As per 1 March 2020, service providers from the European Economic Area and Switzerland need to register new temporary assignments in the Netherlands ultimately 5 days before the start of employment. To register, an online database went live on 10 February 2020 (on the website meldloket.postedworkers.nl).
Service providers are foreign employers who temporarily:
- come to the Netherlands with their own staff to perform work for a client;
- second employees to their own branch or affiliated group company in the Netherlands; or
- provide temporary workers in the Netherlands, as a temporary employment agency.
Also, in some cases, self-employed persons who come to perform a temporary assignment in the Netherlands must report.If a foreign employer or self-employed person makes use of a sub-contractor, that sub-con-tractor must report its own staff. The foreign employer or self-employed person must check such a report.
When reporting, foreign employers must at least state:
- the identity of the reporter;
- the company details;
- a contact person who is available in the Netherlands;
- the identity of the customer/client;
- the sector in which the activities are carried out in the Netherlands;
- the address of the workplace;
- the expected duration of the work;
- the identity of the person responsible for paying the wage;
- the identity of employees who come to work in the Netherlands;
- the presence of an A1 statement or other proof that demonstrates where the social premiums are paid for the employee(s).
The report made by the foreign employer or self-employed person must also be sent to the Dutch customer/client for review. Inaccuracies must be reported by the customer/client to the authorities before the start of the assignment.
During the assignment, certain minimum documentation must be available at the work-place (on paper or electronically), such as a copy of the employment contract, monthly pay slips, proof of payment, certificate of coverage and time sheets.
Non-compliance of the reporting obligations is an offence that can be penalised with a penalty of EUR 12,000 per offence. The foreign employer, the self-employed person and their customer/client can be penalised.
In some cases of incidental work, the notification obligation does not exist. The construction industry is excluded from this exception. Examples of when notification is not required for qualifying employees are:
- initial assembly or the first installation of goods of which the duration is not more than 8 days;
- urgent maintenance and repair of less than 12 consecutive weeks within a 36week time period;
- attending academic conferences of not more than 5 days, and;
- conducting business discussions or concluding agreements with companies or institu-tions, provided that the stay does not exceed 13 consecutive weeks within a 52-week time period.
WTS NL facilitates all compliance and advice regarding posted workers.
Newly announced legislation
Another Dutch development is the new pending legislation on the basis of which Dutch labour law would become (partially) applicable when an assignment in the Netherlands lasts longer than 12 to 18 months. We will inform you in more detail on this when the law is enacted, ultimately on 30 July 2020.
