Current situation regarding self-employed workers
On 7 July 2025, the bill for the Assessment of Employment Relationships and Legal Presumption (Clarification) Act (Wetsvoorstel Verduidelijking beoordeling arbeidsrelaties en rechtsvermoeden, or VBAR Act) was submitted to the Dutch House of Representatives.
The bill aligns with the current method for assessing employment relationships and also introduces two new elements: a legal presumption of the existence of an employment agreement if an hourly rate of less than EUR 36 is paid, and a statutory basis for the authority criterion. The assessment of the authority criterion always starts with checking key element W (substantive or organisational directions). If this element is lacking, there is no employment agreement. However, if W is present, key element Z (working for own account and risk) is analysed to determine the essence of the employment relationship. If directions are given and the work is not primarily performed for the service provider’s own account and risk, the relationship will be considered an employment agreement.
The VBAR Act’s proposed date of entry into force is 1 July 2026, but the bill must first be adopted by the Dutch House of Representatives and the Dutch Senate.
Implementation of the Directive on equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women
On 26 March 2025, the draft bill was published that will transpose into national law the Directive on equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women. The Dutch government decided not to include any additional measures in the draft bill other than those necessary for implementation. For more information, see our previous news update ‘Equal pay for men and women: the state of play’.
Flexible Workers (Increased Security) Bill
After an extensive consultation phase, the bill for the Flexible Workers (Increased Security) Act (Wet meer zekerheid flexwerkers) was submitted to the Dutch House of Representatives on 19 May 2025. The bill sets out stricter rules for temporary employment agreements and reinforces the position of casual and temporary workers. The consultation prompted only minimal changes:
Range agreement
The draft bill replaces casual agreements with range agreements, which lay down a minimum and maximum number of hours that the employee can be deployed. This way, the employee knows the ‘range’ within which they can be called up: the minimum number of hours is guaranteed, and the maximum number is the highest number of hours that the employee can be required to come and work. The employer can schedule the employee flexibly within this range, but not outside it and not without the employee’s consent. The conditions under which a range agreement can be concluded have been further specified since the consultation. The maximum number of working hours must not be more than 130% of the minimum. The employee must be available within this range and, in principle, must comply if called in to work within these hours.
Equivalent terms of employment for temporary workers
- The bill now also more clearly distinguishes between ‘essential terms of employment’ and ‘other terms of employment’. Essential terms of employment (such as wages and working hours) must be at least equal to those of employees in similar positions at the host employer. Other terms of employment must be at least equivalent.
- Deviations from the equivalence requirement by means of a collective labour agreement (CLA) can only be agreed via the supplier’s CLA and no longer via the host employer’s CLA. The new legislation also provides that CLA deviations from essential terms of employment will only be permitted in return for compensation in relation to those essential terms of employment.
Temporary employment agreements
The draft bill proposes to replace the 6-month interval in fixed-term employment agreements by an administrative expiry period of 60 months (5 years). Within this period, employers cannot conclude a new fixed-term employment agreement with an employee if the chain of 3 agreements or (in the event of a smaller number) the term of 36 months has been exceeded. If a fixed-term employment agreement is nevertheless offered within that period, it will convert into an employment agreement for an indefinite term by operation of law.
Despite fierce criticism of the bill, the government nevertheless decided to implement this change without modification. They did so because research shows that temporary employment agreements are frequently used to employ individuals for long periods. The government aims to counter this trend by requiring that ongoing work be performed under a permanent employment relationship instead of via successive temporary employment agreements. Specifically, this entails that a new series of temporary employment agreements can only start if at least five years have passed since the previous agreement. However, the six-month interval will continue to apply to pupils, students and seasonal workers.
The Act’s proposed date of entry into force is 1 January 2027. The element on equal pay for temporary workers might enter into force sooner, on 1 July 2026.
Provision of Personnel (Accreditation) Bill
On 15 April 2025, the bill for the Provision of Personnel (Accreditation) Act (Wet toelating terbeschikkingstelling van arbeidskrachten) was passed by the Dutch House of Representatives.The Act will introduce a new accreditation system for suppliers, such as employment agencies, that provide workers to third parties. If the Dutch Senate passes the Act, companies can only supply workers if they have a licence (‘accreditation’) to do so. Accredited companies will be entered in a public register. The accreditation requirement will also apply to foreign employment agencies. Accreditation will only be granted if strict conditions are met, including:
- Entry in the business register
- Possession of a Certificate of Conduct (Verklaring Omtrent het Gedrag)
- Payment of a EUR 100,000 deposit
- Compliance with requirements stemming from employment legislation, social security legislation and tax legislation (system of standards to be further specified by further regulations)
Conversely, companies hiring personnel (host employers) must only hire workers from accredited employment agencies. If they fail to do so, they will risk a penalty.
A specialised division at the ministry (the Accrediting Authority) will be responsible for assessing accreditation applications and suspending or withdrawing accreditations in the event of malpractices. The Accrediting Authority may designate private inspection agencies to perform checks at suppliers.
The Act’s proposed date of entry into force is 1 January 2027. From this date, the necessary bodies will be created and organised and employment agencies can submit applications for accreditation to the Accrediting Authority.
However, the actual accreditation requirement will not take effect until 1 January 2028. From then on, supplying workers without this accreditation will be prohibited. On the same date, the Netherlands Labour Authority (NLA) will start enforcing this obligation. The NLA will then perform inspections and may impose penalties on suppliers working without accreditation, as well as on host employers that use non-accredited suppliers.
Modernisation of the non-compete clause
On 15 April 2024, the internet consultation on the modernisation of the non-compete clause ended. The internet consultation prompted 273 responses from various stakeholders. In general, modernisation is widely supported, but employers and employees disagree about its implementation and details. Employers are concerned about the potentially diminished protection of corporate interests and fear they might face an increased administrative burden, whereas employees and trade unions are positive about the higher level of protection for employees changing jobs and the obligation to state reasons. Employees’ organisations support the proposed mandatory compensation for invoking the non-compete clause, but employers are critical due to the higher costs. The results of the consultation will be included in the further refinement of the bill, which, after the Council of State has given its opinion, is expected to be submitted to the Dutch House of Representatives at the end of 2025 or the beginning of 2026 at the earliest.
Conclusion
Although the government tendered its resignation in June 2025, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Social Affairs and Employment decided to declare all employment market files non-controversial. This means that bills in this area will continue to be handled as usual, despite the fall of the government.