Staying in the Netherlands longer than 90 days means holding a residence permit, a verblijfsvergunning, and which one you need is decided by why you are coming rather than by where you are from.
The route also decides who files the application, how fast it moves and what you have to earn.
This guide covers the permit categories, the salary thresholds attached to them, how the IND processes each one, and what you have to do in Amsterdam once you land.
Which Permit Applies To You
Choosing the wrong category is the most expensive mistake available here, because a refusal costs you the fee and the months.
The highly skilled migrant permit, the kennismigrant, covers most people arriving with a job.
Your employer must be an IND recognised sponsor and files the application for you, and no separate work permit is needed on top of it.
The salary bar is a gross monthly figure excluding holiday allowance, revised every 1 January.
For 2026 it is 5,942 euros a month at 30 and over, 4,357 euros under 30, and a reduced 3,122 euros for recent graduates and people converting from an orientation year permit.
The EU Blue Card runs alongside it at the same standard threshold of 5,942 euros, with a reduced rate of 4,754 euros, and adds a higher-education requirement the kennismigrant route does not have.
Both tie your residence to your employment, so changing jobs means a new application rather than a note to the IND.
The orientation year permit, the zoekjaar, gives graduates of Dutch universities and of qualifying international ones twelve months to find work or start a business.
It carries free access to the labour market, meaning an employer can hire you without sponsoring anything, which is why it is the strongest card a new graduate holds.
The startup visa gives you a year to build a business with a Dutch facilitator attached to the application.
Students need a study permit tied to enrolment at an accredited institution, and partners and spouses use family reunification, where the sponsor already in the Netherlands has to meet an income test.
Most non-EU nationals also need an MVV, the provisional entry authorisation, issued before you travel.
It is applied for alongside the residence permit rather than separately, and the government’s own overview sets out which nationalities are exempt.
How The IND Handles It
Every residence application in the country goes through the IND, whoever submits it.
For work permits that is your employer or sponsor, and you will often never touch the paperwork.
If you need an MVV, the IND works through the Dutch embassy or consulate in your country of residence.
You attend in person to give biometrics, a photograph and two fingerprints, which are written to the chip in the permit card you collect later.
Foreign civil documents need legalisation before they will be accepted.
Diplomas, birth certificates and marriage records usually need an apostille, and arranging that from Amsterdam after you have moved is far slower than doing it before you leave.
Processing time is where the categories diverge most.
A kennismigrant application filed by a recognised sponsor can be decided in around two weeks, while family reunification and the non-sponsored routes run to 90 days and sometimes beyond.
The Amsterdam IND desk is at Pieter Calandlaan 1, by Lelylaan station, open weekdays 09:00 to 16:30.
Appointments are booked online and walking in is not a route.
The First Weeks In Amsterdam
Register with the gemeente within five working days of moving into your address.
That appointment enters you in the BRP and produces your BSN, the nine-digit number every employer, bank and insurer will ask for.
Apply for DigiD the moment the BSN exists, since the activation code travels by post and cannot be hurried.
It is the login for the tax office, the health system and the IND’s own status tracker.
Dutch health insurance is compulsory for anyone living or working here.
Take out a basisverzekering within four months of becoming liable, because the policy is backdated to that date and the missed premiums are still owed.
Housing is the hard part and it blocks everything else, since the gemeente registration needs an address you are permitted to register at.
Most people start on Funda and Pararius and bridge the gap with a serviced apartment, and the thing to confirm before signing anything is that the contract allows BRP registration.
From Temporary To Permanent
Five continuous years on a valid permit opens the door to permanent residence, which ends the renewal cycle.
The five years must be unbroken, so gaps between permits count against you rather than being overlooked.
You also sit the civic integration exam, the inburgering, covering Dutch language and knowledge of Dutch society.
Highly skilled migrants and some other categories are exempt from parts of it, and the IND will confirm which parts apply to your permit.
Naturalisation is the further step, after five years of legal residence, and brings an EU passport and the vote.
The Netherlands ordinarily requires you to give up your existing nationality, with exceptions including marriage to a Dutch national and countries that do not permit renunciation, so this is a decision to take with advice rather than from a website.
Changing your basis of stay, graduating from a study permit onto a work permit for instance, is a fresh application to the IND rather than an amendment.
Asylum runs on an entirely separate track under different rules and is not covered here.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a Dutch work permit take?
A highly skilled migrant application filed by a recognised sponsor can be decided in about two weeks.
Other routes, including the combined residence and work permit known as the GVVA, run to 90 days according to the IND.
Is it hard to get a work permit for Amsterdam?
Not if your employer is a recognised sponsor and the salary clears the kennismigrant threshold, currently 5,942 euros gross a month at 30 and over.
Outside that route the employer has to run a labour market test proving no suitable EU candidate was available, which is a far higher bar.
Can I move without a job offer?
Yes, through the orientation year permit if you graduated from a Dutch university or a qualifying international one, which gives twelve months of free labour market access.
The startup visa is the other route, requiring an innovative business plan and a recognised Dutch facilitator.
How do I check my application status?
Track it on the IND site with the reference number issued when the application was filed.
The expiry date is printed on the permit card itself, and employers verify validity through the IND’s employer portal.
What is a TWV and when do I need one?
The TWV, or tewerkstellingsvergunning, is an employment permit your employer requests from the UWV.
You need it only where your residence permit does not already carry work authorisation, which is why the kennismigrant and orientation year routes avoid it entirely.
What are the main residence permit categories?
Highly skilled migrant, EU Blue Card, startup visa, study permit, orientation year and family reunification cover almost everyone.
Each has its own income test, sponsor requirement and processing time, and the full list sits on the IND residence permits page.
