Everyone who is registered in the Personal Records Database (BRP) can be vaccinated in the Netherlands. This includes people registered in the Non-residents Records Database (RNI). No medical insurance is required for a vaccination, and vaccination is free of charge. It is important that you are fully vaccinated. This usually means you need two doses of vaccine, from the same manufacturer, administered within the recommended time interval. Please take this into account when making your vaccination appointment and other plans.

In the Netherlands the order of vaccination for the general population is based on age (see https://www.government.nl/topics/coronavirus-covid-19/dutch-vaccination-programme/order-of-vaccination-against-coronavirus/order-of-vaccination-for-people-who-do-not-work-in-healthcare)). People in a medically at-risk group will receive an invitation from their general practitioner.

Currently anyone born in 1961 until 1999 can make an appointment.

It depends on your registration in the Netherlands. If you are registered with the municipality at a Dutch address, you will receive an invitation for vaccination by post. If you are registered in the Non-residents Records Database (RNI) and also registered your email address, you will receive an email explaining when and how you can make a vaccination appointment. If you did not register an email address in the RNI or are not sure if you did, you can still sign up by sending an email to info@rvig.nl. You then will receive your invitation in the mail.

Please be sure that your age group’s turn for vaccination has come up before you make an appointment. When this is the case, or you have received an invitation, you can make an appointment online through the web portal (using your DigiD), or by phoning the municipal health service (GGD) call centre.

That can be done through the regular channels. When people’s age group is eligible for vaccination, they can either make an appointment on the web portal (using their DigiD) or phone the municipal health service (GGD) call centre. Persons who have a DigiD and a BSN can make their appointment through the webportal on www.coronavaccinatie-afspraak.nl. This can be done 24/7. Persons who have a BSN, but do not have a DigiD, can make an appointment through the national call center, 0800-7070`. They can only do so when their age group is eligible for vaccination. You can check who is eligible at Prikuitnodiging en afspraak | Vaccinatie tegen het coronavirus | Rijksoverheid.nl

Foreign workers will also receive a proof of vaccination. This proof will contain the data about the vaccination. At the moment you don’t have to show this proof in the Netherlands. The proof is therefore for personal use. It is important that you keep this proof. At this moment, the EU Digitial Corona Certificate (DCC) is in development, which will make it easier to travel in Europe during the covid pandemic. The DCC is a proof which will show that someone:

• Has been recently tested negative for COVID-19;
• Has been vaccinated against COVID-19 with a vaccine approved by the EMA;
• Has recovered from COVID-19.

A number of measures for this apply to everyone in the Netherlands. They also apply on the shop floor. The basic rules in the Netherlands are:

• Keep a distance of 1.5 metres;
• Wash your hands well and often with soap;
• Cough and sneeze into your elbow;
• Use a paper tissue to blow your nose. Afterwards, discard the tissue and wash your hands immediately;
• Do not shake hands;
• Wear a face mask on public transport and in all public buildings, including supermarkets and other shops;
• In you have symptoms, get tested and stay at home.

The following basic rules apply to your workplace in the Netherlands:

• Do not go to work if you have a fever or cold-like symptoms. These include a nasal cold, a runny nose, sneezing, a sore throat, coughing or an elevated temperature (up to 38 degrees Celsius). If you have symptoms, get tested.
• If a member of your household has a fever, shortness of breath or both, then the whole family or all members of the household must stay at home until the test results are known.

If you come from an EU member state, e.g. Poland, Romania or Bulgaria, then you may encounter problems at the border, due to the corona measures – either in your home country or in the Netherlands. In principle, you are allowed to cross the border if you are come to work temporarily in the Netherlands, especially if you are a critical worker. This has been set out by the European Commission.

At the moment, the advice is not to travel to the Netherlands unless strictly necessary, for example if you are coming to live and work in the Netherlands temporarily. It may be the case that you will have to stay at home for 10 days after your arrival. We call this self-quarantining. Read in Dutch and English which travel restrictions apply to you.

You do not want to become infected with the coronavirus when travelling between home and work. You must minimise the risk of this happening. Sometimes, your employer arranges your transport in a minibus, for example. In this case, the rule of keeping a distance of 1.5 metres does not apply to the journey. However, you must wear a face mask. In addition, you or your employer must reserve a seat and you must have a health check before getting on the bus.

If you are not able to do your work at home, but you have to stay at home because of the corona measures (if a member of your household is ill, for example), then your employer is obliged to continue to pay your wages.

No, that is not allowed. Your employer cannot force you to go to work when you are ill. Your employer is obliged to continue to pay your wages if you are unable to work due to illness. Depending on your collective labour agreement (cao), the amount of wages paid during illness can vary. A cao is an agreement between several employers and employees. The wages you are then entitled to amount to at least 70% of your gross wage. It may be the case, however, that you are not paid for one or two days. We call them ‘wachtdagen’ (waiting days).

If you have symptoms during this corona crisis, then your employer is not allowed to let you continue working while you are ill. You must get the space and time to recover. That will prevent your colleagues becoming ill as well.

But you also have personal responsibility for not going to work if you are ill or have a cold. The Dutch government is urgently advising everyone to stay at home if they have feel ill or have cold-like symptoms. You should also get tested for the coronavirus. See the website coronatest.nl or call 0800-1351. For this website you need a DigiD, the telephone number is available in Dutch and English.

If you are receiving benefit from the Dutch social security organisation UWV (unemployment benefit or sickness benefit, for example) and you have questions about your rights and obligations, you can contact the UWV. This organisation can also inform you about their service provision under restrictive corona measures.

The CoronaMelder is an app from the Dutch government. The app warns you if you have been near someone who has corona. This means you can avoid infecting the people around you. The coronavirus is still around, so it is important to remain alert right now. You can download the app for free! Together, we can get corona under control. Downloading the app is always voluntary. Nobody can force you to use the app – neither the government nor your employer. For more information, see the CoronaMelder website. At the top right of the website, you can select your own language.