Working in the Netherlands

Although Amsterdam is a tolerant city, the maze of bureaucracy that most employers feel obliged to conform with makes it difficult for someone without a work permit to find a job.

Small businesses, however, are less likely to worry about following employment regulations to the letter, so you may be able to find work in a hostel or bar. Police in Amsterdam generally aren't concerned with tracking down illegal immigrants with the notable exception of highly regulated industries (such as prostitution) where the law against hiring illegal workers is more strictly enforced.

If you hold a European Union, Icelandic, Norwegian or Liechtenstein passport you may legally work within the Netherlands although you still will have to apply for a residence permit through the Immigratieen Naturalisatiendienst in The Hague (tel (070) 370 3124).

You chances of finding legal work are much greater if you don't mind working as an au-pair. If you are a citizen of Australia, Canada, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Switzerland or the USA and are aged between 18 and 25, you should be able to organise the neccessary papers for au-pair work. You should be able to organise this through an au-pair agency in your home country.

Canadian citizens aged 18 to 30 are eligible to apply for a working holiday permit, which allows you to live and and work in the Netherlands for up to one year. You can only apply for this permit in Canada. Contact the Canadian Consulate in Vancouver for more information (tel 1 604 684 6448; website www.netherlands-consulate.org).

If you can get a work permit you may want to organise a job through one of several Dutch recruitment websites, including NL-Menu Job Market (website www.nl-menu.nl), Van Zoelen Recruitment (website www.vz-recruitment.nl) and Kelly Services (website www.kelly.nl).

Working in Austria | Working in Belgium | Working in Denmark | Working in France | Working in Hungary | Working in Ireland | Working in Italy | Working in the Netherlands | Working in the United Kingdom