who qualifies for the dutch 30% ruling?

The 30% ruling is the single biggest tax incentive available to skilled migrants in the Netherlands. It lets your employer pay up to 30% of your gross salary as a tax-free allowance, lifting your net pay meaningfully without changing the gross. The Belastingdienst checks four things: where you were recruited from, how far you lived from the Dutch border, what you earn, and whether you have a specialism that is scarce on the Dutch labour market. The rules tightened in 2024 and are tightening again from 2027 — so it pays to know exactly where you stand before you sign a contract.

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Key facts
  • →Recruited from abroad and hired by a Dutch payroll employer.
  • →Gross taxable salary in 2026: at least €46,660 (or €35,468 if under 30 with a Dutch-recognised master’s).
  • →Lived more than 150 km from the Dutch border for at least 16 of the 24 months before your first working day.
  • →Considered a “scarce specialist” — usually proven by the salary threshold itself.
  • →Maximum benefit duration: 5 years (started counting from your first ruling decision).
  • →Knowledge-migrant visa holders qualify on the same eligibility test as EU nationals.
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The four eligibility tests

To qualify in 2026 you need to pass each of these:

  1. Hired from abroad. You are recruited by, or seconded to, a Dutch wage-tax employer while still living outside the Netherlands. Switching to a Dutch employer after you have already moved here usually disqualifies you.
  2. 150-km rule. For at least 16 of the 24 months before your first working day in the Netherlands you lived more than 150 km in a straight line from the Dutch border. This excludes most of Belgium, north-western Germany and Luxembourg.
  3. Salary threshold. Your taxable salary after the 30% deduction must be at least €46,660 in 2026 — equivalent to a gross of roughly €66,660. A reduced threshold of €35,468 applies if you are under 30 and hold a Dutch-recognised master’s or PhD.
  4. Scarce specialism. In practice, meeting the salary threshold is treated as proof of scarcity. The Belastingdienst rarely runs a separate scarcity test on top.

Common edge cases for Brainport and Arnhem hires

If you are joining ASML, NXP, Philips or VDL on a knowledge-migrant visa, your IND-approved salary will usually clear the 30% threshold automatically. Watch four situations:

  1. Internal transfers from a non-EU office. Time spent in de Netherlands during a previous secondment can break the 150-km test if you crossed the 24-month look-back window.
  2. PhD finishers. If you completed your PhD at TU/e, Radboud or another Dutch university and start work within one year of graduating, the 150-km test is measured against your address before the PhD — not your Dutch address during it.
  3. Local-to-local switches. Moving from one Dutch employer to another within three months keeps the ruling alive. Longer than three months and you lose it.
  4. Salary just below the threshold. A drop of €100/month gross can break eligibility for a full year. Talk to payroll before any reorganisation.
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What can disqualify you mid-ruling

The ruling is not “set and forget”. Three things end it early:

  • Salary dip. If at any point in the calendar year your taxable salary falls below the threshold, the ruling lapses for that full year. It does not pause and resume.
  • Job change without continuity. A gap of more than three months between Dutch employers counts as a new entry, which usually fails the recruited-from-abroad test.
  • Long international assignments. Moving back abroad for an extended period while keeping a Dutch contract can break the connection to Dutch payroll.

If any of these are on the horizon, a 30-minute review with an advisor will usually flag the risk before it costs you a year of net income. The cost of staying eligible is almost always lower than the cost of losing the ruling and reapplying.

Ready for a closer look?

Not sure whether your contract or recent move keeps you eligible? Book a free 30-minute call with an advisor in Eindhoven or Arnhem to check before you sign.

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Frequently asked questions

No. You and your employer have to apply jointly to the Belastingdienst within four months of your first working day. File later and you only get the benefit from the month of application onwards, not back to day one.

Probably not. Brussels is inside the 150-km zone. You need to have lived outside that zone for 16 of the 24 months before your start date. A short stint inside the zone is fine as long as the bulk of those 24 months was further away.

The reduced one. If you are under 30 on the first day of the month for which the ruling is claimed and hold a Dutch-recognised master’s or PhD, the 2026 taxable threshold is €35,468 — roughly €50,668 gross.

The ruling is personal. Your partner can apply separately if they meet all four tests in their own right. Many couples joining ASML or NXP both qualify, but each contract is assessed on its own.

You have three months to start a new role with another Dutch wage-tax employer. Within that window the ruling continues. Beyond three months it ends, and a new application would need to clear the recruited-from-abroad test again.

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Reviewed by Joan Ottenheim, CFP & FFP — last reviewed 2026-05-12.

Independent · AFM-registered · CFP & FFP credentials · Offices in Eindhoven and Arnhem.