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Netherlands visas

The Netherlands is a member of both the European Union and the Schengen Area. For short stays — up to 90 days in any 180-day period — most travellers use the shared Schengen short-stay visa (Type C) or, if they are visa-exempt, ETIAS. For stays over 90 days, the Netherlands issues its own national long-stay visa (Type D) under its own rules. This hub explains both, and links to the official European Commission sources. Start your application online today — our visa experts will check everything before it is submitted.

Important information

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Dutch visa application at a glance

From start to finish in five simple steps.

  1. 01Choose the right visa
  2. 02Check eligibility & documents
  3. 03Apply online
  4. 04Provide biometrics
  5. 05Wait for a decision
See the full application process

Netherlands Visa

Third-country nationals must obtain a short-stay Schengen visa to visit the Netherlands for up to 90 days.

European Union, European Economic Area, and Swiss citizens are exempt from the visa requirement. Several non-EU countries also do not require a visa.

Netherlands Schengen

If you are wishing to gain a Netherlands Schengen visa you will be pleased to know that the Dutch embassies have reopened for business and are now processing Netherlands Schengen visas.

What is a Netherlands Schengen Visa?

A Netherlands Schengen Visa is a short-term European visa. This type of Visa enables the holder to travel freely throughout the Netherlands and the rest of the Schengen Area. The visa, itself is issued by the Netherlands Embassy (or whichever country you are visiting for the longest). That is to say, you can visit any of the Schengen countries for up to 90 days during a 180-day period.

The Schengen Visa is the most common visa in Europe. In order words, it entitles the holder to enter, travel freely within, and exit the Schengen area from any Schengen member country. There are no border controls within the Schengen Zone.

Required Documentation For Netherlands Schengen Visas

The following is the standard set of documentation you should submit for your Netherlands Schengen visa application:

  • Printed & Signed Application Form
  • Valid passport
  • Residence permit (if applicable)
  • Hotel reservations / accomodation
  • Flight tickets
  • Proof of financial support
  • Employment Contracts
  • Travel medical insurance

Schengen Visas

A Schengen Visa is an official travel document that allows a person to travel to any country in the Schengen Area, for stays of up to 90 days for tourism or business purposes.

The Schengen Area is an area comprising 26 European countries that have officially relaxed all passport and all other types of border control at their mutual borders. The area mostly functions as a single jurisdiction for international travel purposes, with a common visa policy.

All nationals of third countries, which have not yet reached a liberalization agreement with the Schengen member states, need to obtain this travel authorisation prior to their arrival in Europe

Other Schengen Visas

If you are a third-country national, you will need a visa to enter the Netherlands. In fact, you will need a visa to enter any other Schengen country. Short-stay Schengen C-visas permit stays of up to 90 days. While a national D-visa/residence permit is for more extended stays in the country.

Schengen visas are used by business travellers, tourists, employees with specialised skills, and students who want to remain in the Netherlands for a short period of time for certain travel objectives. Applicants seeking a Schengen visa must demonstrate to the Visa Application Centre that they will depart the Schengen Zone at the conclusion of their temporary stay.

  • Austrian Visa — Belgian Visa — Czechia Visa
  • Danish Visa — Estonian Visa — Finnish Visa
  • Swiss Visa — French Visa — German Visa
  • Greek Visa — Hungarian Visa — Icelandic Visa
  • Italian Visa — Latvian Visa — Liechtenstein Visa
  • Lithuanian Visa — Luxembourg Visa — Maltese Visa
  • Dutch Visa — Norweigan Visa — Polish Visa
  • Portuguese Visa — Slovakian Visa — Slovenian Visa
  • Spanish Visa — Swedish Visa — Transit Visa

Netherlands Schengen C-Visas

A Schengen Visa is an official travel document which allows travel to the Netherlands or any other countries in the Schengen region.

You are permitted to remain in the Schengen region for up to 90 days out of every 180 days. Your visa will be good for a set amount of time. This time frame can be less than 90 days. While your visa is still in effect, you can travel freely between the 27 Schengen nations.

Netherlands National D-Visas

If you want to remain longer than 90 days in the Netherlands, for example, to live with family, work or study, you may need a long-term visa or a residence permit. A long-stay visa is a temporary stay authorization (MVV). Whether you need an MVV or a residence permit depends on factors such as your nationality and purpose of stay.

You do not require an MVV or a residence permit if you are a citizen of an EU member state, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, or Switzerland.

Your long-stay visa is for a period of three months to one year, regardless of the length of your anticipated stay.

The long-stay visa is comparable to a Schengen visa throughout its validity term, allowing you to travel and remain in the Schengen area outside of the Netherlands for up to 90 days in any 180-day period, under the same circumstances as if you had a Schengen visa.

