If you are staying abroad temporarily but you live in the Netherlands, you will keep your sickness benefit. The Dutch social legislation will then apply to you, regardless of which country you are staying in. If you are going to stay abroad, you will have to comply with the arrangements regarding medical checks and your reintegration pathway, etc. These arrangements are set by the UWV in the Netherlands. If you are going abroad to live, stay or go on holiday, you must always report this to the UWV, 2 weeks before you depart.

If you return to your home country or if you are going to live in another EU country, you can still receive your sickness benefit if the Netherlands has agreements in place with this country. This applies to all EU countries and even to some countries outside the EU. If you are going abroad to live, stay or go on holiday, you must always report this to the UWV, 2 weeks before you depart. The UWV can then assess whether or not you are allowed to receive your benefits. If you are going to stay abroad, you will have to comply with the arrangements regarding medical checks and your reintegration pathway, etc. The UWV can also ask the benefits agency in your country of residence to conduct a medical examination. If you fail to attend the medical examination, this may have consequences for your benefits.

There are outbreaks of measles in many countries in eastern Europe. In the Netherlands, too, more people are contracting measles. This document contains more information on measles. It also tells you what you can do to protect yourself and others from measles.   

Children in the Netherlands can be vaccinated free of charge through the national vaccination programme. More information can be found at: https://rijksvaccinatieprogramma.nl/en. 

Easy-language information on vaccinations for children can be found at https://rijksvaccinatieprogramma.nl/en/steffie (available in Dutch, English, Arabic, Polish, Turkish and Ukrainian).

If you are in urgent need of help, you can go to the accident and emergency department of a hospital.

If you think you have broken a bone or have a sprain, you can visit a GP.

If your GP’s practice is closed, your GP will refer you to the out-of-hours surgery. Phone first to hear if you need to come in.

You may also be advised to make an appointment with your GP during their surgery hours. Or you may be advised to go to a hospital’s accident and emergency department.

If you are going to visit your home country during your stay in the Netherlands, you will need an EHIC (European Health Insurance Card). You will need this card if you have to visit a GP or hospital when you are outside the Netherlands.

You usually have to apply for the card at your health insurer or it is available digitally.

If you feel depressed, stressed, lonely or tired, you can get help for this in the Netherlands, for instance from a specialist. This could be a psychologist or psychiatrist who can offer specialised help. However, you will need a referral letter from your GP. Talk to your GP about the available help for these types of problems during your stay in the Netherlands.

In the Netherlands, treatment provided by GPs is reimbursed in full. If you have health insurance in the Netherlands, your health insurer will pay your GP’s bill directly in full, without this affecting the compulsory excess. If your GP needs additional tests to be carried out, such as blood tests, to see what medical treatment you need, you will need to pay for these as part of your compulsory excess. This likewise applies to any medication prescribed for you by a GP.

In this case, it’s best to see a GP, or visit a dentist or physiotherapist, who are able to solve most health problems. In the Netherlands, we refer to this as primary care. A GP can also refer you to a specialist. You need a referral letter from your GP to see a specialist, for instance, in a hospital. Your GP will only make a referral for you if this is deemed medically necessary.

You are not obliged to register with a GP in the Netherlands. If you need to see a doctor, you can make an appointment with a local GP and register at that time. If you are unable to find a new GP, please contact your health insurer. Your insurer will help you find a new GP and may be able to help you find a GP with a shorter waiting list.

The telephone number for the emergency services is 112. By calling 112 for an ambulance, you will be connected to the central ambulance control room in your region. The dispatcher will ask specific questions to assess the situation and will decide whether or not an ambulance will be sent to you.

It will depend on the temporary employment agency clause. A temporary employment agency clause is a clause in the temporary employment agency contract which ensures that the contract between the temporary worker and the temporary employment agency terminates once the assignment ends. Are you a temporary worker with a temporary employment agency clause? It means that your contract terminates if the company where you are working (the hirer) has indicated that the work is ending. After 1 or 2 waiting days, you are entitled to sickness benefit.

