Netherlands: Highly Skilled Migrant salary thresholds raised for 2025

Who it affects

Sponsored highly skilled migrant workers and recognised-sponsor employers.

Sources

Primary: Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND) ↗

Corroborating: Rijksoverheid ↗

Verified 2026-04-21 · methodology · report a correction

Related changes in Netherlands

More recent updates

In force 1 Jan 2027

Announced Taxation

New Box 3 regime introducing capital-gains and capital-growth tax

Following successive Supreme Court rulings finding the current Box 3 deemed-return regime unlawful, the government committed to a new Box 3 system from 2027. The new regime taxes actual capital growth on savings and actual capital gains on investments annually, replacing the fictitious-return basis used since 2001. Interim measures under the Restoration of Rights Act continue to apply until 2027.

Who it affects: All Dutch tax residents with savings or investments above the tax-free allowance.

Ministerie van Financiën ↗ · Government of the Netherlands ↗ · Belastingdienst (Dutch Tax Authority) ↗ · verified 2026-04-19

In force 1 Jan 2027

In force Taxation

30%-ruling phase-down reversed — returns to flat 27% from 2027

The 2025 Belastingplan, published on Prinsjesdag 17 September 2024, reversed most of the 2024 phase-down. From 1 January 2027 the ruling returns to a flat percentage (27%) for the full 60 months. The stepped 30/20/10 regime applies only to rulings commenced between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2026; a new salary threshold of €50,436 (2025 figure) also applied.

Who it affects: Newly arriving skilled migrants from 2027; existing ruling holders from 2024-2026 remain on the stepped regime.

Belastingdienst ↗ · Rijksoverheid ↗ · verified 2026-04-21

In force 1 Jan 2027

Announced Taxation

Box 3 wealth-tax reform to actual-returns basis from 2027

Following successive Supreme Court rulings against the deemed-return Box 3 system, the Dutch government confirmed in September 2024 that the replacement actual-returns system will apply from 2027. Taxpayers with paper gains on investments will from 2027 pay Box 3 tax on actual realised and unrealised returns. Interim relief mechanisms continued through 2024-2026.

Who it affects: All Dutch tax residents with Box 3 savings and investments.

Belastingdienst ↗ · Rijksoverheid ↗ · verified 2026-04-21

In force 1 Jan 2027

Announced Taxation

30% expat ruling reduced to 27% from 2027

Announced on Prinsjesdag 2024 and confirmed in the 2025 Tax Plan: the 30% ruling will become a flat 27% ruling from 1 January 2027 for all new and existing beneficiaries. The earlier 2024 tiered 30/20/10 reduction will be reversed — between 2025 and 2026 beneficiaries receive the full 30% allowance again. Salary thresholds for eligibility will rise from €46,107 to €50,436 (standard) and from €35,048 to €38,338 (under-30s with master's degree) from 2027.

Who it affects: Non-Dutch employees using or planning to use the expat tax allowance.

Ministerie van Financiën ↗ · Government of the Netherlands ↗ · Belastingdienst (Dutch Tax Authority) ↗ · verified 2026-04-19

In force 1 Jan 2026

Announced Visa & immigration

Further 2026 raises announced for Highly Skilled Migrant threshold

The government announced additional uplift to the Highly Skilled Migrant salary thresholds for 2026 — continuing a pattern of above-inflation increases. Practitioners should reconfirm the exact 2026 figures at IND closer to the transition date; the annual adjustment is published in December.

Who it affects: Non-EU applicants planning Highly Skilled Migrant or EU Blue Card applications for 2026 onwards.

IND — Required income amounts ↗ · IND — Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst ↗ · verified 2026-04-19

In force 1 Jan 2025

In force Visa & immigration

Highly Skilled Migrant salary thresholds updated for 2025

IND's annual adjustment raised the Highly Skilled Migrant monthly gross salary thresholds by 6.70%: €5,688 for applicants aged 30 and over, €4,171 for under-30s, and €2,989 for recent graduates (within three years of graduation from a qualifying university or completion of the Orientation Year). EU Blue Card thresholds were adjusted to €5,688 standard and €4,551 for holders with a higher-education diploma obtained within the last three years.

Who it affects: Non-EU applicants to the Highly Skilled Migrant and EU Blue Card routes from 1 January 2025.

IND — Required income amounts ↗ · IND — Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst ↗ · verified 2026-04-19