Permit Rulebook

Highly skilled migrant — 30 or older (kennismigrant)

The rules, quoted and dated:

The Dutch highly skilled migrant permit. No degree is needed — the salary is what qualifies you. A lower salary counts if, within the last three years, you graduated from a Dutch university or research institution, or from a foreign institution the Dutch immigration service designates. Every number on this page is the authority's own sentence, with the page it came from and the day we read it. This page is for people who need a permit to work in the Netherlands. This page describes the rules; it does not decide on you.

PR

What this route asks for

€3,122/month — lower amount for a recent graduate, 2026
€5,942/month — 30 or older, 2026

Read from the authority's own page on , with the sentence it came from below.

Check your own situation

Where do you stand on this route? The questions are answered on this device only — nothing is sent anywhere. You get each rule against what you declared, the gap if there is one, and which single change would open more routes.

Check yours — Netherlands, Highly skilled migrant — 30 or older (kennismigrant)
What the checker asks, and what it does not

Every number below is quoted from an official page, and a daily check re-reads every source. On this route — quoted and dated · scored — 6 conditions this interview did not ask. Every rule that decides this route is a question you answer; three conditions the authority states — pay that matches what the job normally pays, an employer on the recognised-sponsor register, and the healthcare register where it applies — are listed with the rules below and never asked, and the orientation year permit that also opens the lower salary is never asked about. The provisional residence permit this application needs is listed with the rules below too, and your passport decides both whether the Dutch immigration service exempts you from it and whether the recognised-sponsor condition applies to your employer at all.

The rules of this route

A non-EU passport

Who this is for

Citizens of the EU, of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, and of Switzerland, can live and work in Germany, France, Spain and the Netherlands under free movement — the routes on this site are for other passports. Check registration rules after arrival (e.g. Anmeldung in Germany).

As an EU national you generally don't need a work permit to work anywhere in the EU. · europa.eu · TFEU (the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union) art. 45 (free movement of workers) — Your Europe · · English, from europa.eu. Official page ↗

A job offer

Condition

This route asks for a job offer.

You have an employment contract with an employer or research institution in the Netherlands. This employer is a sponsor recognised by the IND. · ind.nl · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗

Monthly salary

Threshold · 2026

Any of these: at least €5,942/month or a degree from the last 3 years, from a Dutch institution or from one the Dutch immigration service designates and at least €3,122/month.

  • €1,635.90/monthResearcher (Directive (EU) 2016/801) — another route here
  • €3,122/monththis route — lower amount for a recent graduate, 2026
  • €4,357/month2 other routes here
  • €4,754/monthEU Blue Card — another route here
  • €5,942/monththis route — 30 or older, 2026
Highly skilled migrants 30 years or older € 5,942.00 · ind.nl · 30 or older, 2026 · Dutch highly skilled migrant scheme — required amounts 2026 (change every 1 January) · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗
The highly skilled migrant has never had a residence permit for an orientation year for highly educated persons, but does meet the requirements for that residence purpose. · ind.nl · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗
Highly skilled migrants reduced salary criterion € 3,122.00 · ind.nl · lower amount for a recent graduate, 2026 · Dutch highly skilled migrant scheme — reduced required amount 2026 (change every 1 January) · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗

An age of 30 or older

Condition

This route asks for an age of 30 or older.

What the checker asks
  • Your age?
Also required — not checked here
  • The salary must match what the job normally pays — the Dutch immigration service judges this
    The agreed salary is in line with the market rate. · ind.nl · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗
  • Your employer must be a sponsor the Dutch immigration service (IND) recognises, listed in its public register of recognised sponsors
    This employer is a sponsor recognised by the IND. A recognised sponsor is listed in the public register of recognised sponsors. · ind.nl · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗
    Who this does not bind Your employer does not have to be a recognised sponsor — for employees with Turkish nationality the Dutch immigration service does not require one, and you can submit the application yourself.
    Have you found work as a highly skilled migrant? Or work as a researcher under Directive (EU) 2016/801? Normally, only recognised sponsors can apply for these residence permits. For employees with Turkish nationality, a recognised sponsor is not required. You can also submit the application yourself. · ind.nl · Dutch immigration service, Turkish citizens and living in the Netherlands — Obligatory recognised sponsor not required · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗
  • If you will work in individual healthcare in a profession the Individual Healthcare Professions Act lists, you must be in the BIG register of healthcare professions
    Are you going to work in individual healthcare? And do you practise a medical profession that is listed in Article 3 and Article 36a of the Individual Healthcare Professions Act (BIG Act)? If so, you must be registered in the BIG register. · ind.nl · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗
  • This application needs a provisional residence permit (MVV).
    A valid provisional residence permit (MVV) is needed for this application · ind.nl · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗
    Who this does not bind You do not need a provisional residence permit (MVV) — the Dutch immigration service names your passport among the nationalities that need none.
    You do not need an MVV if you have the nationality of one of these countries. Australia Canada Japan Monaco New Zealand Vatican City United Kingdom United States South Korea Switzerland An EU/EEA Member State · ind.nl · Dutch immigration service, MVV exemptions — Your nationality is decisive · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗
The official page also says
  • The lower salary also applies if you hold, or have held, a Dutch orientation year permit for highly educated people. We do not ask about permits you already hold, so the answer above does not count one.
    The reduced salary criterion applies in these 3 cases: The residence permit for a highly skilled migrant is applied for during the residence permit for an orientation year for highly educated persons. The highly skilled migrant no longer has a residence permit for an orientation year for highly educated persons, but did have this permit. · ind.nl · Dutch immigration service, required amounts — the reduced highly-skilled-migrant rows (read from the watched snapshot of 2026-09-02) · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗
  • Your employment contract is with the employer in the Netherlands. If your contract is with a company outside the EU and that company is transferring you to a branch here as a manager, specialist or trainee, the intra-corporate transferee permit is the one that applies to you, not this one.
    Do you have an employment contract with a company located outside the EU? And are you going to be transferred as a manager, specialist or trainee? Then you are an intra corporate transferee and other requirements apply to you. · ind.nl · · English, from ind.nl. Official page ↗