If one of the collective labour agreements (collectieve arbeidsovereenkomst or cao) for temporary employment applies to you, your contract may not be terminated if you are ill.  Your contract continues during illness: after 1 or 2 waiting days, you are entitled to the continued payment of wages by the temporary employment agency. Are you ill for a longer time and your contract expires during your illness? It means that once the contract terminates, there may be a right to Sickness Benefit. Whether your contract may immediately be terminated, is dependent on the question whether the temporary employment agency falls under the scope of the collective labour agreement (cao). If you do not know, check your contract, or make enquiries at one of the organizations where you can get help, such as the Foundation for Compliance with the Collective Labour Agreements (Stichting Naleving CAO voor Uitzendkrachten or SNCU) or the Legal Aid and Advice Centre (Juridisch Loket).

 Are you a temporary worker who is working without a temporary employment agency clause? It means that if you are ill, you have the right to the continued payment of your wages from the 2^nd sick day onwards. Are you ill for a longer time and your contract expires during your illness? It means that once the contract terminates, there may be a right to Sickness Benefit.

This is subject to a number of rules.

Framework on-call contract

If you have a framework on-call contract, an employment contract is created as soon as you accept a request to work. The agreed period in which you are scheduled to work is called the on-call period.

What happens if you fall ill during an on-call period?

Your employer will pay you at least 70% of your wages for the agreed period that you were scheduled to work. If this is less than the minimum wage for your age, you will receive the minimum wage.

What happens if you remain off sick after an on-call period has ended?

Once the scheduled on-call period has ended, your temporary employment contract also comes to an end. Your employer does not have to continue to pay your wages. Your employer will inform the UWV that you are still off sick and the UWV will then assess whether or not you are entitled to sickness benefit.

What happens if you fall ill outside an on-call period?

If you do not have an employment contract at the time when you fell ill, you will not receive any wages. If you fall ill within 4 weeks after your most recent employment contract ended, you must notify the UWV. The UWV will then assess whether or not you are entitled to receive sickness benefit.

Zero hours contract

Under a zero hours contract, you are obliged to work when you are requested to do so by your employer.

What happens if you fall ill during an on-call period?

Your employer will pay you at least 70% of your wages for the period in which you were scheduled to work. If this is less than the minimum wage for your age, then you will be paid the minimum wage.

What happens if you remain off sick after an on-call period has ended?

Has your on-call working period expired? You will no longer be paid any wages, even if you are still ill. Does your zero-hour contract come to an end and you are still ill? Your employer notifies the Employee Insurance Agency (Uitvoeringsinstituut Werknemersverzekeringen or UWV), which is the benefit organization in the Netherlands. In that event, UWV makes an assessment as to whether you are entitled to sickness benefit. 

Does your employer no longer call you up during illness? And you have been working a minimum of 3 months for the employer? You may possibly be entitled to continued payment of the hours you work on average. Ask your employer to pay the wages on the hours you have been working on average. If your employer does not comply, go for advice to your union, your legal assistance provider or the Legal Services Counter (Juridisch loket).

It may also be that your employer tells you that you have an on-call contract, but you are entitled to a contract with a fixed number of hours. Your employer is allowed to let you work as an on-call worker for a maximum of one year. If you continue to be employed after that year, you are entitled to a fixed number of hours that you worked on average on a weekly, monthly, or yearly basis over the last 12 months. Your employer must make such an offer within one month of the expiry of that year. If you have you not received such an offer, you are entitled to continued payment of your wages in relation to the number of hours that your employer was supposed to offer to you. 

What happens if you fall ill outside an on-call period?

Do you get ill outside the period for on-call working? You will not get any wages. Is your employer no longer calling you up during illness? And have you been working a minimum of 3 months for the employer? You may possibly be entitled to continued payment of the hours you work on average. Ask your employer to pay the wages on the hours you have been working on average. If your employer does not comply, go for advice to your union, your legal assistance provider or the Legal Services Counter (Juridisch Loket).

