Netherlands highly skilled migrant salary 2026: kennismigrant and EU Blue Card thresholds

The IND sets the amounts every year on 1 January, and you must meet the amount that applies on the date of the application ¹. The figures are gross monthly salaries; holiday allowance does not count ¹. The yearly column is our arithmetic (12 times the monthly amount).

Permit	Who	Gross a month	12 months
Highly skilled migrant	30 or older	5,942 euros 1	71,304 euros
Highly skilled migrant	Under 30	4,357 euros 1	52,284 euros
Highly skilled migrant	Reduced criterion	3,122 euros 1	37,464 euros
EU Blue Card	General	5,942 euros 1	71,304 euros
EU Blue Card	Recent graduates	4,754 euros 1	57,048 euros

Age 30. The under 30 amount applies to a first permit filed before your 30th birthday. It keeps applying when you extend after turning 30, provided any change of employer since your first permit happened while you were under 30 ¹. If you change employer at 30 or older, 5,942 euros applies, and the amount is the one in force on the start date of the new contract ¹.

Reduced criterion. The 3,122 euro amount is for people who apply within 3 years of graduating, a PhD defence or the end of a research permit, or during an orientation year permit ¹. The reduced Blue Card amount of 4,754 euros is for graduates applying within 3 years of graduation ¹.

What counts. Fixed allowances such as a thirteenth month count only if they are paid every month in 12 equal parts ¹.

Highly skilled migrant (kennismigrant). Your employer must be a sponsor recognised by the IND, and your salary must be in line with the market rate for the job, meaning what people in the same job earn on average ². The IND page lists no diploma condition for this permit ². The permit lasts as long as your contract, up to 5 years ².

EU Blue Card. You need a diploma from a higher education programme of at least 3 years, relevant to the job and evaluated by Nuffic if it is foreign, or at least 5 years of relevant work experience at higher education level; IT managers and IT professionals need 3 years of experience in the last 7 ³. Your employment contract must be valid for at least 6 months ³. Your employer does not need to be a recognised sponsor ³. The permit lasts up to 5 years ³.

Which one fits you:

• Under 30, earning between 4,357 and 5,942 euros: only the kennismigrant permit works, and only with a recognised sponsor ¹.
• 30 or older: both permits ask for 5,942 euros ¹. The Blue Card works with an employer that is not a recognised sponsor, and the kennismigrant permit works without a degree ^{3 2}.
• Recently graduated: the reduced amounts make the kennismigrant permit (3,122 euros) easier to reach than the Blue Card (4,754 euros) ¹.

Only nationals of Australia, Canada, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Vatican City, the United Kingdom, the United States, South Korea, Switzerland and EU or EEA countries are exempt from the MVV ⁴. Citizens of Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and India need one.

For the kennismigrant permit, your employer applies for the MVV and the residence permit at the same time ². The IND must decide within 90 days, and some cases are shorter ². For the Blue Card the decision period is 30 days for recognised sponsors and 90 days for other applications ³.

After approval ²:

• Book an appointment at the Dutch embassy or consulate within 3 months of the decision.
• Bring a passport valid for at least another 6 months.
• Travel within 90 days: the MVV is valid for 90 days.
• If your employer said in the application that you must take a tuberculosis test, book it with the GGD within 3 months of getting your permit.

The application costs 423 euros ^{2 3}.

The IND publishes a public register of recognised sponsors, with a category for work, updated once a month ⁵. If an employer offering you a kennismigrant permit is missing from it, ask why: only a recognised sponsor can file this application ^{2 5}.

Check three numbers in the contract: the gross monthly salary without holiday allowance, your age on the date of the application, and the start date ¹. A salary of 4,400 euros meets the under 30 amount if the application is filed before your 30th birthday, and falls short of the 30 or older amount after it ¹.