When you can apply for an extension
You can apply for an extension when your residence permit expires within 3 months. Not earlier: the IND says it cannot assess the application properly before then.
This guide explains the Dutch temporary residence permit for a regular purpose. It covers working, studying, or living with a family member in the Netherlands. In Dutch it is verblijfsvergunning regulier bepaalde tijd (type I). Asylum permits (type III) and EU-law residence documents for family members of EU citizens have separate IND pages.
Five purposes cannot be extended at all: Working Holiday Program or Scheme, cultural exchange, au pair, trainee or work placement, and the orientation year for highly educated persons.
To extend your residence permit, you must still meet the conditions of your current permit. You also need a valid passport or other travel document, and your main residence must be in the Netherlands.
If your residence permit expires before you apply
Apply while you still have a valid residence permit if you can. If it has expired, apply no later than 4 weeks after the expiry date. Then the old and new permit connect, and you avoid a verblijfsgat (residence gap).
A residence gap can delay the moment you can apply for a permanent residence permit or Dutch citizenship.
Expired for more than 4 weeks? Apply as soon as possible and add a letter that explains why you are late.
Expired 2 years ago or longer? Then you can no longer extend. You apply for a residence permit again from the start. You may also need an mvv (provisional residence permit), which means applying from abroad, often through a Dutch embassy or consulate.
How to apply, step by step
- Check that your type of residence permit can be extended and that you are inside the 3-month window.
- Choose online or by post. Online, you log in with DigiD and pay at once with iDEAL or Wero. You upload your documents in the online form.
- Use the paper form if your permit has already expired or if you cannot apply online. Each residence purpose has its own form. If you apply by post, the IND sends you a letter that explains how to pay.
- Follow your application in Mijn IND until the decision.
Some people cannot apply themselves. Highly skilled migrants, scientific researchers and students in higher education have their erkende referent (recognised sponsor) apply for them through the IND Business Portal (Portaal Zakelijk).
Renew or extend: what the IND means
Searches like "extend residence permit Netherlands" and "IND renew residence permit" both land on the IND page called "Extend and renew". A regular temporary permit is extended: the IND checks again whether you meet the conditions. A permanent residence permit has no end date, but its card does. Getting a new card for it is what the IND calls renewing. So if your card says "regulier bepaalde tijd", you need the extension procedure on this page.
Documents and fees
The documents depend on your residence purpose. The paper form lists them, and the online form asks for them. Official foreign documents must be legalised and translated into Dutch, English, French or German.
The fee also depends on your purpose. The IND fees page lists, for example, €254 for family stay (including a partner) and for study, and €423 for highly skilled migrants and for paid employment. Fees change every year on 1 January, so check your own category on the IND fees page before you apply.
Mijn IND: following your application
Mijn IND (My IND) is the IND's online service. You log in at mijn.ind.nl with DigiD. There you can:
- see the status of your application and how long the IND may take to decide;
- upload documents the IND still needs;
- see your current residence permit and the details on your residence document;
- see which applications you can submit next. The extension option appears from 3 months before your permit expires.
You can also receive IND post digitally in the Berichtenbox of MijnOverheid.
The decision and your residence permit card
The IND must decide within 90 days. It can extend that period, for example when your application is incomplete, and it tells you so in a letter. If the IND asks for extra documents, send them within the period it gives you. Official overview: IND decision periods.
After a positive decision, the IND makes your new residence permit card. You get a letter when it is ready at an IND desk. Then you make an appointment to collect it. Bring what the letter asks for.
If the IND refuses
A refusal comes in a letter. You can object to it, and the letter says the date by which your objection must arrive.
Your objection includes your name and address, the date, which decision you object to, why, and your signature. Add a copy of the decision.
Someone else can object for you, such as a lawyer, your legal representative or your recognised sponsor. If the objection is rejected, you can appeal to the court. The decision letter also says whether you may wait for the outcome in the Netherlands. See the IND page on objecting to or appealing a decision.
What the KNM exam asks about this
KNM questions test which organisation does what. The Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) handles residence permits. The gemeente registers your address in the BRP.
You must extend on time, and your main residence must stay in the Netherlands. Practise the Dutch wording with DUO's official practice material.