It may also be that your employer tells you that you have an on-call contract, but you are entitled to a contract with a fixed number of hours. Your employer is allowed to let you work as an on-call worker for a maximum of one year. If you continue to be employed after that year, you are entitled to a fixed number of hours that you worked on average on a weekly, monthly, or yearly basis over the last 12 months. Your employer must make this offer within a month after that year. If you have you not received such an offer, you are entitled to continued payment of your wages in relation to the number of hours that your employer was supposed to offer to you.

If you still have a zero-hour contract, you are not entitled to sickness benefit. Are you still ill when your zero-hour contract ends? Your employer notifies the Employee Insurance Agency (UWV). UWV makes an assessment as to whether you are entitled to sickness benefit.

Do you fall ill within 4 weeks of the end of your last employment contract? Notify the UWV.  UWV subsequently makes an assessment as to whether you are entitled to sickness benefit.

An A1 certificate means that your employer pays social security contributions for you in another EU country. If you have an A1 certificate, you are subject to the social insurance regulations in the country that issued the A1 certificate. Whether or not you are entitled to continued payment of wages during illness or to sickness benefit depends on the legislation in the country that issued the A1 certificate.

If you have a temporary employment contract and you fall ill, then your employer will continue to pay 70% of your wages for up to a maximum of 2 years; the amount you receive in the first year of illness will be at least the minimum wage.

If your temporary contract ends during the period of continued payment of wages, you will receive sickness benefit from the UWV or your employer. You will start receiving this benefit from the date that your contract ends, up to a maximum of 2 years after the first day of illness. The period in which you receive this benefit will depend on how long your employer continued to pay you wages.

If you have been off sick in the Netherlands for more than a year, your employer will continue to pay at least 70% of your wages in your second year of illness. However, your employer is no longer obliged to supplement your wages up to the minimum wage for your age. If this means that your income or family income falls below the social minimum, you can apply to the UWV for a top-up benefit.

If you are receiving sickness benefit in the Netherlands, then you will usually receive 70% of your daily wages. This is the wage that you have earned on average per day in the year before you fell ill. If this means that your total income or family income falls below the social minimum, you may be eligible to receive a top-up to your sickness benefit. You can apply to the UWV for this supplement.

If you fell ill while you were staying in the Netherlands, your employer will pay you at least 70% of your wages during your first year of sick leave. The amount paid to you by your employer must be at least the statutory minimum wage for your age, although it is possible for your employer to pay you a higher amount. The applicable arrangements will be set out in your employment contract or collective labour agreement.

Your employer will continue to pay your wages for a maximum period of 2 years when you are off sick. After 2 years of being off sick, you may be entitled to an occupational disability benefit (WIA benefit) In the Netherlands, the UWV will determine whether you are entitled to this benefit. If the UWV find that you and your employer have not made sufficient efforts for you to reintegrate, the UWV can impose a sanction. The UWV can oblige the employer to extend the continued payment of wages up to a maximum of an extra year. If you are receiving sickness benefit, the UWV may recover the amount of sickness benefit paid to you from your employer or you may receive a lower amount.

If you have been sick for longer than 6 weeks and your temporary contract is about to end, then your employer will work with you to prepare a re-integration report. Your employer will give you a copy of this report. A copy will also be sent to the UWV, if the UWV is responsible for paying you sickness benefit. The report will allow the UWV to assess whether you and your employer have made sufficient efforts to get you back to work.

If your temporary contract in the Netherlands ends during your period of being off sick, your employer will no longer continue paying your wages after the end of your contract. Your employer will report that you are ill to the Netherlands Employee Insurance Agency (UWV). In most cases, the UWV will then pay you sickness benefit and impose certain obligations and possible medical checks. This organisation can also help you find a new job.

In the Netherlands, a waiting period sometimes applies before the employer continues to pay an employee’s wages. The waiting period is usually 2 days and your employer is not obliged to pay your wages during these first days when you are ill. This is allowed if a waiting period is stipulated in your employment contract or collective labour agreement.

