Lost your job in the Netherlands? Apply for WW (unemployment benefit) within one week

This guide is for employees who lose paid work in the Netherlands.

Your first unemployment day is the first day you would have worked if you still had the job. A legal notice period or fictieve opzegtermijn (notional notice period) can delay the start of WW. A fixed-term contract normally ends on its agreed date. After a valid dismissal during your trial period, there is no notice period.

WW requires you to be available for paid work. If you are sick when your job ends, report sickness to your employer and check the sickness route below. Otherwise, follow these application steps:

1. Check your first unemployment day and any notice period.

2. Gather the details listed below.

3. Log in to Mijn UWV with DigiD (External site, opens in a new tab) (your digital identity).

4. Submit your WW application within the application window.

5. Check Mijn UWV for requests for additional information.

6. If UWV asks for additional information, upload it.

Prepare the following application details using UWV’s WW application guide (External site, opens in a new tab). Keep the additional employment records in case UWV asks for them:

• DigiD, your bank account number and contact details.
• Your last arbeidsovereenkomst (employment contract) and last loonstrook (payslip).
• Your unemployment date and the letter, court order or vaststellingsovereenkomst (settlement agreement) ending the job.
• Your CAO (collective labour agreement), recent payslips and evidence of hours, leave or unpaid wages, if UWV asks for more information.

UWV starts assessing your application when it has all the information. It usually decides within 2 weeks. For an application made before unemployment starts, UWV gives a decision within 4 weeks after your first unemployment day. If you apply later, it gives a decision within 4 weeks after the application. Check the decision for your start date, amount and end date.

Your first payment may arrive several weeks after unemployment starts because you must wait until you can submit the first monthly Inkomstenopgave (income statement). After receiving it, UWV usually pays within a few days and no later than 14 days. Ask UWV about a one-off advance in the first month if the payment gap leaves you short of money. UWV deducts the advance from your first payment.

You need all the following conditions. The hours threshold depends on your average working week:

• You were insured for unemployment, normally through employment before AOW (state pension) age.
• You lose pay for the hours you lose. If you averaged at least 10 hours a week, you lose at least 5 hours. If you averaged under 10 hours, you lose at least half your hours.
• You worked in at least 26 of the 36 calendar weeks before your first unemployment day.
• You are immediately available for paid work.
• No exclusion applies, such as detention, and you did not become unemployed through your own fault.

Illness, pregnancy and maternity leave, or unpaid leave can change which weeks UWV counts in the 36-week period. Earlier or ongoing self-employment can also affect the assessment. Ask UWV how it counts your work history.

You must not be verwijtbaar werkloos (unemployed through your own fault). An urgent dismissal reason that is your fault can block WW. Leaving a permanent job for a temporary job of under 26 weeks is another risk. Resigning usually gives no WW. An exception may apply if staying was unreasonable, for example because your employer threatened you. Get advice before resigning.

Agreeing to an employer-initiated termination, or choosing not to challenge it, does not by itself make you unemployed through your own fault. The documents must show the employer’s initiative and no employee fault.

Insured work in the EU (European Union), EEA (European Economic Area), Switzerland and qualifying UK (United Kingdom) cases can sometimes count towards WW. Ask the foreign benefit body for PD U1 (proof of insured work periods) and send it to UWV. Ask UWV whether work in another treaty country counts and which evidence it needs. Apply for Dutch WW on time while you wait for the form.

A grensarbeider (frontier worker) lives in one country and works in another, returning home at least weekly. Under EU, EEA and Swiss coordination rules, a fully unemployed frontier worker must claim in the country where they live. A partly unemployed frontier worker must claim in the country where they are insured for unemployment.

PD U1 records past work. PD U2 (permission to take unemployment benefit abroad) allows an existing benefit to continue during a job search abroad, as explained below.

The way your job ends can affect both your right to WW and its start date. Match your situation to the table, then check the actual wording of your documents.

Check that your agreement includes all these points:

• The employer proposed the ending, and you did nothing that caused it.
• The reason for ending the job is neutral or concerns the employer. There is no urgent reason for summary dismissal.
• The end date respects the contractual, CAO or legal notice period. Otherwise, UWV applies a notional notice period with no WW.
• The agreement records the end date, final pay, unused leave and any negotiated severance separately.

A settlement agreement has a bedenktijd (reflection period) of 14 days. You have 21 days if the employer did not state that right.

Ending a fixed-term contract early without a valid early-termination clause can postpone WW until the original end date. Have the proposed early ending checked before agreeing.

