must check the report.

Are you unsure? Ask your HR advisor for advice or look at the frequently asked questions.

Posted workers with a nationality outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland (third-country nationals)

Are you temporarily posting workers with a nationality from outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland to the Netherlands? In this case too, the duty to notify applies and your workers are entitled to the statutory Dutch working conditions. Additional rules may also apply. For example, a worker from a third country who has been posted to the Netherlands for more than 3 months must have a residence permit. You can view the additional requirements for employees from outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland here.