The highly skilled migrant permit (kennismigrant) and its 2026 salary thresholds

The IND publishes gross monthly amounts for 2026. They apply to a first application, an extension and a change of employer:

• €5,942 if you are 30 or older;
• €4,357 if you are younger than 30;
• €3,122 under the reduced salary criterion for recent graduates (see below).

You must meet the amount that applies on the date of the application. If you change employers, the amount that applies on the start date of the new contract counts. If you received your first permit before turning 30 and keep the same employer, the under-30 amount continues to apply after your 30th birthday; if you change employers after turning 30, the IND applies the amount for people aged 30 and over.

Researchers at research institutions and doctors in training to become specialists have a much lower income requirement: for 1 July to 31 December 2026 the IND lists €1,635.90 gross per month without holiday allowance.

The IND uses your gross salary as it appears on your payslip. According to the IND:

• Fixed allowances and reimbursements count, such as a thirteenth month, but only if they are in your contract, paid into your own bank account and paid every month (a thirteenth month must therefore be spread over twelve equal payments).
• Holiday allowance (vakantiegeld, usually 8%) does not count.
• Payments in kind and uncertain or irregular pay, such as overtime, tips or bonuses, do not count.

The salary must also be in line with the market rate: what people in the same job earn on average. An offer that meets the threshold but is clearly below the usual pay for the role can still be refused.

The €3,122 threshold (2026) applies in three situations, according to the IND:

• you apply while you hold an orientation year permit for highly educated persons;
• you used to hold an orientation year permit and apply within three years of graduating, obtaining your doctorate or finishing research in the Netherlands;
• you never held an orientation year permit but meet its conditions (for example because you graduated from an eligible programme) and apply within three years of graduation, your doctorate or the end of your research permit.

See studying in the Netherlands for the orientation year.

1. Your employer checks its status. Only recognised sponsors can use this route. Recognition costs the employer €5,080 (or €2,539 for businesses with no more than 50 people) in 2026. Some employers use a payroll company or other organisation that is itself a recognised sponsor.
2. Your employer applies online. If you need an MVV entry visa, the employer applies for the MVV and the residence permit together. The fee is €423 in 2026.
3. The IND decides. The statutory decision period is 90 days. An immigration law firm writing for IN Amsterdam reports that the IND usually decides in about two weeks when the employer is a recognised sponsor.
4. You travel and collect your residence document at an IND desk. If your employer is in the Amsterdam Area and uses IN Amsterdam, you can collect it there and register with the municipality in the same visit.
5. You register in the Personal Records Database (BRP) within five days if you will stay longer than four months, and receive your citizen service number (BSN). See registering in Amsterdam.
6. You take a tuberculosis (TB) test within three months of receiving your permit if your nationality requires it; the IND states this in your decision.

Your employer can apply for your family at the same time, using the IND form for family members of an employee via a recognised sponsor. Each adult family member pays €254 and each child under 18 pays a lower fee (2026). Family members need legalised and, where necessary, translated birth and marriage certificates. Whether your partner must first pass the civic integration exam abroad depends on nationality and situation; check the IND exemption list before applying. See family reunification in the Netherlands.

The permit is usually issued for the length of your employment contract, up to a maximum of five years, and can be extended as long as you still meet the conditions.

You can change jobs, but your new employer must also be a recognised sponsor and must arrange the change with the IND, and your salary must meet the threshold that applies when the new contract starts. Your salary must stay at or above the threshold throughout: unlike the EU Blue Card, the highly skilled migrant scheme does not tolerate even a short period below it, for example during long-term sick leave.

If your employment ends, you generally have three months to find a new job with a recognised sponsor. According to the IND, if you become unemployed on or after 22 May 2026 and have held the permit for at least two years, you get up to six months, but never beyond the end date of your permit. If you do not find qualifying work in time, the IND can withdraw the permit. Ask the IND or an adviser early if your job is at risk, because benefits, your permit and your family's permits are linked.

The EU Blue Card has the same 2026 threshold as highly skilled migrants aged 30 or older (€5,942 gross per month), with a reduced criterion of €4,754 for recent graduates. It does not require a recognised sponsor, but it does require higher education evaluated by the Dutch credential evaluation service (IDW) or, in some cases, relevant work experience, and a contract of at least six months. It offers more protection during illness and more mobility within the EU.

If you are being transferred within a multinational group and keep your contract with the sending company, the intra-corporate transferee (ICT) permit takes priority over both routes.

• The 30% ruling (Expat Scheme) is a separate tax arrangement that you apply for with your employer through the Tax and Customs Administration; it has its own salary conditions. See the 30% ruling.
• Highly skilled migrants are not required to complete civic integration when they arrive, according to IN Amsterdam. If you later want permanent residence or Dutch citizenship, you will need to pass civic integration exams.
• Highly skilled migrant is a non-temporary purpose of stay, so after five years of lawful residence you can usually apply for permanent residence or naturalisation if you meet the other conditions.
• In July 2025 the government announced plans to tighten the scheme, including a higher threshold for under-30s and stricter conditions for recognised sponsors. The 2026 amounts above are those the IND applies today; check the IND page when your employer applies.