WTTA 2027: Is Your Recruitment Firm Prepared?

The Act on the Authorization of the Provision of Workers, or Wtta for short, is fundamentally changing the Dutch temporary staffing market.

The Act will take effect on January 1, 2027. Starting January 1, 2028, companies will only be allowed to provide workers in the Netherlands if they hold a valid authorization or exemption, or if they can make use of the transitional arrangement.

Clients will also have obligations. They must verify which staffing agency they are working with, keep records of the deployment of workers, and, as of January 1, 2028, may no longer work with a staffing agency required to have a license that does not have valid status.

The most important question is not:

“Are we a staffing agency?”

The correct question is:

“Do we make workers available who work under the direction and supervision of another party?”

The name of your organization, the title of your contract, or the location of your business is not the deciding factor. The actual working method and your position in the chain determine whether the Wtta may apply.

In our WTTA Masterclass, we explain in simple terms:

• who is subject to the Wtta;
• when a license is required;
• how the rules apply to foreign recruitment agencies;
• what “on-lending” means for brokers and MSPs;
• what exceptions and exemptions are available;
• what obligations apply to labor providers and users;
• what licensing requirements apply;
• and what steps you need to take now.

The Wtta may apply, among other things, to:

• temp agencies;
• secondment firms;
• payroll companies;
• subcontractors;
• brokers and MSPs;
• consulting firms that effectively provide personnel;
• foreign recruitment firms that deploy workers in the Netherlands;
• international staffing organizations without a Dutch branch;
• companies that partially outsource legal employer responsibilities or back-office functions.

Even organizations that only provide staff on a part-time basis must assess whether they fall under the Wtta.

Essentially, there are three questions:

• Does your organization provide an employee to another company?
• Does your organization receive compensation for this?
• Does the employee work under the direction and supervision of that other company?

If the answer to these questions is “yes,” this may constitute the posting of workers, and an assessment must be made to determine which Wtta obligations apply.

International recruitment firms often involve a chain of multiple parties.
For example:

Recruiter → broker → MSP → Dutch end client
Or:
Foreign recruiter → payroll company → Dutch client company
Or:
Staffing agency → sub-contractor → end client

The involvement of a broker, MSP, payroll company, or other intermediary does not automatically mean that a party is exempt from the Wtta.
For each link in the chain, the following must be determined:

• who is the legal employer;
• who provides the worker;
• who assigns the worker;
• who receives the compensation;
• who exercises management and supervision;
• and which party requires a permit.

Furthermore, a sub-lender not only has obligations as a borrower but may also qualify as a lender for the next link in the chain.

The Wtta is not limited to companies based in the Netherlands.
A foreign recruitment or staffing firm may also fall under the Wtta if it deploys workers in the Netherlands.
The absence of a Dutch private limited company is therefore not a decisive factor.

International organizations must assess, among other things:

• which entity is entering into the contract;
• which entity is paying the worker;
• whether the situation involves cross-border secondment;
• who the actual labor provider is;
• whether a Dutch payroll system is required;
• which terms and conditions of employment apply;
• and which admission procedure must be followed.

In principle, a permit is not required for recruitment and selection alone.
This is generally the case when:

• the recruiter merely introduces a candidate;
• the candidate is hired directly by the client;
• and the recruiter does not provide any labor after the introduction.

In addition, there are a few exceptions, including for:

• certain intra-group arrangements;
• nonprofit peer-to-peer lending;
• certain social development enterprises;
• specific vocational training (BBL) arrangements;
• and licensed security organizations and private investigation agencies

Even in cases of true contracting for work, the Wtta may not apply. In such cases, the employee’s own employer must remain responsible for the performance of the work, and the client may not exercise de facto management and supervision over the employees.

The title of the contract alone is not sufficient. The actual performance of the work remains the determining factor.

Working with self-employed individuals does not automatically mean that the Wtta does not apply.

In principle, a truly self-employed individual is not considered to be “made available” as an employee.

However, if in practice the self-employed individual works under the direction and supervision of the client, the employment relationship may have been incorrectly classified.

The assessment of self-employment and the assessment under the Wtta overlap, but they are not the same. Both issues must be examined separately and in conjunction with one another.

A company that provides only a limited number of workers may apply for an exemption under certain conditions.

In general, the following requirements must be met:

• at least twelve months’ wages have been paid;
• less than 10% of total revenue comes from the provision of
• labor;
• and this revenue from labor leasing does not exceed €5 million per twelve months.

The figures must be supported by a statement from a designated expert and resubmitted periodically.

The exemption is not available to employers who qualify as temporary employment agencies within the meaning of Article 7:690 of the Dutch Civil Code. As a result, temporary employment and payroll agencies cannot, in principle, make use of this option.

