Consultation for students

All About Expats can give advice about your situation to prepare yourself for the future.

We consult international students

Are you an international student or a graduate currently in an orientation year and you are in need of advice about your situation? This is where our consultation service for students comes in handy.

We noticed that information about studying or working in the Netherlands after a study is hard to find and not always clear. Help from your school, employer or even the Dutch government proves to be insufficient in many occasions. All About Expats wants to change this!

How our Consultation service works

Are you currently experiencing difficulty taking the next steps of your stay in the Netherland? Do you need advice about the possibilities that are available for you or just want to explore your options? All About Expats can offer you a one-on-one consultation session for a fair and affordable price.

This consultation session will give you the opportunity to learn more about the Dutch job market, as well as the options currently available for you to enable you to further your career here in the Netherlands. We will also teach you about important matters regarding the conditions set for your residency and permit to prevent frequently made mistakes that for example can result in a residence gap, which is something you want to avoid.

The immigration process

Step-by-step immigration guide for the Netherlands

An infographic about the immigration process for highly skilled migrants.

Immigration process

Consultation service

Our Consultation Services for students

Before the start of the session, we will ask you about your personal situation, the study you follow and your immigration status.

During the session we will offer you a tailored advice that will include:

Advice based on your current residence status.
Pro’s and con’s between continue studying or finding a job.
Resume check.
Guidance in using LinkedIn more effectively to find jobs.
Our holistic view about the Dutch job market.
How to increase your chances to get a residence permit and avoiding residence gaps.
Solutions for the IND sponsorship if you find a company who is not (yet) a sponsor.
Answering all your questions regarding immigration and working in the Netherlands.

Orientation year for highly educated peoplebeheerder2024-03-21T15:06:09+00:00

Orientation year for highly educated people

The Netherlands cares greatly to give highly skilled students the opportunity and time they need to find a job within our country after completing their studies.

The orientation year permit allows recent graduates from non-EU countries and scientific researchers to stay in or come to the Netherlands for a period of up to twelve months.

During this one-year period, the graduate can work in any type of job. An application for work as a highly skilled migrant should be submitted before the end of the year if they wish to continue living and working in the Netherlands.

Conditions for an orientation year permit

There a few requirements needed for you to be able to obtain an orientation year permit.

These are:

You completed your bachelor’s degree, master’s or PhD study at a Dutch university.

You completed your bachelor’s degree, master’s or PhD study at a designated foreign educational institution*.

and

You applied within three years of completing your studies.

*These are the educational institutions that, at the time of graduation or PhD, are included in the top 200 of the world rankings or in the top 200 of the available rankings per discipline – which correspond to the discipline in which you graduated or obtained your PhD – from.

The IND uses the below world rankings for this purpose:

Video: Promotional video about the orientation year for highly educated persons

A Video of the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND)

Highly Skilled Migrant scheme 2025beheerder2024-12-16T15:04:50+00:00

Highly Skilled Migrant scheme 2025

The Netherlands has a scheme specifically for highly skilled migrant. The scheme makes it easier and faster for companies to bring in highly skilled migrants from outside the Euro zone.

In a nutshell the highly skilled migrant scheme facilitates the admission requirements and time for highly skilled migrants and their employers. Not every company can make use of the highly skilled migrant scheme and not every migrant from outside the EU is eligible either. There are various conditions for the employer and requirements for the highly skilled migrant.

The conditions for this scheme are:

The employer is a recognised sponsor of the Dutch Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND).
The highly skilled migrant has a signed employment contract with a minimum of three months with a Dutch employer.
The employer pays at least the minimum wage for a highly skilled migrant.
The highly skilled migrant must be paid with market-level wages.
The highly skilled migrant has a valid passport, a Dutch healthcare insurance, and does not pose a threat to the national security.

Income norm for hiring a highly skilled migrant

One of the requirements for hiring a highly skilled migrant is an income norm. These are gross monthly salaries and vary by category.

As of January 1, 2025 the minimum income norm for highly skilled migrants has been set at:

Highly skilled migrant	2025*	2024*
Reduced salary criterion	€ 2,989	€ 2,801
Under 30 years of age	€ 4,171	€ 3,909
30 years of age or older	€ 5,688	€ 5,331

* Excl. 8% holiday allowance

The IND will also check:

If the highly skilled migrant has skills and experience that are relatively scarce in the Netherlands;
If the highly skilled migrant has a higher educational level (Bachelor minimum);
If the highly skilled migrant has a specialization (for example in IT, engineering or science).

Do you like to know how we can help you?

Why All About Expats

More and more employers and highly skilled migrants choose All About Expats as their HR partner.

We as a company consider practicing good employership, being knowledgeable and upholding high standards and quality as important. With this, we offer complete unburdening in all areas.

Our comprehensive package for highly skilled migrant includes continuous support in all fields to keep your mind at ease while we take care of the administrative matters.

Recognised sponsorship IND

Excellent price/quality ratio

Quick and clear communication

20+ years of experience

Continuous support

Fast response time

What others say about us

“Very responsive and informative”

“We were assisted by Dustin Rameau and Patrick Odijk while waiting for my eventual employer to become a recognised sponsor. Everything went really smoothly, including the transition back to my new employer Harley-Davidson. Dustin and Patrick were both very responsive and informative which helped ease a lot of the anxiety I had with the whole process.”

Nadiah Harris, highly skilled migrant

“Always helpful”

“Everything went smoothly and they always arranged my visa in a timely manner even though the first time my visa was expiring in 10 days. Patrick took care of my visa application, he managed to apply on time and I didn’t have any residence gaps. Customer service was always helpful and always replied on time to any query.”
Read his case study

Nizar Mekaoui, highly skilled migrant

“Highly recommend”

“All About Expats is highly recommended. They were able to assist me with the renewal of my working visa and residence permit even when they were informed about it quite late. My visa and residence permit application went flawlessly and was approved immediately. They are very helpful, easy to reach out to for questions and very responsive as well.”

Joanna Ang, highly skilled migrant

View all testimonials