The Expatcenter Procedure
The Expatcenter procedure begins when the employer completes the appropriate application forms from the IND website and sends them to the IND. Approximately four weeks later, the highly skilled migrant can visit the Expatcenter to collect his or her residence permit and register with the municipality (GBA). For a full description of the procedure application steps please see How to Apply.
Advantages of the Expatcenter Procedure
The employer can submit an application for a residence permit while the employee is still abroad and schedule an appointment with the Expatcenter for their arrival.
Once the employee is in the Netherlands, all documents will be in place, allowing the employee to start work directly after their visit to the Expatcenter.
No more delays due to the M46 (statement of marriage)
In some cases the M46 form is needed to register an employee’s marriage and therefore obtain a residence permit for his or her spouse. In the past this form was responsible for considerable delays, however, under the new procedure, the city council and IND will register the marriage and issue the residency permit to the spouse. The M46 does still remain part of the process, however, it will take place at a later stage allowing delays to be eliminated.
Service for EU citizens
All EU citizens who have a work contract with a company that is part of the IND’s highly skilled migrant ruling can visit the Expatcenter for their municipal registration. As of November 2008, the Expatcenter will also provide vignettes (verklaring van inschrijving voor burgers van de unie), if needed, for EU citizens.
BSN number in 3 days
As an additional service for employers, the Expatcenter can provide the employee’s new BSN number by e-mail three days after the initial appointment. To request this service, please email the Expatcenter.
Early “Beschikking”
The Expatcenter recently expanded its services to now offer the possibility of receiving a ‘beschikking’ (formal IND approval) via the Expatcenter. With this early ‘beschikking’ highly skilled migrants are now able to start working two weeks after the IND has received their original application. To make use of this service, employers will need to select either the “One-Stop”” or “”Two-Stop” on their application forms. This does mean employees will have to visit the Expatcenter twice, however the early decision letter will allow knowledge migrants to commence work sooner.
Information for your expat employees
Expatriate employees can also visit the Expatcenter for help with other government and expat related issues such as parking, taxes, healthcare, education and much more. The Expatcenter staff is ready and able to answer questions, provide information and offer advice on a wide range of topics. Furthermore, a wealth of information is also available throughout the Living section of this website, with detailed articles ranging from residence permits to finding a job, childcare, or an apartment.
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You can also reach us by phone:
+31 (0)20 254 79 99