Sponsor yourself with your own Dutch BV: the residence routes for a founder
You live outside the EU and want to work in the Netherlands for a company you own. Dutch immigration law gives you several routes. In most of them your own Dutch company (BV) is the employer or the business that the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) tests. The IND decides.
Ask about your situationYes, your own Dutch BV can employ you as a highly skilled migrant, once the IND has recognised the BV as a sponsor. The IND tests the company: registration in the Dutch Trade Register, enough continuity and solvency, and reliable directors. A company younger than 18 months submits a business plan, and the IND asks the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) for advice on it. The BV then pays you a market rate salary of at least €5,942 gross per month in 2026 (€4,357 under 30), excluding the holiday allowance. The permit follows the contract, up to 5 years.
The other routes: the self-employed permit with the points system (up to 2 years at a time), the start-up permit with a facilitator (1 year), the treaty route for US and Japanese citizens with €4,500 of capital in the business, and the lighter route for Turkish citizens. As employer, your BV can also apply for the expat scheme: up to 30% of your salary tax-free in 2026 and 27% from 1 January 2027. We set up the BV and the payroll; an immigration lawyer from our network prepares the applications; the IND decides on every one of them.
Tell us what you make or sell, where your company is and what you plan in Europe. Our team looks at it and replies with the steps and the dates that apply to you.
The routes for a founder, and where your BV comes in
| Route | Who | Requirement | Where the BV comes in | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highly skilled migrant, employed by your own BV | Any nationality outside the EU, the European Economic Area and Switzerland | The BV is a recognised sponsor. Salary in 2026 at least €5,942 gross per month at 30 or older, €4,357 under 30, €3,122 under the reduced criterion, excluding the holiday allowance, and in line with the market rate for the job. | The BV is the employer and the sponsor. It applies for its recognition first, then for your permit. | Recognition: legal term 90 days, longer when the IND asks RVO for advice. Permit: IND target 2 weeks. Permit valid for the term of the contract, up to 5 years. |
| Self-employed person, points system | Any nationality outside the EU | RVO scores your personal experience, your business plan and the added value for the Netherlands: at least 30 points in each part, or 45 for experience and 45 for the plan. | Your business in the Netherlands, as a BV or a sole proprietorship. The plan, the finance and the forecasts are tested. | Permit up to 2 years at a time. Fee €423. |
| Start-up permit | Founders with a product or service that is new to the Netherlands | A facilitator from the RVO list, a step-by-step plan from idea to company, and enough income. | The company is set up during the year; after 1 year you apply for the self-employed permit. | Permit up to 1 year. |
| Treaty route (DAFT and the Japanese treaty) | US and Japanese citizens | Substantial capital in your business, €4,500 for most business forms. You register with the Trade Register and invest within 6 months after the decision. | The BV or sole proprietorship receives the capital; at renewal the IND reads the annual accounts and a balance sheet or income statement. | Permit up to 2 years at a time. Fee €423. After 5 years of residence you can apply for permanent residence. |
| Turkish citizens | Turkish nationals | Self-employed: RVO reviews the business plan, the points system is left aside. Employed: a highly skilled migrant permit is possible with an employer that is unrecognised. | Your BV as the business, or as the employer. | Faster with a recognised sponsor, says the IND. |
Fees in 2026: recognition as sponsor €5,080, or €2,539 for a company with at most 50 employees; a residence permit for a highly skilled migrant, a self-employed person or under the treaties €423, and the same for an extension (IND fees page, read on 27 October 2026).
Route 1: your BV becomes a recognised sponsor and employs you
Only a recognised sponsor can apply for the permit of a highly skilled migrant. Recognition is for organisations, so the sponsor is the BV, with you as its director and shareholder. The IND checks four things: the BV is registered in the Dutch Trade Register, its continuity and solvency are sufficiently guaranteed, it is solvent and free of a suspension of payments, and the company, its directors and the other people involved are reliable.
A new BV has few figures to show. The IND form therefore asks a company younger than 18 months for a business plan with supporting documents: market research or statements from experts about the product, contracts, orders or letters of intent, forecast annual accounts, proof of finance such as a bank loan or your own capital, and a forecast of income, expenses and liquidity. The IND submits the plan to RVO for advice. The legal term is 90 days and may be extended when RVO advises. Once the BV is recognised, the IND tries to decide on your permit within 2 weeks.
The IND conditions test the company and the salary, and leave your shareholding out of that test. The salary must be paid monthly to a bank account in your name, at the 2026 amounts of €5,942 gross per month at 30 or older and €4,357 under 30, excluding the holiday allowance, and in line with what others earn in a comparable job. The BV therefore needs the money to pay you from the first month: with the holiday allowance about €77,000 gross per year for a founder of 30 or older, plus the employer contributions. The 2027 amounts are published at the end of 2026.
The permit follows the employment contract, up to 5 years. As a recognised sponsor your BV keeps records, reports changes to the IND and has a duty of care. The IND checks sponsors and can warn, fine or withdraw the recognition.
