Changing Employers on a Highly Skilled Migrant Permit

A job move on a Dutch highly skilled migrant permit is two processes wearing one coat. There is the employment side — resignation, notice period, start date — and the immigration side, where your right to be in the country is attached to a specific recognised sponsor and has to be re-attached to a different one. Most people handle the first part carefully and assume the second will follow; the details that decide whether it goes smoothly are all in the second.

Every claim here was checked on ind.nl on 2 October 2026. Rules change and salary amounts are revised every 1 January — use this to ask better questions, then confirm with the IND or an immigration lawyer.

💡 Related: highly skilled migrant visa Netherlands, renewing your Dutch residence permit, best job boards for expats in the Netherlands.

First: Is the New Employer a Recognised Sponsor?

Ask this before the second interview, not after the offer.

IND states it plainly: only an employer recognised by the IND can apply for your permit. Every recognised sponsor appears in a public register on the IND website (ind.nl: a recognised sponsor is listed in the public register of recognised sponsors). A start-up that has never hired a non-EU national may need to apply for recognition first, which is its own procedure with its own decision period (ind.nl lists 3 months).

“Are you a recognised sponsor with the IND?” is a normal question in the Dutch market. For employers who routinely hire internationals, see the best job boards guide and the companies hiring internationals guide.

The Decision Periods, Precisely

Per ind.nl’s decision periods page, for a notification of change of employer where your current permit is still valid and you hold a permit for paid employment, work as a highly skilled migrant, the European Blue Card, research or work experience (or certain military or civilian staff permits):

If you submit a complete application, a legal decision period of 45 days applies. In special cases, the IND may extend this period by 15 days.

And crucially:

What if IND does not decide within this decision period? Then you are allowed to work for the new employer for the rest of the validity period of your current permit.

That last sentence is the safety net: it applies if the IND does not decide within the decision period.

If you also request an extension, ind.nl sets out two clocks: 45 days while your permit is still valid, and 90 days for the extension. A first highly skilled migrant application carries a legal decision period of 90 days (45 days under specific conditions), and ind.nl notes the IND can extend decision periods.

The Salary Criterion Moves With You

Here is the detail that catches experienced people out. IND states that the required amounts change every year on 1 January, and for a job move:

Does the highly skilled migrant change employers? The highly skilled migrant must then meet the required amount applicable on the date on which the employment contract with the new employer commences.

So the figure that matters is the one in force on your new start date. Negotiating in October for a January start? Negotiate against the figure that applies on that January start date; our overview of the 2027 salary thresholds will list it once it is out.

The amounts published on ind.nl, gross per month, for a change of employer (listed as the amounts for 2026, checked 2 October 2026):

The under-30 rule has a wrinkle. For extension with the same employer, ind.nl notes the under-30 amount also applies once the migrant has turned 30 — but if they changed employers since the first permit, that change must have happened while they were still under 30. For a change of employer, ind.nl gives both cases: still under 30, EUR 4,357.00; now 30 or older, EUR 5,942.00.

The reduced criterion applies, per ind.nl, when the highly skilled migrant permit is applied for during an orientation year permit; within 3 years of graduation or the doctoral defence (or of the expiry of a research permit) for someone who held an orientation year permit; or in the same 3-year window for someone who never held one but meets its requirements. If you came through the zoekjaar (see the orientation year visa guide), check whether it still covers your new start date.

What Counts as Salary — and What Does Not

The criterion is not simply the number at the top of the offer letter. Per ind.nl:

Counted: reimbursements of expenses and fixed allowances such as a thirteenth month — provided they are in the contract, the employer transfers them to a bank account in the migrant’s own name, and transfers them each month. A thirteenth month must therefore be paid monthly in 12 equal amounts to count.

Not counted: holiday allowance, the value of payment made in kind, and uncertain, non-regular pay elements such as overtime allowances, tips and payments from funds. So two offers with the same total package can land on different sides of the threshold. ind.nl also states that the agreed salary must be in line with the market rate, meaning what people in the same job earn on average.

When benchmarking, use the average salary guide, the salary comparison tool and the gross-to-net calculator. Do the net calculation before accepting, and check on belastingdienst.nl how the 30% ruling is affected by an employer change. See the 30% ruling changes guide and the 30% ruling calculator.

Notification Duties and the Gap Question

Per ind.nl’s sponsor obligations page, a sponsor has an obligation to provide information: they must notify the IND of changes that have consequences for the residence permit, mostly within 4 weeks, using the IND notification forms or the Business Portal — and IND’s examples include a foreign national who has stopped their work. So your outgoing employer reports that the employment ended, and your incoming employer handles the change. Make sure both have it in hand.

The safe pattern: signed contract with the new recognised sponsor first, notification filed, no unpaid gap. See the Dutch employment contract guide and the employment law basics guide for the notice-period side.

Practical Sequence for a Clean Move

1. Check the register before the offer stage.
2. Fix the start date deliberately — the criterion is the amount applicable when the new contract commences.
3. Price the offer against the right threshold, counting only fixed, contractual, monthly-paid elements.
4. Get HR to confirm in writing who files what, and whether an extension is needed too.
5. Avoid an unpaid gap, and check how the 30% ruling is affected by the move.
6. Watch your inbox if IND post goes to your Berichtenbox.

Final Thoughts

The scheme gives you a 45-day decision period for a change of employer, a fallback that lets you keep working if the IND does not decide in time, and a public register you can check before applying. The risk is sequence — resigning before the new employer is confirmed as a recognised sponsor, or agreeing a salary against last year’s threshold for a January start.

So: check the register, fix the start date, price against the right number, get the filing responsibilities in writing — and verify with the IND. Everything above was checked on ind.nl on 2 October 2026 and the amounts are revised every 1 January. This is general information, not immigration advice.