Permanent Residence Permit

Permanent residence permit

After five years of legal residency in the Netherlands, you may qualify for a permanent (indefinite) residence permit. There are two types of permanent residence permits in the Netherlands: the Dutch permanent residence permit and the EC permanent residence permit which is issued under specific EU-regulations.

Five years of uninterrupted residence

Both types of permanent residence permits require that you have legally resided in the Netherlands for an uninterrupted period of at least five years. If you have a residence gap (a period without a valid residence permit), the five years will be interrupted and the time spent in the Netherlands before the residence gap will not count.

For the EC permanent residence permit, you should have resided in the Netherlands on the basis of a non-temporary residence permit. Years that you resided in the Netherlands with a residence permit for a temporary purpose (for example the ICT-permit, the orientation year permit, and the trainee permit) do not count, except for years that you spent here as a student: these count for 0.5.

For the Dutch permanent residence permit, the last permit that you hold should be a non-temporary one. It does not matter what type of permit you held before.

Civic integration exam

Civic integration requirements apply for a Dutch or EC permanent residence permit. There are some narrowly defined exceptions to this rule.

Sufficient means of income

In principle, you should have sufficient means of income and this income should be available to you for at least one year. If you have an employment contract that is valid for at least one year and you earn sufficient income, you should meet these criteria. However, if your situation is different, it may be worthwhile to check if your circumstances would pass the test.

Benefits

The permanent residence permit provides you with an independent right to reside in the Netherlands. You are no longer dependent on your employment situation or your family situation. The EC permanent residence permit has the additional benefit of increased mobility within the EU. You do not need to choose between the two types of permits: if you submit an application for a permanent residence permit, the Dutch immigration Authorities will by default assess if you are entitled to the EC permanent residence permit.