A waiting period does not apply every time you report sick. If you have been off sick and you fall ill again within 4 weeks, you will continue to receive your wages from your first day of illness.

If the time between the two periods when you were off sick is less than 4 weeks, they are considered as one period of being off sick.

If you fall ill while you are employed, your employer will continue to pay your wages up to a maximum of 2 years and you will then receive at least 70% of your last salary. In the first year of illness, this must be at least the minimum wage, regardless of whether you are employed under a permanent contract or temporary contract.

If you are not insured in the Netherlands or in your country of residence, but you need urgent medical care, you can see a GP or go to hospital. If the doctor considers that medical treatment is necessary and cannot be postponed, you can receive medical care in the Netherlands.

However, a hospital will ask you if you can pay for the costs yourself. If you have no income or means to pay the costs, the hospital will help you if the medical care is really urgent. 

For more information, please visit: https://www.hetcak.nl/regelingen/regeling-onverzekerden/uninsured/questions-and-answers

If you are going to live and work in the Netherlands and your employer is Dutch, it is compulsory for you to have Dutch health insurance.

Sometimes your employer or the employment agency will help you with this.

If you decide to take out your own health insurance, please do this as soon as possible and in any case within 4 months after you start working in the Netherlands. You will be responsible for paying any medical expenses you incur during the period that you are not insured.

Health insurance is the same for everyone who lives or works in the Netherlands. Sometimes your employer or your temporary employment agency will arrange your health insurance, and you don’t have to do anything. Your employer will give you your health insurance documents: a policy and an insurance card.

If you are going to arrange your own health insurance, then ask someone to help you, because this information is often only available in Dutch. For more information, please visit the Health Insurance Helpline (Zorgverzekeringslijn)

In the event of a medical emergency, you can see a GP or go to a hospital in the Netherlands. Since you are insured in the country that issued the A1 certificate, you must submit proof of insurance. You may have to pay the costs before being reimbursed by your insurer. In this case you are not insured in the Netherlands, so you will need to bring your European Health Insurance Card.

If you have stopped working and are subsequently entitled to unemployment benefit or sickness benefit, the health insurance cannot be terminated. In this case, please contact your health insurer.

If you have stopped working and are not entitled to benefits, you will no longer be insured in the Netherlands. You can then ask your Dutch health insurer for an E104 form: ‘Certificate concerning all periods of insurance, employment and residence’.

You must then send this form to the heath authority in your country of residence, so that it can be determined whether you can be insured there. 

When taking out health insurance, it is irrelevant whether you are working in the Netherlands for a short or longer period of time. As long as you are working in the Netherlands, it is compulsory for you to have Dutch health insurance. This applies to work as an employee or as a self-employed person, but does not apply if you are seconded by a foreign employer. Are you going to stop working? Then your health insurance will also stop if this is linked to your employer. If you are going to remain in the Netherlands, you must have health insurance cover. You can take out a private insurance policy for this.

The health insurance covers a lot of medical costs. However, you need to take out supplementary insurance for dental or physiotherapy costs, etc. This is something that your health insurance provider can arrange for you. Even if you have taken out supplementary insurance, you will often have to pay some of the costs yourself. The more comprehensive the cover, the more you will have to pay for the supplementary insurance (higher monthly premium).

A health insurance policy covers you for almost all medical costs, such as seeing a GP or visiting a hospital’s accident and emergency department, whether or not you are taken by ambulance. If you need medicines or maternity care, you are also covered under a health insurance policy.

However, sometimes you may have to pay a personal contribution, for example for medicines. This will vary per insurance policy. You can find more information on your insurance policy.

Yes, that is possible in some cases. For example, when you come to the Netherlands as a visitor, for a family visit or a holiday. You can then take out a ‘private’ insurance policy, in other words an insurance policy that you take out as a private individual and not as an employee of a company. The ‘Schengen Visitor Insurance’ is specially designed for people who are only temporarily visiting the Netherlands. This allows you to be privately insured up a maximum of 6 months. If you need to see a GP or go to hospital, this private insurance will cover you for this. This insurance stops when you start working in the Netherlands. Are you going to stop working, but continue living in the Netherlands? If so, it is important to renew this private insurance policy.

