Partners and family and household members - NL Host Nation
5. Partners and family and household members
5. Partners and family and household members
5.1 Family members forming part of the household
The following persons qualify as members of a staff member’s family and as part of the staff member’s household:
Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB):
DUO:
Gainful employment for children is allowed on the condition that this is explicitly formalised in an agreement, treaty or memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the sending State and the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In case of gainful employment the family member should have a health insurance.
5.2 Parents
In exceptional cases, privileged staff members of diplomatic missions may request the Ministry to register their parents or parents-in-law as family members forming part of their household. The Ministry will only permit the registration of parents or parents-in-law of privileged staff members of diplomatic missions who wish to live with the staff member in the Netherlands if the requirements set out below are met. The Protocol and Host Country Affairs Department of the Ministry must receive a detailed justification, in a Note Verbale from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the sending State, which includes all of the following:
With respect to the above, the Ministry does not consider it to be appropriate for diplomatic missions to seek accreditation for parents and parents-in-law who are simply intent on travelling to the Netherlands for the purpose of visiting the staff member. For such cases, the Ministry would refer the diplomatic missions to the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) for the entry procedures that apply to regular travellers.
5.3 Unmarried partners
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will issue identity cards to unmarried partners on the condition that proof is given of the existence of a registered partnership or official cohabitation agreement made 23 by notarial deed, and the registered partnership is recognised by the Netherlands. The status of a recognised partner is equivalent to that of a spouse. A copy of the notarial deed or other proof of registered partnership must be submitted with the application for an identity card.
If the registered partnership is not recognised in the Netherlands, the partner may apply for a three-month visa that allows him or her to travel to the Netherlands on condition that the partner is recognised as such by the diplomatic mission or consular post and that the staff member and partner enter into a registered partnership within 90 days. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the sending State must submit a Note Verbale to the Dutch mission in the partner’s country and to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Netherlands declaring that the person in question is the staff member’s current or future partner. For a specimen Note Verbale see Annex D.
5.4 Children residing in the Netherlands
An identity card may be issued to children up to and including the age of 24, provided that they 1) are unmarried, 2) are financially dependent on their parent(s) and 3) form part of the staff member’s household (see NV Min-BuZa.2022.13417-85, dated 16-11-2022).
5.5 Children studying abroad
Children of staff members of diplomatic missions or consular posts stationed in the Netherlands are not issued with an identity card from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs if they are not themselves permanently resident in the Netherlands. If these children are nationals of an EU member state or of a country whose citizens are exempt from the visa requirement, they are free to visit their parents in the Netherlands without a visa.
To facilitate visits to their parents by children from countries whose citizens require a visa to enter the Netherlands, a multiple entry visa with a maximum validity of five years will be issued free of charge, under the following conditions:
The visa’s period of validity will depend on the child’s age, the remaining validity period of the child’s passport and the remaining validity period of the parent’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs identity card.
Students must apply for a visa at a Dutch diplomatic mission or consular post in their country of origin or of habitual residence.
Summer pass
A temporary identity card (‘summer pass’) may be issued to children of staff members of diplomatic missions or consular posts based in the Netherlands when the children wish to reside in the Netherlands during their summer holidays from a school or university abroad. This summer pass is valid for a maximum of four months. The Ministry will review applications for summer passes before granting them to ensure that the application meets certain conditions.
Prior on arrival and approval the diplomatic mission or consular post should send these documents to the Ministry (DPG-Service@minbuza.nl) for review.
Besides the required personal information, the pass will indicate the start and end dates of the student’s stay in the Netherlands. After the end date this temporary identity card is no longer valid, and the student must therefore leave the Netherlands and return the card to the Ministry.
The possibility of obtaining this summer pass is an additional privilege, not a right. Abuse of this privilege may lead to its revocation for the entire mission or post.
5.6 Work permits for household members
Persons forming part of the household (see section 5.1) staff of diplomatic missions or consular posts may not engage in gainful employment in the Netherlands and retain their diplomatic status. There are, however, a number of exceptions to this rule:
The following may appear on the back of the identity card of the person in question: ‘arbeid is toegestaan/arbeid is beperkt toegestaan/arbeid is in het kader van MoU toegestaan/arbeid is in het kader van MoU onder strikte voorwaarden toegestaan/arbeid is in het kader van een Verdrag toegestaan/’ (employment permitted/employment limited permitted//employment permitted under MoU/employment permitted under MoU with strict guidelines/employment under Treaty permitted).
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The following persons qualify as members of a staff member’s family and as part of the staff member’s household:
- the spouse (one only) or registered partner (one only) who is living continuously with the staff member of the mission; unmarried partner can be registered on the condition that proof is given of the existence of a registered partnership or of an official cohabitation agreement made by a notarial deed from the country of origin in or the Netherlands; Children of staff members of embassies, consular missions or international organizations stationed in the Netherlands and forming part of the household upon arrival can be registered and issued an identity card up to and including the age of 24, provided that they:
- are unmarried,
- are financially dependent on their parent(s),
- are not in the possession of a permanent Dutch residence permit,
- are not Dutch nationals,
- and live continuously in the Netherlands during the posting of their parents.
- Please note: children studying abroad will not be recognized as forming part of the household. (NV DPG Min-BuZa.2022.13147-85, dated 16-11-2022))
Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB):
DUO:
Gainful employment for children is allowed on the condition that this is explicitly formalised in an agreement, treaty or memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the sending State and the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In case of gainful employment the family member should have a health insurance.