Get legal advice before signing while sick. A lawyer, union, legal-expenses insurer or Het Juridisch Loket (External site, opens in a new tab) (the legal advice service) can check the wording for your case.

For the contract rules, read Dutch employment contracts. If you worked through an agency, use the temporary agency work guide.

If the employer dismisses you or does not renew your contract, a transitievergoeding (statutory transition payment) generally applies from your first working day. Exceptions apply, including dismissal when you reach AOW age. The payment is one third of your gross monthly salary for each full service year, plus a proportional part for the remaining period.

From 1 January 2026, the cap is €102,000 gross, or one gross annual salary if that is higher. The payment does not reduce WW and need not be reported as WW income. With a settlement agreement, statutory entitlement is not automatic: you negotiate any severance. Have the amount and your route checked before accepting it.

If your employer cannot pay and there is no court ruling yet, send it a registered letter asking for your unpaid wages. Report the problem to UWV. Keep your contracts, payslips, hours, leave and pension records.

Wait until UWV confirms lasting inability to pay or invites you to apply for an uitkering wegens betalingsonmacht (insolvency benefit). Qualifying situations include bankruptcy, suspension of payments, debt restructuring or similar permanent non-payment. UWV can cover these unpaid amounts:

• Unpaid wage and wage components from at most the 13 weeks before dismissal.
• Wage over the notice period, for at most 6 weeks after notice.
• Holiday allowance and unused holiday days due from at most the 12 months before leaving.
• Unpaid pension contributions from at most 12 months, paid directly to the pension provider.

UWV calculates your gross WW from your earlier insured wages.

The maximumdagloon (maximum daily wage) is €309.91 gross per day from 1 July 2026. It includes holiday allowance and can change on 1 January and 1 July. Check the effective date when you apply.

UWV normally reserves 8% holiday allowance from gross WW and pays it in May, or within 1 month after WW ends.

For example, if your WW-maandloon is €2,000, your gross benefit is €1,500 in each of the first 2 months. From month 3, it is €1,400. These figures are before tax, reserved holiday allowance and any deduction for new earnings.

UWV withholds wage tax and premiums. Your net amount depends on your situation. If you have both wages and WW, apply the loonheffingskorting (payroll tax credit) to only one income.

New earnings reduce WW, as explained below.

A CAO or former employer may provide a separate supplement.

If household income is below the social minimum, UWV may assess a toeslag (benefit top-up) under the Toeslagenwet (Supplementary Benefits Act). The top-up has household-income conditions. The IND (External site, opens in a new tab) (Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst, the immigration service) lists it as a public-funds benefit. Check residence consequences before accepting it.

Meeting the wekeneis (weeks test) gives 3 months of WW. A longer period usually also requires the jareneis (years test): work counted in at least 4 of the previous 5 calendar years. The year when WW starts does not count. Exceptions apply when moving from certain disability benefits to WW.

The work-history calculation below is subject to the legal maximum.

Your duties start when you apply for WW. Follow your UWV letter and Werkmap (External site, opens in a new tab) (online work file). Unless UWV gives you a different arrangement, complete and report at least 4 job-search activities every 4 weeks. People taking part in UWV research may receive different instructions. Check the task in your Werkmap.

The following activities count towards your task:

• Applications to vacancies and open applications.
• Job interviews, assessments and work-related tests.
• Registration with an agency or a CV (a document about your work and education) on a vacancy site.
• A networking conversation or contact with an employer about work.
• A workshop about finding work, including a UWV webinar or online training.

Browsing vacancies alone does not count. Report activities through Mijn UWV, the UWV-app (External site, opens in a new tab) or your Werkmap, and keep proof for at least 2 years. Follow the UWV instructions for reporting job-search activities (External site, opens in a new tab). You must accept and keep work that UWV considers suitable.

For search routes and applications, use Finding a job without fluent Dutch.

During the first 6 months, suitable work normally matches your education, experience and pay, with travel of up to 2 hours a day. After 6 months, lower-paid, temporary, part-time or lower-level work can be suitable, with travel of up to 3 hours. If you were already used to travelling more than 2 hours a day, UWV expects you to accept that longer journey in a new job.

If you have been unemployed for a long time and can get a job in another region, you generally must accept it, even if you need to move. Discuss medical or caring limits with your adviser before refusing work. Refusing suitable work can temporarily reduce or stop WW.

Submit the Inkomstenopgave every month, even if you have no income. Keep submitting until UWV confirms which statements remain due when WW ends. Report wages, pension and other requested income correctly.