Before coming to the Netherlands, you should ask your insurer in your home country whether you will continue to be insured in your home country. And if you continue to be insured, you should find out for how long.

One option is to take out temporary travel insurance with an insurer in your home country. Another option is to take out temporary private insurance in the Netherlands against unexpected medical expenses.

If you are working in the Netherlands for a Dutch employer, it is compulsory for you to take out health insurance with a Dutch health insurer. There are some exceptions, for example, if you are seconded. This means that you are temporarily working in the Netherlands for a foreign employer. If you are seconded, you are allowed to be insured in your home country.

You will receive the information about your health insurance by post. You can also check your details and make any changes through your health insurance provider’s website or app. Be sure to do this if your employer arranges your health insurance, because it is important to know what you are insured for and what not!

Yes, that is possible. Talk to your employer about it. If your employer arranges your health insurance, you often have no choice of health insurance provider. Ask someone who speaks Dutch to help you.

Often your employer or employment agency will arrange your health insurance for you. Then your employer makes all the arrangements and gives you your insurance card. But in that case, you have no choice of health insurance provider as it is then arranged by your employer.

The price for healthinsurance in the year 2023 is a maximum of  € 154 per month if you live alone or € 265 per month if you have an entitlement partner (civil partnership).

When you take out health insurance, your provider sends you an insurance policy and an insurance card. This provides you with all the details of your insurance.

If you go to a doctor or hospital, take along your insurance card and your passport or driving licence for identification purposes. 

Some insurers provide you with a digital healthcare card, which you can see via the app of the insurer. For a digital insurance card you will need a smartphone.

If you go home during your stay in the Netherlands, you will need a European insurance card, called the EHIC (European Health Insurance Card).

You will need it if you need to see a doctor or go to hospital outside the Netherlands.

Usually, you need to request the card from your health insurance provider separately or you can open it in an app.

In the Netherlands, some people are entitled to a healthcare allowance, which means that the government pays part of their monthly premium.

You are entitled to a healthcare allowance if you earn less than € 31,998 gross per year (€ 40.944 with partner). Your pay slip states how much you earn gross per month. After taking out health insurance, this healthcare allowance amounts to a maximum of € 111 per month (€ 212 with partner).

You need to request a healthcare allowance from the tax department in the Netherlands (Belastingdienst), by phone or by e-mail.

To find out how to request a healthcare allowance, take a look at Zorgverzekeringslijn (Dutch, English, German, French, Spanish, Polish, Ukrainian and Russian).

You can also find this information in English on the website of the tax authority. Your employer can help you with the request. You can also request a healthcare allowance with retroactive effect.

If you live or work in the Netherlands, you are obliged to take out the basic health insurance package. This must be available to everyone.

In the Netherlands, a health insurer is therefore not allowed to refuse your application to take out health insurance. We call it the ‘acceptatieplicht van zorgverzekeraars’ (health insurers’ acceptance obligation).

This varies per health insurance provider and per type of insurance. You will pay an average of € 128 per month for basic health insurance in 2022. The precise amount will depend on what is included in your insurance policy. Your employer may also deduct a premium from your pay. This is called ‘premie Zvw’ and will always be stated as such on your pay slip.

By Dutch law, temporary return to your home country is a free choice. So the travel costs will not be reimbursed by your health insurer. If there is a case of emergency care for which you have to return to your home country, then your personal situation will determine whether the expenses will be reimbursed, in whole or in part. However, if you fall ill while on holiday in your home country, for example, or if you have returned temporarily to your home country ‘met behoud van verzekeringsplicht’ (with retention of compulsory insurance), then the basic insurance usually covers the part of the healthcare expenses that would also have been covered in the Netherlands. If you wish to return to your home country for medical treatment, you are obliged to obtain prior permission from your health insurer.