- A child that engages in full-time gainful employment, cannot be considered to be financially dependent.
5.2 Parents
In exceptional cases, privileged staff members of diplomatic missions may request the Ministry to register their parents or parents-in-law as family members forming part of their household. The Ministry will only permit the registration of parents or parents-in-law of privileged staff members of diplomatic missions who wish to live with the staff member in the Netherlands if the requirements set out below are met. The Protocol and Host Country Affairs Department of the Ministry must receive a detailed justification, in a Note Verbale from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the sending State, which includes all of the following:
- a formal proof (a diplomatic registration from the previous posting abroad or an extract from the population register in the sending State) that a parent or parent-in-law was physically and principally living with the staff member as a dependent for a period of at least one year prior to arrival in the Netherlands;
- a statement of recognition as a dependent from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the sending State;
- a statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the sending State that the parent or parent-in-law will not seek remunerated employment in the Netherlands during the accreditation period.
With respect to the above, the Ministry does not consider it to be appropriate for diplomatic missions to seek accreditation for parents and parents-in-law who are simply intent on travelling to the Netherlands for the purpose of visiting the staff member. For such cases, the Ministry would refer the diplomatic missions to the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) for the entry procedures that apply to regular travellers.
5.3 Unmarried partners
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will issue identity cards to unmarried partners on the condition that proof is given of the existence of a registered partnership or official cohabitation agreement made 23 by notarial deed, and the registered partnership is recognised by the Netherlands. The status of a recognised partner is equivalent to that of a spouse. A copy of the notarial deed or other proof of registered partnership must be submitted with the application for an identity card.
If the registered partnership is not recognised in the Netherlands, the partner may apply for a three-month visa that allows him or her to travel to the Netherlands on condition that the partner is recognised as such by the diplomatic mission or consular post and that the staff member and partner enter into a registered partnership within 90 days. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the sending State must submit a Note Verbale to the Dutch mission in the partner’s country and to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Netherlands declaring that the person in question is the staff member’s current or future partner. For a specimen Note Verbale see Annex D.
5.4 Children residing in the Netherlands
An identity card may be issued to children up to and including the age of 24, provided that they 1) are unmarried, 2) are financially dependent on their parent(s) and 3) form part of the staff member’s household (see NV Min-BuZa.2022.13417-85, dated 16-11-2022).
5.5 Children studying abroad
Children of staff members of diplomatic missions or consular posts stationed in the Netherlands are not issued with an identity card from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs if they are not themselves permanently resident in the Netherlands. If these children are nationals of an EU member state or of a country whose citizens are exempt from the visa requirement, they are free to visit their parents in the Netherlands without a visa.
To facilitate visits to their parents by children from countries whose citizens require a visa to enter the Netherlands, a multiple entry visa with a maximum validity of five years will be issued free of charge, under the following conditions:
- the child is between the ages of 18 and 24 (validity of the visa may not exceed maximum age);
- the child is studying in a non-Schengen country and is a national of a non-Schengen country.
The visa’s period of validity will depend on the child’s age, the remaining validity period of the child’s passport and the remaining validity period of the parent’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs identity card.
Students must apply for a visa at a Dutch diplomatic mission or consular post in their country of origin or of habitual residence.
Summer pass
A temporary identity card (‘summer pass’) may be issued to children of staff members of diplomatic missions or consular posts based in the Netherlands when the children wish to reside in the Netherlands during their summer holidays from a school or university abroad. This summer pass is valid for a maximum of four months. The Ministry will review applications for summer passes before granting them to ensure that the application meets certain conditions.
- As part of the application the Ministry will require:
- proof of enrolment in a school or university abroad;
- proof of the duration of the summer holidays at the school or university abroad.
Prior on arrival and approval the diplomatic mission or consular post should send these documents to the Ministry (DPG-Service@minbuza.nl) for review.
Besides the required personal information, the pass will indicate the start and end dates of the student’s stay in the Netherlands. After the end date this temporary identity card is no longer valid, and the student must therefore leave the Netherlands and return the card to the Ministry.
The possibility of obtaining this summer pass is an additional privilege, not a right. Abuse of this privilege may lead to its revocation for the entire mission or post.
5.6 Work permits for household members
Persons forming part of the household (see section 5.1) staff of diplomatic missions or consular posts may not engage in gainful employment in the Netherlands and retain their diplomatic status. There are, however, a number of exceptions to this rule:
- Under EU legislation, if the person concerned is a national of one of the countries of the European Union or the European Economic Area (EEA) or is married to an EU national, it is possible for them to work. In such cases, they may retain their diplomatic status. The diplomatic mission or consular post should inform the Ministry of the person’s intention to work, following which the Ministry will issue a declaration of no objection (verklaring van geen bezwaar).
- Moreover, the Netherlands has concluded agreements or MoUs with many countries, enabling family members of staff of diplomatic missions or consular posts to engage in gainful employment (see Annex E).
The following may appear on the back of the identity card of the person in question: ‘arbeid is toegestaan/arbeid is beperkt toegestaan/arbeid is in het kader van MoU toegestaan/arbeid is in het kader van MoU onder strikte voorwaarden toegestaan/arbeid is in het kader van een Verdrag toegestaan/’ (employment permitted/employment limited permitted//employment permitted under MoU/employment permitted under MoU with strict guidelines/employment under Treaty permitted).
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