Report work, hours, residence status, volunteering, study and relevant personal changes to UWV. The general deadline is 1 week, but some changes have earlier deadlines. Report a move to or within another country at least 2 weeks beforehand. A Dutch address change normally reaches UWV through your gemeente (municipality); tell UWV yourself if you receive a taxi or mileage allowance.

Late or incorrect information can lead to a warning or fine. You must repay overpaid benefits. Breaching work duties can also reduce or stop WW. UWV assesses your circumstances before deciding.

If you also need to complete ONA (Oriëntatie op de Nederlandse Arbeidsmarkt, Dutch labour-market orientation), past employment may qualify you for an exemption. Check the ONA exemption conditions and application guide.

UWV normally deducts 75% of new earnings in the first 2 months. From month 3, it normally deducts 70%. You keep the rest alongside the reduced benefit. The calculation can differ if the wage cap applies. These rules follow article 47 of the Werkloosheidswet (External site, opens in a new tab) (Unemployment Insurance Act). If you earn more than 87.5% of your WW-maandloon for 2 consecutive months, UWV stops WW. Keep applying for work and reporting earnings until UWV confirms that WW has ended.

Ask your adviser about an onderzoeksperiode (research period) before starting business activities. With permission, it lasts up to 6 weeks. You keep WW and have no job-search duty, but you may only investigate and prepare. You may not yet take assignments, sell or operate the business.

If you choose a start period, all these conditions apply:

• UWV assesses your business plan before granting permission. The startperiode (start period) begins on the first day of a month after WW starts.
• It lasts 6 months, or until WW ends if less time remains. WW is reduced by 29%.
• Self-employed hours and profit do not change WW during this period. You have no job-search duty.
• You may not take assignments from the employer that dismissed you. Doing so stops WW for the rest of the start period.
• Submit every monthly Inkomstenopgave. Report wage employment. If you receive a UWV top-up, report business income too.

At the end of the start period, tell your adviser whether you will continue fully, continue partly or stop the business. UWV decides whether WW remains and how to calculate it. Job-search duties return for any hours still covered by WW.

You can also start without a start period. That route needs no UWV permission, but you must report the business and its hours. Your hours affect how UWV calculates income to deduct from WW, and job-search duties continue. Before choosing your business route, complete the required online training listed on UWV’s business-from-WW page (External site, opens in a new tab).

Report sickness to your employer. The employer reports you to UWV on your last employment day. If that day is a weekend or public holiday, it reports you on the next working day. UWV assesses Ziektewet (ZW, sickness benefit), normally within 4 weeks after the report.

If you become sick within 4 weeks after employment ends and have no WW, contact UWV by the second sick day. Get legal advice before agreeing to end employment while sick: you can lose wage protection and benefit rights. The sick leave guide explains the route.

Report sickness through Mijn UWV or the UWV-app by the second sick day. For the first 13 weeks, you usually remain on WW. Keep submitting income statements and follow the duties adjusted to your health. After 13 weeks, WW normally stops and ZW starts. Income statements remain due during ZW.

If sickness is caused by pregnancy, childbirth or organ donation, WW stops immediately and ZW starts. ZW also replaces WW when your WW reaches its maximum while you are sick. If you become sick within 4 weeks after WW ends and have no employer, UWV assesses whether you qualify for ZW. Call UWV by your second sick day. Report recovery within 1 day. After a longer ZW period, you may need to apply again for remaining WW.

WW normally gives 20 holiday days per calendar year. You get fewer days if WW starts after 1 January. Ending WW before 31 December does not reduce that allowance. If you reach AOW age within 1 year, you have 65 days instead. Weekends and public holidays do not use holiday days.

WW continues during your holiday allowance, and job-search duties pause. Report your holiday as soon as you have plans, no later than 1 day before it starts, including a holiday in the Netherlands. Report changes directly. Unused days cannot carry over or be paid out. A holiday uses a different route from taking WW abroad to look for work.

PD U2 (permission to take unemployment benefit abroad) normally lets you look for work for up to 3 months in another EU or EEA country or Switzerland. You must be fully unemployed and still entitled to WW. You normally need at least 4 weeks of WW, availability for work and jobseeker registration. UWV can shorten this period if you follow a partner who will work abroad.