If your healthcare expenses are not reimbursed in whole or in part (e.g. necessary medical expenses for healthcare in your home country) or a health insurer does not want to give you basic health insurance and you disagree, you should submit a complaint to the Dutch Foundation for Health Insurances Complaints and Disputes (SKGZ). Read (in Dutch or English) how this foundation might be able to help you solve the problem. The foundation provides information, acts as an intermediary between you and the health insurer and gives binding advice. This means that you and the health insurer must follow the advice.

If you do not agree with your health insurer about the reimbursement of medical expenses, submit your complaint to the Dutch Foundation for Health Insurances Complaints and Disputes (SKGZ). Read (in Dutch or English) how this foundation might be able to help you solve the problem. The foundation provides information, acts as an intermediary between you and the health insurer and gives binding advice. This means that you and the health insurer must follow the advice.

Your basic health insurance package does not pay for all the medicines you need for your health. In the Netherlands, the medicines that are reimbursed are laid down by law in the Health Insurance Act (Zvw). Read in Dutch which medicines are reimbursed and which require a personal contribution or which medicines you have to pay for yourself in full.

If you have taken out the compulsory basic health insurance package in the Netherlands, then some medical expenses are paid for you by the health insurer. These include the costs of general practitioner care, emergency hospital care, specialist hospital care, medicines and psychological care. These expenses are often paid by your health insurer directly to the healthcare provider. Sometimes you pay a personal contribution for medicines, either to the pharmacy or to your health insurer.

Yes, you are insured if you have an accident at work. In that case, your employer cannot fire you and your health insurance simply continues.

Give your telephone number, e-mail address and postal address in the Netherlands to your health insurance provider. Make sure you keep your provider informed of any changes so you can keep in contact easily. Many health insurance providers also give you the option to log in to their website or view your details and make changes through an app.

You should take out health insurance for the time you are working in the Netherlands. If you stop working and your health insurance was arranged through your employer, then your health insurance also stops from the first day after you stop working. So it is important to take out another health insurance policy if you are staying in the Netherlands. During the year you cannot cancel your health insurance policy. That is only possible if you stop working. At the end of each calendar year, by 31 December at the latest, you can switch health insurance providers.

A health insurance provider will refund many medical expenses, but in certain situations you will have to pay a small part of the expenses yourself. This part is called the ‘eigen risico’ (deductible excess). By default, the amount of your deductible excess is a minimum of € 385 per year.

• If you are only insured for part of a year, then the minimum amount is lower.
• You do not have to pay any deductible excess for appointments with a general practitioner.
• You do pay deductible excess if you go to hospital, for example for an accident or other emergency. Often your health insurance provider will send you a bill for this.

You can also opt for a higher deductible excess. This rises in increments of € 100 above the default minimum of € 385; i.e. from € 485 to a maximum of € 885. If you choose this option, then your monthly premium is usually lower. If you have to go to hospital, your health insurance provider usually sends you a bill. So if you have opted for a higher deductible excess, then this hospital bill will also be higher.

If you are arranging health insurance yourself, you should compare the various options. Most websites that provide comparisons between health insurance providers are in Dutch. Click here, for example, to make a quick comparison between health insurance providers. Most health insurance providers also have different types of policies. As there is a lot of information to sift through, it is advised to seek help if you are arranging health insurance yourself.

Yes, you can choose between two types:

• the first is a policy where a hospital gives you the bill and you declare the costs to the health insurance provider. This is called a ‘restitutiepolis’.
• the second is a policy where the hospital sends the bill directly to the health insurance provider. This is called a ‘naturapolis’.

There are also health insurance providers that offer less choice of treatment from particular doctors or special hospitals. Or you have to pay part of the costs yourself.

In order to work in the Netherlands, you must always be insured. To take out insurance, you must state your address. So make sure you have an address and are registered at that address when you take out health insurance. This also applies if the insurance is arranged through your employer or employment agency.

