Profile

Highly skilled migrant

Route status

Active as of 2026-07-28[4]

Open to new applications under the rules recorded below.

Residency route facts

Identity

Identity
Official name (local)verblijfsvergunning kennismigrant (arbeid als kennismigrant) as of 2026-07-28[5]
The IND's Dutch-language page is titled 'Kennismigrant'; the residence document is endorsed 'arbeid als kennismigrant en als zelfstandige toegestaan, andere arbeid toegestaan met TWV'.
Official name (English)Highly skilled migrant as of 2026-07-28[4]
Legal basisVreemdelingenbesluit 2000 art. 3.30a, first paragraph as of 2026-08-11[4][11]
Closed by a shell-side slice of the consolidated Vb 2000 text (research-rules §6.6, ops brief 3, Concern 8): art. 3.30a, first paragraph confirms the regular temporary residence permit under a restriction linked to labour as a kennismigrant for a foreign national under art. 2.1 of the Besluit uitvoering Wet arbeid vreemdelingen 2022, working or seeking to work for an employer recognised as a referent under art. 2c of the Wet, unless the agreed salary is not market-conform in the judgement of the Minister of Social Affairs and Employment.
Instrument typeresidence permit as of 2026-07-28[4]
IND records it as a type I temporary regular residence permit.

Who can apply

Who can apply
Nationals not served by this routeNot established from a qualifying source[4]
Criminal-record conditionYes as of 2026-03-20[3]
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

Permit terms
Initial durationup to 5 years as of 2026-07-28[4]
How the initial term is setmatches the contract
RenewableYes as of 2026-07-28[4]
The employer extends the permit.
Renewal durationNot established from a qualifying source
Not stated on the IND page.
Work rightsown activity only as of 2026-07-28[4]

Permanent residence and citizenship

Permanent residence and citizenship
Counts toward permanent residenceYes as of 2026-07-28[4][9]
The IND route page points holders with 5 years of permit history to the permanent residence permit.

Requirements

Requirements
Job offer requiredYes as of 2026-07-28[4]
An employment contract with an employer or research institution in the Netherlands.
Salary threshold
    • Measured against: set by decree or programme rules
    • Amount: 1 × Salary criterion, highly skilled migrant aged 30 or over per month as of 2026-07-13[10]
      Applies to highly skilled migrants aged 30 or over. The IND publishes it as the salariscriterium kennismigrant 30 jaar of ouder and revises it every year on 1 January.
    • Measured against: set by decree or programme rules
    • Amount: 1 × Salary criterion, highly skilled migrant under 30 per month as of 2026-07-13[10]
      Applies to highly skilled migrants under 30. The IND publishes it as the salariscriterium kennismigrant jonger dan 30 jaar and revises it every year on 1 January.
    • Measured against: set by decree or programme rules
    • Amount: 1 × Reduced salary criterion, highly skilled migrant per month as of 2026-07-13[10]
      Reduced criterion for recent graduates and former orientation-year or research-permit holders. The IND publishes it as the verlaagd salariscriterium kennismigrant and revises it every year on 1 January.
    • Measured against: statistical average
    • Amount: Recorded at the source, but not reducible to a single value
      Market-conformity test. The IND requires the agreed salary to be in line with the market rate, defined as earning the same as the average for the same job. No figure is published for this test, so it is recorded as not_expressible rather than given a number the source does not state. It sits alongside, and is separate from, the published salary criterion recorded in the other salary_threshold entry.
Labour-market testNot established from a qualifying source[4]
Qualification requirementnone as of 2026-07-28[4]
Employer sponsorshipYes as of 2026-07-28[4]
Mandatory and stricter than sponsorship elsewhere: only an employer recognised by the IND as a sponsor can apply, and recognised sponsors are listed in a public register. This is the sharpest practical difference from the European Blue Card, for which recognition is not required.
Paid in-countryYes as of 2026-07-28[4]
Job-search routeNo as of 2026-07-28[4]
Job-search period on losing employment: 3 months, extended to a maximum of 6 months where the job was lost on or after 22 May 2026 and the permit has been held for 2 years or more, and for victims of labour exploitation. The search period can never run past the permit's own expiry, and runs from the day the contract ends. See country.recent_changes.

Process

Process
Where to apply fromeither as of 2026-07-28[2][4]
Only an IND-recognised sponsor may apply. The standard path from abroad is the TEV procedure with an MVV sticker collected before travel; the fee schedule separately prices a change in purpose of stay, so in-country applications also exist.
Statutory processing time90 days as of 2026-07-06[1]
Fees
    • Kind: application
    • Amount: EUR 423 one-off as of 2026-06-12[2]
    • Charged per: applicant
    • Condition: first application or change in purpose of stay
    • Kind: renewal
    • Amount: EUR 423 one-off as of 2026-06-12[2]
    • Charged per: applicant
    • Condition: extension
    • Kind: application
    • Amount: EUR 254 one-off as of 2026-06-12[2]
    • Charged per: applicant
    • Condition: applicant holds long-term EU resident status in another EU member state
    • Kind: application
    • Amount: EUR 85 one-off as of 2026-06-12[2]
    • Charged per: applicant
    • Condition: Turkish nationals under the EC-Turkey Association Agreement (with or without MVV, and extension)

Physical presence

Physical presence
maximum consecutive absence6 months · to keep the permit as of 2026-07-20[6]
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 absence4 months · to keep the permit as of 2026-07-20[6]

Family inclusion

Family inclusion
Family members may be includedYes as of 2026-07-24[7][8]
Eligible relationsspouse, registered partner, unmarried partner, minor child as of 2026-07-24[7][8]
Union of the relations named on the IND's partner and minor-child pages. The family members apply on the family routes recorded in this record; the IND provides a dedicated recognised-sponsor form (7514) for family members of an employee.
Family may apply at the same timeNot established from a qualifying source
Family members' work rightsfull as of 2026-07-24[7][8]
The IND states that the partner and the child of a highly skilled migrant are free to work: residence document endorsed 'arbeid vrij toegestaan. TWV niet vereist'.

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.

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Verification

Verification
Sources cited11
of which official (tier 1)11
Oldest as-of date2026-03-20
Newest as-of date2026-08-11
Reviewed on2026-08-11
Schema version1.1

Sources

  1. [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. [2] 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
  3. [3] 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
  4. [4] Highly skilled migrant – conditions, salary criterion and permit terms
    Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-28 · Accessed 2026-08-09
  5. [5] Kennismigrant – Dutch-language conditions page (official permit name)
    Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-28 · Accessed 2026-08-09
  6. [6] 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
  7. [7] 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
  8. [8] 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
  9. [9] 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
  10. [10] 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
  11. [11] Vreemdelingenbesluit 2000, artikel 3.30a (kennismigrant; consolidated text)
    Ministerie van Binnenlandse Zaken en Koninkrijksrelaties / overheid.nl (wetten.overheid.nl) · statute · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-11

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