Netherlands Schengen Visa Purposes

A Netherlands Schengen visa allows you to stay in the Netherlands for up to 90 days in any 180-day period. You can use your visa to travel to any of the other 26 Schengen countries during your stay.

The following are the most common purposes when applying for a short stay Schengen visa to the Netherlands:

  • Tourism: If you are planning to visit the Netherlands for sightseeing, visiting family or friends, or attending a cultural event.
  • Business: If you are traveling to the Netherlands for business purposes, such as attending a conference or meeting with clients.
  • Medical treatment: If you are traveling to the Netherlands for medical treatment.
  • Study: If you are planning to study in the Netherlands for less than 90 days.
  • Transit: If you are passing through the Netherlands on your way to another country, you may not need a visa, but it is always best to check beforehand

Dutch Family Members

If you wish to live in the Netherlands with a Dutch family member, you will require an MVV and a residence permit.

If a member of your Dutch family has recently resided in another EU member state or in Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, or Switzerland, decide whether EU legislation qualifies you for a residence visa. If so, your sponsor must submit the application to the IND directly. Please note that a short-stay visa may be required to acquire this permit in the Netherlands.

Family Members of Other EU Member States

You want to reside in the Netherlands with a family member who is a citizen of an EU member state, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, or Switzerland. If you qualify to live with a family member, you will not require an MVV, but you will need residence permission.

Your sponsor may apply to the IND immediately. Please note that a short-stay visa may be required to acquire this permit in the Netherlands.

Short-term visa

If you want to visit the Netherlands for up to 90 days, you will require a Schengen visa for short stays. This is dependent upon your nationality, the visa permits you to travel freely for up to 90 days inside the Netherlands and other Schengen countries during 180 days.

Your visa will be valid for a certain amount of time. This term may be less than ninety days. While your visa is valid, you are permitted to travel between the 27 Schengen states.

If you have more than one nationality, your passport will dictate whether or not you require a visa.

Airport transit visa

If you are transiting via two separate Schengen airports on route to a non-Schengen country and the first transit airport is in the Netherlands, you must apply for a Schengen visa for short stays. Transit visas for airports are not valid for this purpose.

A transit visa for airports permits you to change aircraft at a Dutch airport en route to a non-Schengen destination. The visa (also known as an ‘A’ visa) does not permit entry into the Netherlands or any other Schengen nation. You cannot exit the airport or its international zone.

Regardless of whether you need an airport transit visa, the airline determines if you are permitted to board the trip. You may still be denied boarding even if you have the required travel documentation.

Caribbean Visa

If you want to visit the Caribbean regions of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, you will require a Caribbean visa. This will let you to go to Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, St. Eustatius, and St. Maarten.

Schengen Visa Countries

A Schengen visa is required for any third national wishing to enter the Netherlands or any other Schengen country. It could be a short-stay Schengen C-visa for stays of up to 90 days or a national D-visa / residence permit for longer stays in the country.

  • Austria Visa — Belgium Visa — Croatia Visa
  • Czech Republic Visa — Denmark Visa — Estonia Visa
  • Finland Visa — Switzerland Visa — France Visa
  • Germany Visa — Greece Visa — Hungary Visa
  • Iceland Visa — Italy Visa — Latvia Visa
  • Liechtenstein Visa — Lithuania Visa — Luxembourg Visa
  • Malta Visa — Netherlands Visa — Norway Visa
  • Poland Visa — Portugal Visa — Slovakia Visa
  • Slovenia Visa — Spain Visa — Sweden Visa

Netherlands Work Visa

If you want to work during your stay, a work permit will be required.

Foreign nationals who seek to work in the Netherlands are required to fulfil certain criteria. People from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland typically need one of two kinds of work permits: an employment permit (TWV) or a single permit (GVVA), sometimes known as a combined residence and work permit.

Workers having Dutch nationality or the nationality of another country within the EEA or Switzerland may work without a work permit in the Netherlands under specific circumstances.

Netherlands — key facts

Short stays
Schengen visa (Type C)
Or ETIAS if visa-exempt — shared across the Area
Short-stay limit
90 days in any 180
The shared Schengen short-stay rule
Long stays
National visa (Type D)
Issued by Netherlands for stays over 90 days
ETIAS
Travel authorisation
For visa-exempt short-stay travellers
EES
Biometric borders
Automated entry/exit at external Schengen borders

Dutch visas — people also ask

  • Netherlands is in the Schengen Area, so short visits (up to 90 days in any 180) follow the shared Schengen rules. Whether you need a short-stay visa depends on your nationality — some travellers are visa-exempt and use ETIAS instead. Check our Schengen Short-Stay Visa (Type C) guide and confirm what applies to your nationality before you travel.