UK nationals who wish to live in the Netherlands are subject to the changes that started to take affect following Brexit. This means that the route they follow in order to immigrate to the Netherlands form UK start by applying for residence with the Immigration and Naturalisation Service.
UK nationals who choose to relocate to the Netherlands permanently may wish to do so for the purpose of pursuing new career opportunities, for business, or study purposes, as well as to reunite with a spouse or another family member who is already lawfully living there. If you want to immigrate to the Netherlands from UK, our immigration lawyers are ready to assist you during the entire immigration procedure.
| Quick Facts | |
|---|---|
| Visa requirement for UK nationals entering the Netherlands |
Visa-free for travels of up to 90 days |
|
Types of temporary residence permits |
Study Work Family reunification Business Short stay Asylum |
|
Documents for temporary residence permits |
Valid passport Sponsor in the Netherlands Health insurance Purpose-specific documents |
| Approximate time needed to obtain a temporary stay permit | 90 days |
| Residence permits for investors | Yes |
| Temporary residence permit duration |
5 years |
| Post-arrival registration with the authorities |
Registration with the municipality |
| UK permit holder can bring dependents to the Nethelands | The family members need their own residence permits |
| Facilities for UK nationals married to a Dutch citizen | If married to a Dutch citizen for at least 3 years, a foreign national does not need to live in the country for 5 years before applying for naturalisation |
| Minimum lawful stay before applying for permanent residence | 5 years |
| Minimum time in the country before applying for citizenship | 5 consecutive years |
| Naturalization requirements | Valid residence at the date of the naturalisation procedure Civic integration Not a danger to the public or national security |
| Dual citizenship | No |
| UK benefits available in the Netherlands | Claiming UK State Pension abroad is possible, with some conditions |
| Taxation of UK income in the Netherlands |
Tax relief available for non-Dutch income, subject to double taxation agreement conditions |
UK citizens who want to study or work in the Netherlands need to obtain a special visa or permit. We invite you to solicit help and guidance from our immigration lawyer in the Netherlands in visa matters or relocation to the Netherlands.
Our team is also able to provide complete assistance to UK nationals living in the country who wish to apply for Dutch citizenship.
In case you want to immigrate to the Netherlands from UK, our team is ready to handle the entire immigration procedure.
Obtain a residence permit as a UK citizen in the Netherlands
Numerous UK citizens choose attractive job opportunities in the Netherlands, especially if they are highly skilled migrants.
UK citizens do not require a visa for short-term stays in the Netherlands (up to 90 days in any given 180-day period), however, for those interested in immigration, who plan to work or do business for more than three months, a Dutch residence permitis mandatory as soon as they arrive in the country.
The IND (Immigration and Naturalization Services) issues Dutch resident permits for all citizens from abroad, including ones from the United Kingdom.
A residence permit in the Netherlands can be obtained if you prepare a valid passport for verification with the authorities, provide details about your financial status, prepare medical insurance available in the Schengen Area, and if you offer a copy of a certificate that shows your civic integration.
Certain documents are mandatory for all residence permit applications, such as having a valid passport, however, a number of documents are residence-permit specific and depend on the type of permit one chooses to apply for.
Our immigration lawyer in the Netherlands can help you obtain this important document and can also help UK citizens properly integrate into the Netherlands. We invite you to watch a short video:
Types of residence permits in the Netherlands
As previously mentioned, UK citizens who remain in the Netherlands for more than 90 days will need a residence permit suitable for their purpose of stay.
The application for the residence permit should begin before relocation, and our team of Dutch immigration specialists can help you prepare the documents in due time.
Below, we briefly list the main types of residence permits available to foreign nationals who wish to move to the Netherlands:
- Work: for those who have taken up employment with a Dutch company;
- Investment: for those who are able to make a significant investment in the country and their business complies with a set of specific requirements;
- Study: for foreign nationals who have been accepted to a Dutch University or another recognized educational institution;
- Family reunification: for the spouse or certain other family members of foreign nationals who already lawfully reside in the Netherlands under temporary or permanent residency.
Please keep in mind that the list above only briefly states the available types of permits.
The filled-in application form, along with the standard and the specific documents is submitted to the IND for approval.
For the specific documents, examples include the employment contract, the university acceptance letter, the marriage certificate, or others that are relevant to the specific purpose of stay.
Immigration to the Netherlands is considered complete once the holder of a temporary residence permit becomes a permanent resident and/or chooses to apply for citizenship by naturalization (described below).
The work residence permit for UK employees
A common reason to move to the Netherlands from the UK has to do with pursuing an attractive employment option or exploring new career opportunities. A British national coming to work in Amsterdam or another Dutch city will generally need a combined work and residence permit (the GVVA).
Apart from regular employment, the following types of employees fall under the category of knowledge and talent resident permits, for which employment is clearly defined and subject to specific requirements:
- Intra-corporate transfers: when the employee is transferred to the Netherlands as a trainee, a manager, or a specialist who will be working for the foreign company’s Dutch branch;
- Highly skilled migrant: for those individuals who will work in highly qualified jobs, for which a high degree of education is required; a different minimums salary applies in this case, in line with the specialisation of the job position;
- Residence permits for researchers: special qualifications may also apply in this case;
- Residence permit for essential start-up employees: the individual will work for a Dutch start-up and will be assigned an essential position that will help the start-up grow; in this case, the UK national can receive both a salary and a participating interest.
