Dutch student visa: everything that you need to know

It is exhilarating to pursue a study programme abroad, as one can excel academically, learn a new language and culture and meet new friends from a plethora of countries. To ensure success, it is advisable to be aware of the laws pertinent to the student visa. In this article, we will try to shed some light on the nitty-gritty of the Dutch student visa. To clarify, this article is meant for students from outside the EU/EEA.

Study progress

In order to sustain their student visa, an international student needs to achieve at least 50% of the nominal study load. Normally, it means that a student needs to obtain at least 30 ECTS per academic year. It is worth noting that some study programmes may have stricter requirements. For example, some universities may require their first-year undergraduate students to achieve 70% to 100% of the nominal study load. If a first-year undergraduate student fails to meet this requirement, they may receive a negative binding study advice (BSA) from their course programme, as a result of which they will be forced to terminate their study prematurely. Otherwise, it will be mandatory to obtain at least 30 ECTS per year.

Among the Dutch universities, there is a signed Code of Conduct (“gedragregels” in Dutch). According to this Code of Conduct, should a student fail to achieve 30 ECTS a year, their school is obliged to report them to the IND. As a corollary, the IND will proceed to revoke their student visa. Before reporting a student to the IND, the school needs to investigate the issue as to whether there have been mitigating circumstances as to why a student failed to meet the study progress requirement. Pursuant to the Code of Conduct and the Implementation Decree WHW 2008, the acceptable mitigating circumstances can be, for example, illness, pregnancy, special family related reasons and/or board membership of a student association etc. The Code of Conduct specifies that the same reason can only be invoked once during the entire length of a study programme. As some study programmes can last a few years, it seems unreasonable that a student can invoke a special reason (eg. sickness) only once. Thus, on 16 July 2025, the Dutch Council of State (“Raad van State”), the highest administrative court in the Netherlands, gave a ruling, in which the Council of State held that the Code of Conduct itself is not a source of binding law (“algemeen verbindend voorschrift”). In light hereof, a student should be allowed to invoke the same ground multiple times. In the same judgment, the Dutch Council of State holds that a school cannot refuse to re-enroll a foreign student, even if their student visa gets revoked, as the Dutch Higher Education Act (WHW) only requires a student to hold a valid residence permit for their first enrolment.

Employment during their study

Should a foreign student want to pursue paid employment (as an employee), they need to ask their future employer to help them apply for a work permit (also known as “terwerkstellingsvergunning” in Dutch and often abbreviated as TWV). Without this permit, it is not allowed to work. This permit can be applied for with the UWV. It can take up to five weeks for the UWV ("the labour department") to grant the work permit. It is worth mentioning that the work permit mentions the exact name of the future employer and their address. An international student can only work for the employer as mentioned on the work permit. For example, it will be a contravention of the Foreigner Employment Act, should a student work more than the permitted number of hours and/or work for a different employer than the one as mentioned on the work permit.

However, if a foreign student is in possession of an EU long term permit issued by another EU Member State (eg. Italy), they may gain access to the Dutch labour market more easily.

Self-employment

An international student is allowed to set up their own business and to carry out entrepreneurial activities. It is not necessary to ask for a special permit for this purpose. Nevertheless, on the basis of established case law of the Dutch civil courts, it can be a complex issue as to whether one should be seen as an entrepreneur or an employee.

Internship

If an internship is relevant for their study programme, an international student can do an internship at a Dutch company. Pursuant to the “Royal Decree implementing the Foreigner Employment Act,” a triparty contract needs to be signed amongst the university, the company and the student. A copy of this triparty contract must be kept by the internship provider at the location of the internship. In this contract, the university must declare that the internship is relevant for the study programme.

Main residence

A residence permit holder must have their main residence in the Netherlands. If one moves their main residence outside the Netherlands, the IND can revoke their residence permit, pursuant to article 18(1)(a) of the Immigration Act 2000. If this happens, a student will need to return to their home country and to ask for a new MVV entry clearance visa before they can return to the Netherlands. Thus, it is of great importance that one keeps their main residence in the Netherlands. On the ground of established case law of the Dutch Council of State, if a residence permit holder stays longer than six consecutive months a year or more than four consecutive months for three years in a row outside the Netherlands, the IND will presume that they have moved their main residence outside the Netherlands. In the IND policy, there are additional requirements pertinent to a student visa. Should a foreign student need to follow certain courses outside the Netherlands, with a view to completing their Dutch degree course, they can be allowed to stay up to 12 months outside the Netherlands.

Administrative period beyond graduation

In general, the IND gives some additional time to a student, with a view to letting them wrap up their “student life” administratively. For example, for a 1-year degree course, the IND often grants a student visa for the period from 1 September 2025 until 30 November 2026. If a student finishes their study on time, they get some additional time to prepare for the next chapter of their (academic) career/life. Nevertheless, if a student finishes their study much earlier than the expiry date of their student visa, the IND will potentially curtail their student visa. Let’s have a look at a hypothetical. Harry is a British student, studying psychology at a Dutch university. He is in possession of a student visa for the period from 1 September 2025 until 31 November 2026. However, prior to his arrival in the Netherlands, Harry pursued another degree in clinical psychology at a British university. As there are great similarities between these two degree programmes, Harry’s Dutch university decides to grant him exemptions from a myriad of subjects, as result of which Harry manages to graduate on 1 February 2026. In this situation, the IND will not let Harry stay on his Dutch student visa until the end of November 2026. Instead, it is highly likely that the IND will revoke Harry’s student visa as from 1 May 2026. Thus, it is essential that Harry applies for a different visa on/before 1 May 2026. Otherwise, due to the curtailment of his student visa, Harry will be confronted with a residence gap.

Orientation year visa

After a foreign student finishes their Dutch degree course programme, they can ask for an orientation year visa, which is valid for 1 year. With an orientation year visa, a foreign graduate can continue staying in the Netherlands, with a view to looking for a job as a highly skilled migrant or a European blue card holder. Currently, according to Dutch law, an orientation year visa is a visa of temporary nature, meaning that an orientation year visa holder cannot ask for either permanent residence and/or naturalization. Also, the time that one spends on an orientation year visa does not count towards the residence requirement of an EU long term stay permit. Nevertheless, these issues have become a bone of contention. As an orientation year visa is issued on the ground of the EU Directive 2016/801, the Court of Hague (location Amsterdam) has recently asked the European Court of Justice (CJEU) in a preliminary ruling procedure to clarify the issue as to whether an orientation year visa is of temporary or non-temporary nature. The expectation is that the CJEU will give their ruling in the coming 18-24 months. This issue has not only been a bone of contention for the IND and the Dutch Government. Earlier, the Belgian Council for Alien Law Litigation (“Raad voor Vreemdelingenbetwisting) ruled that a Belgian “job seeker visa” is a visa of non-temporary nature. For the time being, we need to wait for the opinion of the CJEU.

Family reunification 

Under Dutch law, a student permit holder is allowed to bring their (un)married partner and/or minor-aged children to the Netherlands. However, on the basis of the current IND policy, the family members of a student visa holder are not allowed to work in the Netherlands. This IND policy is probably a contravention of the EU Directive 2003/86, as article 14 of the Directive says that the family members should be entitled, in the same way as the sponsor, to access to employment and self-employed activities.  Unfortunately, we have not seen a case in which a foreign student and their family members challenge the IND policy, in relation to their family members' access to the Dutch labour market. 

Contact us

If you have any questions about Dutch immigration and nationality laws, please feel free to book a consultation with one of our lawyers. Also, we will be happy to cooperate with international offices of Dutch universities, for which international offices can contact us.