Employment

Two Years of Sick Pay: the Dutch Obligation for Employers

Updated: 14 August 2026 Holdwise editorial team Employer Sick Leave Compliance

A Dutch employer pays a sick employee for up to 104 weeks. The employer also has a legal duty to work actively toward the employee's return. This is the largest employment risk in the Netherlands, and you can insure it. At Holdwise, we keep this answer up to date and change it when the rules change.

What the obligation is

By law, the employer pays at least 70% of salary. A collective labour agreement or the employment contract often sets a higher level, commonly 100% in the first year and 70% in the second. In the first year, the payment is also at least the statutory minimum wage.

The obligation is part of the employment relationship. It applies to every illness, whatever the cause, work-related or private.

The reintegration duty

The employer also has to help the employee return to work. Under the Gatekeeper Improvement Act (Wet verbetering poortwachter), employer and employee both have obligations during the two years, on a fixed timetable:

Week 1: report the absence to the company doctor (arbodienst).
Week 6: the company doctor issues a problem analysis.
Week 8: employer and employee agree a plan of action, reviewed at least every six weeks.
Week 42: notify the employee insurance agency (UWV).
Year 1: a first-year evaluation, examining suitable work inside the company (first track) and outside it (second track).
Week 88 to 104: the file is sent to the UWV with the application for long-term disability benefit.

If the UWV finds the reintegration efforts insufficient, it can extend the employer's payment obligation into a third year. This is called a wage penalty. Employers usually get this penalty because their documentation is incomplete.

Dismissal during illness

In the ordinary case, dismissal is prohibited during the first two years of illness. There are a few narrow exceptions, such as a business closure or dismissal for an urgent cause unrelated to the illness. After the two years, you can end the employment if the reintegration efforts were done properly. A transition payment is then generally due.

How employers manage the risk

Sick pay insurance (verzuimverzekering) covers the wage continuation. The premium depends on payroll size, sector and the chosen excess period. For a small employer, one long-term absence can affect the balance sheet. For this reason, insurance is standard practice.

Occupational health services are a separate legal requirement. Every employer arranges access to a company doctor, through a certified service or a contract with an individual doctor.

Your choice of setup. The obligation comes with employment. If you compare your own first Dutch hire with an employer-of-record arrangement, include this risk in that choice. See Employer of record compared with your own BV (besloten vennootschap, the Dutch private limited company) for both options.

Three ways to reduce the risk

The obligation itself stays in place, and you can reduce your risk. Agree a probationary period where the contract length allows one. Use a fixed-term contract for a first hire, because the obligation ends when the contract ends. Arrange insurance from the start, together with the payroll, before any absence.

For the steps of hiring, see hiring your first employee. For this cost next to the other employer costs, see employer costs beyond gross salary.

Each year, every Dutch BV files the same set of documents. These are the VAT returns, the corporate tax return, the annual accounts at the KVK and the UBO check. We do all of it for you. See corporate secretarial services in the Netherlands.

Once the company is set up, you have the same four tasks every year. The full list with the dates is on running a Dutch BV in 2026.

After the two years

After the wage continuation period, you can end the employment through the UWV on ground b. A transition payment is then due on top of everything already paid. In a dormant employment, this payment can be reimbursed through a compensation scheme. See the dismissal procedures for the procedure.

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Frequently asked questions

How long does a Dutch employer pay a sick employee? +

Up to 104 weeks, at a legal minimum of 70% of salary. Many collective agreements and contracts set a higher level, commonly 100% in the first year and 70% in the second.

Can I dismiss an employee who is on long-term sick leave? +

Only after two years of illness, in the ordinary case. There are narrow exceptions, such as a business closure. After two years, you can end the employment if reintegration was done properly. A transition payment is then generally due.

What is the Gatekeeper Act? +

The Gatekeeper Improvement Act (Wet verbetering poortwachter) sets a fixed timetable of reintegration obligations for employer and employee during the two years. It starts with the problem analysis in week six and ends with the UWV application around week 88. If the file is weak, the UWV can impose a wage penalty. The employer then pays wages for up to a third year.

Is sick pay insurable in the Netherlands? +

Yes. Sick pay insurance covers wage continuation. The premium depends on payroll size, sector and excess period. For small employers it is standard, because one long absence can affect the balance sheet.

Does this apply to a fixed-term contract? +

Yes, for the remaining term of the contract. If a fixed-term contract ends during illness, the wage obligation ends too. The employee then receives sickness benefit, and the employer has reporting duties at that point.

Sources Belastingdienst · KVK · wetten.overheid.nl Last updated: 14 August 2026