Another category of permits includes the single permit (the GVVA), which combines work and residence permits. This applies to foreign citizens who wish to work in paid employment in different other sectors, such as spiritual counselors, employees in art and culture, or in an international non-profit organization.
British students who come to the Netherlands for a work placement, as well as British trainees, will engage in work in the context of study and are subject to a different type of residence permit for work.
Our team can give you more details if you wish to move to the Netherlands from the UK and have questions about the work and residence permits.
The investor visa for UK entrepreneurs
UK investors with innovative business ideas can choose to benefit from the advantages offered to startups in the Netherlands and apply for the Netherlands startup visa.
The start-up visa allows the holder to obtain residence for 1 year, during which he can start the innovative business together with the chosen and approved facilitator who serves as a mentor.
The following conditions apply to a UK entrepreneur who wishes to reside in the Netherlands under the start-up visa:
- the applicant meets the conditions that apply to all applicants;
- he chooses a reliable mentor, the facilitator, and signs a contract;
- the company proposed is an innovative one (new to the country, uses new technology, or has a new manner of working/organizing);
- the founder plays an active role in the company and has a step-by-step business plan;
- the company owner and the facilitator are registered with the Trade Register of the Chamber of Commerce;
- the applicant meets the minimum income requirements (through a bank statement or by proving that his stay is founded by a third party).
The facilitator, or mentor, needs to comply with the following:
- has experience in mentoring start-ups;
- has a good financial condition;
- does not have a majority interest in the start-up company;
- is not related to the foreign national who applies for the start-up visa; other conditions apply.
A separate residence permit is awarded to foreign nationals who choose to make a minimum substantial investment in the Netherlands, as opposed to opening an innovative company.
Our team reminds UK applicants that the minimum income requirement depends on the chosen type of residence permit. Examples include the following:
- study residence permit for university or higher education: € 957.87 per month;
- work residence permit: € 2,089.16 gross salary per month, including holiday allowance;
- self-employed individual: € 1,462.41 per month, gross profit with holiday allowance;
- permanent residence permit required amount: € 1,462.41 per month with holiday allowance.
Please keep in mind that these amounts are the ones required between 1 January 2023 and 30 June 2023 and that they are subject to change each year.
Do not hesitate to get in touch with our team if you want to immigrate to the Netherlands from UK.
Dutch citizenship for UK nationals
If you are from the UK and have stayed in the Netherlands for 5 uninterrupted years with a valid residence permit in Netherlands, you can start the process of obtaining Dutch citizenship by naturalization. The period is shorter, only 3 years if you have a Dutch partner, however, conditions apply in terms of proving the authenticity of the relationship.
Applications are submitted with the IND at the local municipality and applicants should know that the decision process can be a lengthy one, and in some cases it may last approximately one year.
In case you are interested in the citizenship by investment program in Netherlands, our team can give you all the details and assist you through the entire process.
Our team provides complete assistance to UK nationals living in the country who wish to apply for Dutch citizenship. For most British nationals, the naturalization option is the most common way in which they can become Dutch citizens. However, if you have Dutch parents, you can be eligible for the acknowledgment of parentage, also known as acquiring citizenship by descent. Our team can give you more information.
If you want to immigrate to the Netherlands from UK, we kindly invite you to solicit help and guidance from our Dutch immigration lawyers.
Our team also assists US citizens who wish to come to the Netherlands by applying for a visa under the DAFT treaty. This agreement allows a US applicant to receive residency in the Netherlands for business or self-employed purposes, provided that he or she can maintain a minimum investment amount and minimum income/bank balance at all times. Contact us for more details.
We can also help you start your business here and apply for the Netherlands investor visa as needed.
Foreign nationals living in the Netherlands
According to the statistical institute, as of January 1st, 2022, almost 15% of the country’s population was foreign-born. Moreover, almost 12% of the country’s population had at least one foreign-born parent.
According to the same source, two-thirds of the residents who were born in a foreign country originated from outside Europe (approximately 1.7 million people). Turkish-born residents are among the most numerous in the Netherlands, making up approximately 250,000 of the total, followed by those from Morocco and certain countries in Asia.
In the first quarter of 2022, there were fewer applications for asylum, compared to the same period a year prior, and part of these were filed by Ukrainian and Russian nationals (citizens from these two countries were first-time applicants, out of which 75 were Ukrainian and 120 Russian, as per data issued by the Dutch Immigration and Naturalization Service). During the first quarter of 2022, a total of 6,485 individuals submitted a first-time asylum application.
The statistical institute also reports fewer asylum applications in the first quarter of 2023, compared to the previous quarter, Q4 2022, however, the total number of Q1 2023 asylum applications was larger by 7% compared to the total asylum applications in Q1 2022.
Overall, the country’s population increased by 27,4 thousand individuals in the first quarter of 2023, an increase entirely attributable to immigration, according to provisional figures.
Contact us for complete information on how you can relocate to the Netherlands, irrespective of your reason for a permanent stay.