Are there additional requirements for posted third-country citizens?

In order to be able to work in the Netherlands, third-country citizens, workers with a nationality from outside the EU, EEA and Switzerland must usually have a work permit.

For posted third-country citizens, there is an exception to this obligation: under Article 4.6 of the Foreign Nationals (Employment) Act Implementation Decree (BuWav), a notification obligation applies for the posting of third-country workers who customarily work lawfully in another EU or EEA member state or in Switzerland. This notification allows workers to work in the Netherlands without a work permit, providing the following conditions are met:

• the worker complies with all the regulations concerning accommodation, work permit and social security, in order to work for the employer in the country where the employer is based;
• the worker does work that is equivalent to the work he can do in the country where the employer is based;
• the worker is merely the replacement for another foreign national who has carried out similar work, providing the total duration of the agreed services is not exceeded; and
• the employer actually carries out substantial activities in the country where he is based.

If these conditions are not met (in full), the third-country citizen must have a work permit in order to be able to work in the Netherlands.

The employer abroad must notify posted third-country citizens through the online notification portal. The employer must indicate through the notification portal that the worker comes from a third country. This notification replaces the notification that was submitted to the Dutch administrative authority (UWV) up to 1 March 2020. If a worker from a third country is posted to the Netherlands for more than 3 months (under Article 4.6 of the BuWav), the employer or the worker must apply to the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) for a temporary regular residence permit in the context of cross-border service provision, in addition to the notification. If the IND receives such a request, it will check whether a notification has in fact been made. If you have made a one-year notification for a worker from a third country and you would like to apply for a residence permit for this worker, you must submit a regular notification for this worker through the online notification portal, so that the IND can see the duration for which this worker is likely to work in the Netherlands.

The rules that apply to these workers from outside the EU, EEA and Switzerland are the same as those that apply to workers from the EU, EEA and Switzerland, with regard to wages and administrative obligations, for example. You can find more information about the rights of workers and the obligations of employers here.