Residence permit for essential start-up personnel
Residency route facts
Identity
| Official name (local) | verblijfsvergunning essentieel start-uppersoneel as of 2026-06-03[2] From the IND's Dutch page title as linked from the English page ('Verblijfsvergunning essentieel start-up personeel'). |
|---|---|
| Official name (English) | Residence permit for essential start-up personnel as of 2026-06-03[2] |
| Legal basis | Pilot scheme; assessment framework for essential start-up personnel published in Staatscourant 2021, 27584 as of 2026-06-03[2] |
| Instrument type | residence permit as of 2026-06-03[2] Type I temporary regular residence permit. |
Who can apply
| Nationals not served by this route | Not established from a qualifying source[2] Not stated on the IND page. |
|---|---|
| Criminal-record condition | Yes as of 2026-03-20[4] Public-order and national-security condition applying to every regular residence permit. Everyone over 12 must submit a completed Appendix Antecedents Certificate (form 7601) declaring any offence or crime. The same page carries the two other universal conditions: a valid travel document, and a tuberculosis test after arrival unless exempt (nationals of listed countries, holders of an existing Dutch permit changing purpose, people born and always resident in the Netherlands, children of 11 or under, a TB test taken in the Netherlands in the last 6 months, and long-term EU residents and their family members). |
Permit terms
| Initial duration | up to 3 years as of 2026-06-03[2] |
|---|---|
| How the initial term is set | matches the contract |
| Renewable | Yes as of 2026-06-03[2] Extension follows the contract term, again to a maximum of 3 years. |
| Renewal duration | up to 3 years as of 2026-06-03[2] Ceiling, following the contract term. |
| Work rights | authorisation required as of 2026-06-03[2] Endorsement: 'TWV niet vereist voor specifieke arbeid, andere arbeid toegestaan mits TWV is verleend' – no work permit is needed for the work at the sponsoring start-up, but any other employer needs a TWV. |
Permanent residence and citizenship
Requirements
| Job offer required | Yes as of 2026-06-03[2] |
|---|---|
| Salary threshold |
|
| Labour-market test | Not established from a qualifying source[2] Not stated in the IND's conditions list. |
| Qualification requirement | equivalent experience as of 2026-06-03[2] The condition is expertise rather than a formal credential: the employee must be an expert in a special field that the start-up needs at this stage, and the RVO advises on the major role the employee will have. 'experience_equivalent' is the closest vocabulary value; the source names no degree, no years of experience and no examination. |
| Employer sponsorship | Yes as of 2026-06-03[2] |
| Paid in-country | Yes as of 2026-06-03[2] |
| Job-search route | No as of 2026-06-03[2] |
Process
| Where to apply from | either as of 2026-06-03[2][3] The start-up applies for the employee (form 7570), or the employee applies from abroad (9532) or in person (7571); a change in purpose of stay is separately priced. |
|---|---|
| Statutory processing time | 90 days as of 2026-07-06[1] Statutory decision period; extendable. |
| Fees |
Physical presence
| maximum consecutive absence | 6 months · to keep the permit as of 2026-07-20[5] Country-wide main-residence rule for regular residence permits: more than 6 continuous months outside the Netherlands (counted per calendar year, separate periods not added together) may be treated as moving main residence, which can cost the permit. |
|---|---|
| maximum consecutive absence | 4 months · to keep the permit as of 2026-07-20[5] |
Family inclusion
| Family members may be included | Yes as of 2026-07-24[7] |
|---|---|
| Eligible relations | spouse, registered partner, unmarried partner, minor child as of 2026-07-24[6][7] |
| Family may apply at the same time | Not established from a qualifying source Not stated. |
| Family members' work rights | full as of 2026-07-24[7] The IND lists essential start-up personnel among the permits whose partner is free to work. |
Your next step
Read the requirements above considering your own situation: the income multiple, the absence limits, who you can bring. Check the country record for the reference figure those amounts are calculated from, and for anything that has changed recently.
The next step is your own case. That assessment is legal work. Create profile for our assistance in this.
Profile benefits
- A 30-minute call with our consultant, who reads your profile first.
- An offer for legal support built around your case, covering the whole process.
Verification
| Sources cited | 9 |
|---|---|
| of which official (tier 1) | 9 |
| Oldest as-of date | 2026-03-20 |
| Newest as-of date | 2026-07-24 |
| Reviewed on | 2026-08-11 |
| Schema version | 1.1 |
Sources
- [1] Decision periods – statutory decision periods per application type
Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND), Ministry of Justice and Security · official guidance · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-06 · Accessed 2026-08-09 · Archived copy - [2] Residence permit for essential start-up personnel – pilot conditions and permit terms
Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-06-03 · Accessed 2026-08-09 - [3] Fees: costs of an application (leges)
Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND), Ministry of Justice and Security · fee schedule · Tier 1 · Published 2026-06-12 · Accessed 2026-08-09 · Archived copy - [4] Requirements that apply to everyone – general conditions for every regular residence permit
Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND) · official guidance · Tier 1 · Published 2026-03-20 · Accessed 2026-08-09 - [5] Main residency – when the IND considers main residence moved abroad
Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND), Ministry of Justice and Security · official guidance · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-20 · Accessed 2026-08-09 · Archived copy - [6] Residence permit for minor child to stay with parent – conditions and permit terms
Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-24 · Accessed 2026-08-09 - [7] Residence permit for partner – conditions, sponsor rules and permit terms
Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-24 · Accessed 2026-08-09 - [8] Permanent residence permit – conditions
Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND), Ministry of Justice and Security · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-05-20 · Accessed 2026-08-09 · Archived copy - [9] Required amounts income requirements (normbedragen)
Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND), Ministry of Justice and Security · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-13 · Accessed 2026-08-09 · Archived copy