Arrange the export in this order:

1. Tell your work adviser where and when you plan to look for work.

2. Request PD U2 from UWV no later than 1 week before departure.

3. Register with the destination country’s employment service within 7 days after leaving the Netherlands.

4. Continue Dutch income statements and change reports.

5. Follow Dutch and local job-search rules.

UWV may extend the export period by up to 3 more months. Ask before the first period expires; an extension is not automatic. Return by the date on PD U2 unless UWV gives you permission to return later. A late return can end your remaining entitlement. Ordinary travel or moving abroad does not itself allow WW export.

The IND decides residence rights separately from UWV. WW does not pause a work-based permit or create a right to stay. Read the wording on your card and use the work rights by residence permit guide. Contact the IND or an immigration adviser about your route.

A GVVA (gecombineerde vergunning voor verblijf en arbeid, single residence and work permit) and a kennismigrant (highly skilled migrant) permit normally allow at most 3 months to find a new employer. If unemployment starts on or after 22 May 2026 and you have held that permit for at least 2 years, the maximum is 6 months. The 6-month period can also apply after labour exploitation.

The search period starts on the day your contract ends and stops no later than your permit’s expiry date. If no eligible new employer is registered in time, the IND may withdraw your permit. For a GVVA, the new employer must apply for a new permit. A highly skilled migrant needs an IND-recognised sponsor. These search periods do not change the WW application deadline.

Partner, family and asylum permits are not normally tied to one employer. Income conditions depend on the residence route and application. Check your own IND conditions when renewing or making another application.

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens need no residence permit. As a jobseeker, register with UWV for the first 6 months. After that, you must show a genuine chance of finding work. Before 5 years of lawful residence, applying for a public-funds benefit can trigger an individual residence assessment. With permanent EU residence, that application does not end your residence rights. UWV still assesses WW separately.

For some IND applications, WW can count as zelfstandig inkomen (independent income) because tax and premiums are paid on it. It is duurzaam (sustainable) only if at least 12 months remain. It must also meet the amount required for that application.

Bijstand (social assistance) and the UWV top-up under the Toeslagenwet are public-funds benefits. They can affect some temporary residence rights. Healthcare, rent and childcare benefits are a different category and do not end residence rights. Check your permit route before applying.

Review these parts of your budget when your income falls:

• Occupational pension: UWV benefits do not build employer pension. Your old scheme may keep limited cover, including payments to your partner if you die. Ask your pension provider what continues during WW.
• Health insurance: if you remain living and insured in the Netherlands, keep your Dutch basic policy and pay its premium. UWV usually pays the income-related healthcare contribution. If you plan to move abroad, ask your insurer or CAK (External site, opens in a new tab) (the agency for healthcare contributions) before moving how to arrange your cover.
• Toeslagen (External site, opens in a new tab) (allowances): WW counts in your toetsingsinkomen (annual income for allowances). Estimate your full calendar-year income again in Mijn Toeslagen (External site, opens in a new tab) (your online allowance account). Report the change within 4 weeks. Lower income may change your healthcare or rent benefit.

IOW (income support for older unemployed people) depends on your age and WW history under the support conditions. PAWW (private supplement to unemployment and disability benefits) depends on your former employer’s scheme. Bijstand depends on household income and assets.

IOW is payable while you are in the Netherlands; holiday abroad is an exception. Early pension income can reduce IOW, so ask UWV before taking it.

A late application, missing records, a payment gap or a request to sign while sick each needs a different action:

• You missed the application window: apply now. A late application can mean temporarily less or no WW.
• Your employer has the missing documents: submit your application within the window, then respond to UWV’s requests for additional information.
• Your first payment has not arrived: check whether you submitted the income statement. Contact UWV about the payment or a possible advance.
• You are sick and have been asked to sign a settlement: get legal advice before signing. Check the sickness route above.

Read each UWV decision for its deadline. If the start date, wage, duration, refusal, penalty or repayment is wrong, bezwaar (formal objection) usually must reach UWV within 6 weeks of the letter date. Some Ziektewet decisions allow only 2 weeks. Follow the deadline in your letter.

Choose the route that matches your problem:

• Question or correction: contact UWV while keeping the objection deadline. A call does not replace an objection.
• Objection: challenge the legal or factual decision. Making an objection to UWV is free.
• Complaint: report poor treatment or service. A complaint does not replace an objection against the decision.
• Court appeal: after the objection decision, apply to the court named in the letter, generally within 6 weeks. A lawyer is optional, but a court fee applies.

The original decision remains in force during review. If you need urgent relief, a court can consider a temporary measure during objection or appeal. Ask a legal adviser which route fits your situation.

• Free and subsidised legal help
• Toeslagen: Dutch allowances
• Bijstand: social assistance