Kingdom of the Netherlands
IND — Immigration and Naturalisation Service (Netherlands)
The Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst (IND) is the Dutch agency that decides residence-permit applications and Dutch citizenship. It operates under the Ministry of Justice and Security and works through a recognised-sponsor system for most employment routes.
Parent ministry
Ministry of Justice and Security (Netherlands)
Established
1994
Last reviewed
20 April 2026
Scope
- Issues residence permits for Highly Skilled Migrants (Kennismigranten), EU Blue Cards, Intra-Corporate Transferees, Orientation Year graduates, and self-employed treaty routes (DAFT, Japanese Treaty of Trade).
- Administers the Dutch Recognised Sponsor scheme — required for most employment routes — and maintains the public Public Register of Recognised Sponsors.
- Processes asylum applications, family reunification, and Dutch citizenship by naturalisation.
- Publishes monthly statistics on applications received and decided, plus median processing times per permit type.
Procedural quirks
- Salary thresholds are published for four age/tier bands and indexed each 1 January — Kennismigrant figures change every year.
- Recognised sponsors commit to admin-reporting duties; losing the status halts sponsorship of future candidates and can affect in-flight permit holders.
- The MVV (provisional residence permit / entry visa) and the residence-permit issuance are two separate IND decisions even when processed together — each can fail independently.
Primary service channels
Routes administered
IND decides the following Netherlands visa routes covered on Visa Atlas:
Highly Skilled Migrant (Kennismigrant)
Primary sponsored work route for high-skill workers hired by IND-recognised sponsors.
Orientation year (Zoekjaar)
Free 1-year permit to live and work in the Netherlands while you look for a job — open to recent graduates of Dutch universities or top-ranked global universities. No job offer needed to apply.
EU Blue Card (Netherlands)
Dutch implementation of the EU Blue Card for highly qualified non-EU workers.
Dutch-American Friendship Treaty (DAFT) entrepreneur
Treaty-based self-employment residence for US nationals starting a business in the Netherlands.
Startup Visa (Netherlands)
1-year residence permit for founders working with a recognised Dutch startup facilitator.
Dutch Student residence permit
Study residence for international students enrolled at Dutch higher-education institutions.
Partner residence (Dutch national or resident sponsor)
Residence permit for partners, spouses, and registered partners of Dutch residents and citizens.