Immigration

Netherlands | Stricter rules for Highly Skilled Migrants proposed

Summary

On 4 July 2025, the outgoing Dutch cabinet announced plans to tighten the Highly Skilled Migrant scheme. The proposed measures aim to prevent misuse while still attracting highly skilled professionals who support the Dutch knowledge economy. Potential changes include higher salary thresholds, enhanced qualification assessments and more restrictive payroll requirements. The formal legislative process has not yet begun, and it remains to be seen whether any final proposals will be adopted given the upcoming general election on 29 October 2025.

The detail

Stricter rules for Highly Skilled Migrants

Background

Following the 2023 election, PVV, NSC, BBB and VVD agreed to introduce the ‘strictest asylum regime and the broadest migration-control package.’ The coalition collapsed on 3 June 2025 over migration policy. See our alert here for more details.

Despite this, the caretaker Minister for Social Affairs and Employment Eddy van Hijum (NSC) presented a proposal to the House of Representatives on 4 July 2025 that aims to tighten the rules for recognised sponsors of Highly Skilled Migrants. Since its introduction, the Highly Skilled Migrant scheme—characterised by simple requirements and a straightforward procedure—has been the most commonly used immigration option for foreign talent and qualified employees. If implemented, the changes in the proposal could be the most significant update to the Highly Skilled Migrant scheme in several years.

Proposed stricter measures

Although the outgoing Dutch cabinet acknowledges talent shortages and that the Highly Skilled Migrant scheme can help address this, they argue that measures should be taken to prevent misuse and promote more targeted talent attraction. Based on these considerations, the Minister has proposed wide-ranging changes, including:

• Stricter screening of recognised sponsors: The proposal further clarifies the existing requirements for becoming a recognised sponsor, focusing on reliability, continuity, and solvency. It also includes recommendations for tighter screening during and after the application process and recommends reducing the period of inactivity that triggers withdrawal of sponsorship status from three years to two years.
• Tightening salary threshold: The outgoing cabinet seeks clearer salary component definitions and intends to tighten current thresholds by linking salaries to factors such as qualification requirements and the sector in which foreign talent is employed. The thresholds would increase, and the period during which lower salary threshold applies (e.g. for recent graduates and/or young talent) would be reduced.

The IND and UWV would work together more closely to assess market conformity, introduce qualification requirements, and verify sectoral needs in order to deter the hiring of workers who are deemed not to be genuinely highly skilled.

• Foreign salary payments: In the proposal, the Minister argues that salary paid from abroad is often hard to trace and control, and that currency fluctuations can impact net income. For this reason, the proposal considers limits on foreign payroll for Highly Skilled Migrants. Such limits would affect companies that keep employees in the Netherlands after the three-year intra-corporate transferee term and continue to pay them from abroad. The restriction could make it difficult to retain foreign talent and qualified employees beyond three years, pushing companies to rethink their existing mobility strategies.
• EU Blue Card alignment: In parallel, and in keeping with the recast EU Blue Card Directive, the cabinet emphasises the importance of reflecting genuine talent through clear salary levels for both Highly Skilled Migrants and EU Blue Card holders. This suggests that further harmonisation of criteria, to ensure transparency and consistency across both routes, could be achieved through subsequent measures.

What this means for employers

If implemented, these changes would mark the most significant change to the Highly Skilled Migrant scheme in over a decade. They would also make it more difficult for employers to hire foreign talent due to increases in salary thresholds and enhanced qualification requirements, which may make certain employees ineligible for a permit in the Highly Skilled Migrant category. Moreover, additional scrutiny of qualification requirements will likely lead to increased processing times. Restricting access to recognised sponsorship through tightened eligibility criteria and enhanced scrutiny will also have the same effect.

Restricting the possibility for employees to hold a Highly Skilled Migrant permit after three years on a permit as an Intra-Corporate Transferee (ICT) could also significantly impact businesses who rely on this facility to hire foreign talent in line with their mobility policy.

Although the proposal has been presented, debates and the legislative process have not yet begun. It is therefore unclear whether these proposals will become formal policy. In addition, it remains to be seen whether any new measures on migration policy will take effect given the upcoming general election on 29 October 2025.

Vialto will continue to monitor developments and assess any potential impact on global mobility.

Contact us

For a deeper discussion on the above, please reach out to your Vialto Partners point of contact, or alternatively:

Hugo Vijge
Director

Nini Braken-Zheng
Manager

Marijan Vrhovac
Senior Associate

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