• If you have never lived and worked in the Netherlands before, then you must take out health insurance within four months of your first day of work. Do so as soon as possible. You can arrange it through your employer or employment agency, or you can arrange it yourself. The insurance starts on the first day of work. You will also pay premiums starting on this date.
• If you have worked in the Netherlands before, then you must have health insurance from your first day of work onwards.

No, the basic health insurance covers many medical expenses.

However for dental care or physiotherapy, for example, you will need to take out supplementary insurance, which you can arrange through your health insurance provider.

Under this supplementary insurance, you often have to pay part of the expenses yourself. The greater the amount that is reimbursed by the insurer, the more you have to pay for the supplementary insurance (higher monthly premium).

Health insurance is arranged in the same way for everyone who lives or works in the Netherlands. In some cases your employer or employment agency arranges health insurance for you. Then you do not have to do anything yourself. Your employer gives you your health insurance documents: a policy and an insurance card. If you are arranging your health insurance yourself, ask someone to help you, as much of the information is only provided in Dutch.

For more information, visit the Zorgverzekeringslijn (Health Insurance Line).

If you are coming to work in the Netherlands for the first time, you must immediately register with the municipality of the town you are living in. This registration is necessary to get a BSN (citizen service number). You need this number to be able to live and work (for a Dutch employer) in the Netherlands. It is also important for taking out health insurance.

If you are no longer working in the Netherlands and your health insurance was taken out through your employer, then your insurance will stop. You are only insured if you carry out paid work in the Netherlands and you are employed by a company or through an employment agency. There are a few exceptions, for example, if you fall ill, have an accident or are made redundant. 

In that case, you should register with one of the following 19 municipalities. Read here in Dutch which municipalities they are. Following registration, the municipality will give you a BSN.

No. You are no longer insured if your health insurance was arranged through your employer. So your health insurance will stop when you stop working. Contact your health insurance provider in your home country on time. If you are staying in the Netherlands, you must still have health insurance, which you can arrange through a private health insurance provider.

For your health insurance, it makes no difference whether you are working in the Netherlands for a shorter or a longer period. As long as you are working in the Netherlands, you must have Dutch health insurance. This applies if you are working on a contract of employment or as a self-employed person, but not if you are a posted worker with an employer abroad. If you stop working, then your health insurance also stops if it was taken out through your employer. If you remain in the Netherlands, you must still have health insurance. You can then take out private health insurance.

Your health insurance covers you for nearly all medical expenses. It covers things like appointments with a general practitioner, emergency hospital treatment and ambulance transport, medicine and maternity care.

In some cases, you have to pay a personal contribution, for example for certain medicine. This varies per insurance provider. You can read more about it in your insurance policy.

Yes, that is possible in some cases. If you are coming to the Netherlands as a visitor, to see your family, for example, or for a holiday, you can take out ‘private’ insurance as a private individual, rather than as an employee of a company. The ‘Schengen Visitor Insurance’ is intended for people on a temporary visit to the Netherlands. This gives you private insurance for a maximum of six months. A private insurance insures you for appointments with a general practitioner and for hospital treatment. The insurance stops at the moment you start working in the Netherlands. If you stop working and remain in the Netherlands for a while, then it is also important to take out this private insurance.

Before coming to the Netherlands, did you ask your health insurance provider whether your insurance remains valid in your home country, and for how long?

You can take out temporary travel insurance with an insurance provider in your home country. You can also take out temporary private insurance in the Netherlands for unexpected medical expenses.

If you are working in the Netherlands for a Dutch employer, then you are obliged to take out health insurance with a Dutch health insurance provider. There are some exceptions, for example, if you are a posted worker. In that case, you are working in the Netherlands temporarily for an employer abroad, so posted workers are allowed to be insured in their home country.

If you are coming to live and work in the Netherlands for a Dutch employer, then you are obliged by law to have Dutch health insurance. Sometimes your employer or employment agency can arrange this for you. If you are going to arrange your health insurance yourself, do so as soon as possible and at least within four months of coming to work here. You will have to pay medical expenses during the period in which you are not insured.