Jobs, contracts and part-time work
A job in the Netherlands starts with an arbeidsovereenkomst (employment contract). It can be a tijdelijk contract (temporary contract, with an end date) or a vast contract (permanent contract). Many workers also fall under a cao, a collective agreement made by employers and trade unions.
Part-time work is widespread in the Netherlands. A question from DUO's 2025 example exam:
Eva wil graag een deeltijdbaan. Kan dat in Nederland?
Eva would like a part-time job. Is that possible in the Netherlands? The answer: Ja, dat kan.
To start your own business, the law requires a first step. From the same example exam:
Ming wil een eigen schoenenwinkel beginnen. Wat moet ze doen, volgens de wet?
Ming wants to open her own shoe shop. What must she do by law? The answer: she must register with the Kamer van Koophandel (KvK, Chamber of Commerce). Our post on starting a business as a zzp'er covers the next steps.
Your rights at work
Men and women have the same rights at work. From DUO's example exam:
Mogen vrouwen in Nederland hetzelfde werk doen als mannen?
May women in the Netherlands do the same work as men? The answer: Ja, dat mogen ze. They also have the right to equal pay for equal work.
An employer may not discriminate. A language requirement is allowed only when the job needs it. DUO's example question:
Mag een werkgever eisen dat je goed Nederlands kunt schrijven?
The answer: Alleen als het nodig is voor de baan (only if the job needs it). This is a typical KNM pattern. The rule is not always yes and not always no.
Other basic rights at work:
- minimumloon (minimum wage): from 1 July 2026, at least €14.99 gross per hour from age 21
- vakantiegeld (holiday pay): at least 8% of your gross wage, usually paid once a year
- vakantiedagen (holidays): at least four times your weekly working hours, so 20 days for a five-day week
- ziek zijn (being ill): you report sick to your employer, who keeps paying at least 70% of your wage for up to two years
Read working in the Netherlands for the KNM exam for contracts, the probation period and the cao.
Gross salary, net salary and tax
Your brutosalaris (gross salary) is your wage before tax. Your employer holds back loonheffing (wage tax and national insurance contributions) and often a pension contribution. What is left is your nettosalaris, the money in your bank account. Your loonstrook (payslip) shows both amounts.
A question from DUO's example exam:
Jason werkt in de zorg. Zijn brutosalaris is € 2.900. Wat krijgt hij op zijn bankrekening?
Jason works in healthcare, and his gross salary is €2,900. What does he get in his bank account?
The answer: minder dan € 2.900 (less than €2,900). You do not need to calculate anything. You need to know that net is lower than gross.
If the Belastingdienst (tax office) sends you a letter, you file an income tax return (aangifte inkomstenbelasting) before 1 May.
Uitkering aanvragen: when you lose your job
An uitkering is a benefit payment. Which organisation pays it depends on your situation:
- WW (unemployment benefit): paid by the UWV if you lose your job through no fault of your own
- bijstand (social assistance): paid by the gemeente if you have no other income
- AOW (state pension): paid by the SVB from the state pension age
From DUO's example exam:
Mark werkt in een supermarkt. Zijn contract eindigt op 31 mei. Hij heeft nog geen ander werk gevonden. Wanneer kan Mark een uitkering aanvragen?
When can Mark apply for a benefit? DUO's answer is vanaf 24 mei, about one week before his contract ends. The UWV rule: you can apply from one week before your first day without work, and at the latest one week after it. Our guide to the WW-uitkering explains the conditions.
Toeslagen: money that depends on your income
A toeslag (allowance) helps with a cost such as rent, health insurance or childcare. The Dienst Toeslagen, a separate service of the Ministry of Finance, pays it. The main ones are huurtoeslag, zorgtoeslag, kinderopvangtoeslag and the kindgebonden budget. How much you get depends on your income.
From DUO's example exam:
Maartje krijgt kinderopvangtoeslag. Ze krijgt een nieuwe baan en gaat meer geld verdienen. Wat gebeurt er waarschijnlijk met haar kinderopvangtoeslag?
Maartje starts a better-paid job. What will probably happen to her childcare allowance?
The answer: haar kinderopvangtoeslag gaat omlaag (it goes down). When your income changes, report it to the Dienst Toeslagen, or you may have to pay money back. See the kinderopvangtoeslag guide and the overview of Dutch toeslagen.
Try a practice question
We wrote this question ourselves, in the same format:
Lisa krijgt een WW-uitkering. Wie betaalt die uitkering?
- A. De gemeente
- B. Het UWV
- C. De Belastingdienst
Answer: B. The UWV pays the WW. The gemeente pays bijstand, and the Dienst Toeslagen pays toeslagen.
How the KNM exam asks about werk en inkomen
The KNM exam has 40 multiple-choice questions in 45 minutes, and you pass with at least 28 correct. Each question has a picture, a short Dutch question and three options. In DUO's 2025 example exam, werk en inkomen had 7 of the 40 questions.
The questions in this theme often use these forms:
- Kan / Mag ...? for a rule at work: yes, only in some cases, or no
- Wat moet ... doen? for a legal step, such as registering with the KvK
- Wat krijgt ...? for gross and net pay: more than, exactly, or less than
- Wat gebeurt er waarschijnlijk ...? for a change: up, the same, or down
- Wanneer ...? for a moment, such as when to apply for a benefit
Read the small words carefully: omhoog (up), omlaag (down), minder (less) and alleen als (only if) decide the answer. Then try questions on this theme in our free KNM practice.
