Unemployment benefit (WW) in the Netherlands: a guide for expats

Table of contents

You qualify for WW when all of these apply:

• You were insured for unemployment through your job, which is the case for almost every employee on a Dutch payroll, including agency workers.
• You worked at least 26 of the 36 weeks before your first day of unemployment (the week requirement, wekeneis).
• You lost at least 5 working hours a week, or at least half your hours if you worked fewer than 10 hours a week. Partial unemployment therefore counts too.
• You are available for work and allowed to work in the Netherlands.
• You are not to blame for losing the job.

Who does not qualify

• Self-employed people (ZZP) are not insured for WW. Freelancers who lose clients have to rely on their own buffer.
• People who resign are usually refused, as are people dismissed on the spot (ontslag op staande voet) for a serious reason.
• A settlement agreement does not block WW if the initiative came from your employer and the agreement is worded properly.

Source: UWV, about the unemployment benefit.

WW is a percentage of your daily wage (dagloon), which UWV calculates from what you earned in the year before you became unemployed. That daily wage is capped at the maximum daily wage, €309.91 gross since 1 July 2026 (€304.25 from January to June).

Highest amounts are 75% and 70% of €309.91, rounded to the cent. UWV pays per working day and pays monthly.

WW is taxed like salary, and UWV withholds wage tax. Ask UWV to apply the general tax credit (loonheffingskorting) if you have no other employer applying it. If you earn something while on WW, you report it every month and UWV reduces your benefit accordingly; it pays within about 14 days of your monthly report.

Your earnings were above the cap? Then WW replaces a much smaller share of your income than 70%. Our net salary calculator helps you compare your old take-home pay with what WW leaves after tax. If you had the 30% ruling, note that it does not apply to WW.

Meeting the 26-week rule gives you 3 months. Longer WW depends on your work history (arbeidsverleden) and the 4-of-5-years rule: you must have worked in at least 4 of the last 5 calendar years.

• Each year of work history adds 1 month, for the first 10 years.
• Above 10 years, years worked up to 2015 still add 1 month each, and years worked from 2016 add half a month.
• The maximum is 2 years.

For most expats the work history is short, so 3 to 6 months is realistic. UWV decides how earlier work, including work abroad, counts toward your history, so check the duration in your decision letter instead of assuming. Source: UWV.

Your first day of unemployment is the first day you would have worked if you still had the job. You can apply from 1 week before that day and must apply no later than 1 week after it. Apply late and UWV may pay a lower benefit for a while, or nothing.

1. Log in to UWV with your DigiD and submit the WW application. Have your contract, dismissal letter or settlement agreement and last payslips ready.
2. You are registered as a job seeker as part of the application. Fill in your profile and CV in your UWV work folder.
3. UWV sends its decision within about 4 weeks of your first unemployed day, in Mijn UWV or the UWV app.
4. Report your income every month, including when you earned nothing. Payment follows within about 14 days.

As a general rule you carry out 4 job search activities every 4 weeks, unless your UWV adviser agrees a different number with you. UWV is also running a trial in which some people get different rules, so follow what your adviser tells you.

Suitable work

In the first 6 months you look for work that matches your education, experience and salary level, with up to 2 hours of daily travel. After 6 months you are expected to accept any work you can get, with up to 3 hours of travel. Keep proof of every activity for 2 years. Source: UWV, the job search requirement.

For the search itself, our expat job market guide covers where English-speaking roles are advertised, and the salary negotiation guide helps once offers come in.

This is the question most non-EU expats ask first. The answer has three parts.

Sources: IND, benefits from public funds and IND, independent, sustainable and sufficient income.

Holidays

You can take up to 20 days of holiday a year while on WW. Report it to UWV before you go; on those days you do not have to apply for jobs. Holiday pay keeps building up on your benefit.

Looking for work in another EU country

• You can take WW to an EU or EEA country or Switzerland for up to 3 months, sometimes extended by 3 more.
• You must have been available for work here for 4 weeks first, not on holiday.
• Request a PD U2 form from UWV at least 1 week before you leave.
• Register with the benefits agency in the new country within 7 days and follow its rules.

Source: UWV, receiving an unemployment benefit while going abroad.

Moving outside the EU ends your WW. If losing your job means leaving for good, our guide to leaving the Netherlands covers deregistration, pension and tax.

What happens when WW ends?

WW stops when you find work that pays more than the benefit, when your entitlement runs out, or when you no longer meet the conditions. If you take a job that pays less than before, part of your WW can continue alongside it, because UWV only deducts what you earn.

After WW, the safety net is social assistance (bijstand) from your municipality. It is means-tested, and for non-EU residents without permanent residence it counts as public funds, which can put a permit at risk. Plan for the end of WW well before it arrives.

Thinking of going freelance instead? UWV has separate rules for starting a business while on WW, so agree it with your adviser before you register with the KVK; starting without telling UWV can cost you the benefit. Once you are self-employed you are no longer insured for WW. Read our freelancer insurance guide before you register with the KVK, and if you are expecting a baby, our maternity leave guide explains how UWV switches you from WW to a maternity benefit.