Tell us what you make or sell, where your company is and what you plan in Europe. Our team looks at it and replies with the steps and the dates that apply to you.
Route 2: the self-employed permit and the points system
The self-employed permit is for a founder who works for his own business and is unemployed by it. RVO scores three parts: your personal experience (education, experience as an entrepreneur, experience with the Netherlands, work experience and income), your business plan (finance, market and organisation) and the added value for the Netherlands (innovation, jobs and investment). You need at least 30 points in each part, or 45 points for experience and 45 for the plan. The permit is valid for up to 2 years at a time.
The business can be a BV or a sole proprietorship. The plan is the heart of the application: a market analysis, the finance of the company, and a forecast of turnover and liquidity over at least three years, checked by an independent expert.
Route 3: the treaties for US and Japanese citizens
A US citizen uses the Dutch-American Friendship Treaty (DAFT); a Japanese citizen uses the Dutch-Japanese trade treaty. You invest substantial capital in your business in the Netherlands, €4,500 for most business forms, and you register the business with the Trade Register and make the investment within 6 months after the date of the decision. The IND may withdraw the permit when the registration or the investment is missing after those months. The permit is valid for up to 2 years at a time. At renewal the IND reads your annual accounts and a balance sheet or income statement, to see that the business is active and that the capital stayed in it. After 5 years of residence you can apply for permanent residence.
US citizens choose between a BV and a sole proprietorship under DAFT; the expat scheme is only available with an employer, so with a BV. The differences are in DAFT: BV or sole proprietorship.
The expat scheme through your own BV: 30% in 2026, 27% from 2027
The expat scheme is for employees. Your BV is your employer, so it can apply for the scheme for you. The conditions: you are in paid employment, you were recruited from outside the Netherlands, you lived more than 150 kilometres from the Dutch border for more than 16 of the 24 months before your first working day, and your taxable salary is at least €48,013 per year in 2026 (€36,497 under 30 with a master’s degree). The order matters: the BV exists and signs your employment contract while you still live abroad.
In 2026 the BV may pay up to 30% of your salary tax-free, with a maximum of €78,600 at a salary of €262,000 or more. From 1 January 2027 the maximum is 27%, under a law that is already adopted; employees who started before 1 January 2024 keep the old rules. The 2027 maximum follows the remuneration maximum of €273,000 set for 2027, so 27% of that: €73,710. The 2027 salary norms are published at the end of 2026. The ruling is valid for at most 5 years and the tax office decides on the request. See the 30% ruling calculator.
What the IND figures of 2025 say
In 2025 the IND received 19,490 applications in the category knowledge and talent, which includes highly skilled migrants. It granted 86% and decided 94% on time. The three largest nationalities were Indian, Turkish and American. In the category labour migrants, 6,730 applications, the IND granted 67% and decided 53% on time. The recognised sponsor route is the fast lane in these figures.
One Dutch company, many roles
Your own BV is the employer, the recognised sponsor and the applicant for the expat scheme. It is also the company that signs contracts with your customers, invoices with a Dutch VAT number, imports with an EORI number and holds the bank account. One company, one set of books.
Prices: your Dutch company (BV) from €2,950 excl. VAT, and a holding with an operating company from €4,950 excl. VAT. The immigration lawyer and the payroll have their own price, which you see first. Holdwise provides neither a registered address nor directors: the company is yours and the address is yours. See company formation in the Netherlands.
Who does what
- You own the company and the business plan, decide on the route and the salary, and sign the applications. You see every price first.
- We set up the BV by power of attorney, arrange the Trade Register, the tax registrations and the bank account, and do the payroll with the salary at the IND level and the expat scheme in each payslip. We keep the books and the annual accounts the IND asks for.
- Partners are the immigration lawyer who prepares the recognition and the permit applications, and the notary for the deed. The IND and the tax office decide. We choose the partner with you, after you ask for it.
Relocating your existing company along with yourself? See relocating your business to the Netherlands. Want our team to have a look?
Sources
- IND, Apply for recognition as sponsor (8 June 2026) and application form 7501-2026/1: the business plan for a company younger than 18 months and the RVO advice.
- IND, Residence permit highly skilled migrant (11 September 2026) and Required amounts 2026.
- IND, Residence permit self-employed person: the points system, the treaties for US and Japanese citizens, the 6 months and the renewal documents (13 October 2026).
- IND, Residence permit start-up (8 June 2026).
- IND, Turkish citizens and living in the Netherlands (31 July 2026).
- IND, Fees: costs of an application (read 27 October 2026).
- IND, IND jaarcijfers 2025 (February 2026).
- Belastingdienst, the expat scheme (30% ruling) (changed 13 May 2026); Business.gov.nl, the expat scheme, 27% from 2027; Topinkomens.nl, remuneration maximum 2027: €273,000 (24 August 2026).
Last reviewed: 27 October 2026. Based on the IND, Belastingdienst, Business.gov.nl and Topinkomens.nl pages named in the sources, as they read on 27 October 2026. The IND decides on every application.
Common questions
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