🇳🇱 Job offer letter in the Netherlands: what to include
Updated July 2026 · General information, not legal advice
Dutch employment law keeps probation short, makes an 8% holiday allowance mandatory, and offers a well-known tax advantage for international hires (the 30% ruling). Offers to candidates relocating to the Netherlands should address all three, because Dutch candidates — and their lawyers — will.
Quick facts
- Probation
- Max 1 month (fixed-term 6 months–2 years) · max 2 months (2+ years or indefinite) · none allowed under 6 months
- Holiday allowance
- 8% of gross annual salary, statutory
- Annual leave
- At least 4× weekly working hours (20 days full-time)
- Employee notice
- 1 month by default
- Expat taxation
- 30% ruling may apply to eligible international hires
What to include in a Dutch offer letter
A Netherlands offer normally specifies:
- Function, start date and contract duration
- Gross monthly salary — and whether the 8% holiday allowance is included in or added to the quoted figure
- Probation clause within the legal limits (a longer clause is void entirely)
- Holiday entitlement (statutory minimum 20 days full-time; 25 is common)
- Pension scheme participation
- Whether the employer will support a 30% ruling application
Probation: short and strict
Probation may be at most one month for fixed-term contracts between six months and two years, and at most two months for longer or indefinite contracts. Contracts shorter than six months may not include probation at all. Crucially, an over-long probation clause is not trimmed to the maximum — it is void, leaving no probation at all.
The 8% holiday allowance
Every employee accrues a holiday allowance of 8% of gross annual salary, typically paid out in May. Offers must be explicit about whether a quoted salary is inclusive or exclusive of it — 'inclusief/exclusief vakantiegeld' is one of the most common sources of offer misunderstandings in the Netherlands.
The 30% ruling for international hires
Eligible employees recruited from abroad can receive part of their salary tax-free under the 30% ruling (subject to salary thresholds and conditions that have been tightened in recent years). The ruling is applied for jointly by employer and employee — an offer that mentions the employer's support for the application is significantly more attractive to expats.
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Create a free offer →Frequently asked questions
Is holiday allowance on top of the salary in a Dutch offer?
It depends on wording. The 8% vakantiegeld is statutory; offers must state whether the quoted gross figure includes it ('inclusief') or whether it is paid on top ('exclusief').
What happens if a Dutch probation clause is too long?
It is entirely void — not shortened to the legal maximum. The employee then has no probation period at all.
What is the 30% ruling?
A Dutch tax facility that lets eligible employees hired from abroad receive part of their pay free of tax for a limited number of years, subject to conditions. The employer must apply together with the employee.
Related guides
This guide is general information for employers, not legal advice. Employment rules change and collective agreements may set different terms — confirm the specifics with local counsel before sending an offer.