Other legal obligations remain in effect even with an exemption.

To obtain and maintain a license, a lender must, among other things, meet requirements in the following areas:

• registration in the Commercial Register;
• integrity and a Certificate of Good Conduct for legal entities, where applicable;
• financial security;
• compliance with the legal framework;
• and periodic reporting by a designated inspection body.

The standard financial security requirement is €100,000.

For a new lender with provisional authorization, the financial security requirement is initially €50,000. Upon receiving final authorization, this amount must, in principle, be increased to €100,000.

For certain existing lenders, an exception to the financial security requirement may apply under transitional law. This requires, among other things, a sufficiently long and demonstrable history of actual lending activities and a record of timely payments to the Tax and Customs Administration.

An exemption from the security deposit is different from an exemption from the licensing requirement. Both provisions have their own conditions.

The regulatory framework is at the heart of the licensing system.

It is not just a matter of applying for a license. A lender must continuously demonstrate that the organization complies with the relevant labor law, tax, and administrative obligations.

The inspections may cover, among other things:

• income tax and social security contributions;
• sales tax;
• the statutory minimum wage;
• the Foreign Nationals Employment Act;
• identification and work permits;
• written terms of employment;
• the Waadi;
• equivalent terms of employment;
• payroll records;
• housing, when provided;
• registration of migrant workers;

Accreditation is therefore not a one-time certificate. Compliance must be structurally embedded within the organization.

A staffing agency must be able to demonstrate that the applicable terms and conditions of employment have been correctly determined and applied.

This requires complete and up-to-date information from the client company.

It is not just the base salary that is relevant. Depending on the applicable regulations, other terms and conditions of employment may also play a role, such as:

• pay scales;
• pay increments;
• overtime and shift differentials;
• vacation pay;
• leave;
• ADV;
• bonuses;
• thirteenth month;
• allowances;
• and benefits in cash or in kind.

The hiring company must provide the necessary information regarding terms and conditions of employment and must cooperate with audits related to compliance with compensation rules.

Before the start of a secondment, the staffing agency must notify in writing or electronically that a worker is being deployed as a seconded worker.

In addition, the staffing agency must record:

that the worker is being seconded;
and to which company the worker is being seconded.

The user must also record, no later than the start of the assignment:

which employee is being deployed;
and through which company this employee was supplied.

This information must be retained for at least seven years after the end of the calendar year in which the assignment ended.

Additional obligations apply to migrant workers.

A labor provider must clearly inform workers of their registration obligations and, in the appropriate cases, must verify that the worker is properly registered in the Basic Registration of Persons.

If the staffing agency provides housing itself or arranges for housing to be provided, that housing must meet the statutory quality requirements.

These obligations must not only be fulfilled but also documented in a verifiable manner.

The Wtta doesn’t just affect temporary staffing agencies.

Dutch client companies must also prepare.

Among other things, client companies must:

• verify that the staffing agency has a valid license, exemption, or transitional status;
• record, before or no later than the start date, which staffing agency is providing the worker;
• provide the applicable terms and conditions of employment;
• cooperate with audits of compensation rules;
• and retain the relevant data for the statutory retention period.

When on-lending is used, all relevant links in the chain must be assessed.

Starting July 1, 2027, hirers will be able to check a lender’s status in the public registry maintained by the Dutch Labor Market Authority.

The registry may contain information about:

• an authorization;
• a provisional authorization;
• an exemption;
• a timely application;
• or the applicability of the transitional arrangement.

Effective January 1, 2028, this registry will replace the current Waadi-check at the Chamber of Commerce.

For recruitment firms, proper registration will therefore become not only a legal requirement but also a commercial condition for maintaining access to clients and supply chains.

A Wtta process affects multiple aspects of an organization:

• corporate structure;
• contracts;
• payroll;
• administration;
• taxes;
• financial security;
• customer onboarding;
• supplier management;
• terms of employment;
• and internal controls.

SNA certification, opening the appropriate accounts, amending contracts, and gathering information from client companies also take time.

Waiting until the formal application period may mean that necessary changes can no longer be implemented in a timely manner.

Would you like to know whether your organization is subject to the WTTA and what steps are required?

With the AAme WTTA Quickscan, we assess, among other things:

• your Dutch and international corporate structure;
• your contractual chain;
• who qualifies as the lender, sub-lender, and borrower;
• whether the arrangement constitutes a secondment;
• whether a statutory exception may apply;
• whether an exemption is possible;
• whether provisional authorization is required;
• whether an exception to the financial security requirement may apply;
• which regulatory framework obligations are relevant;
• which contracts and processes need to be amended;
• and what actions are necessary to ensure timely preparation.

You will receive a practical assessment with specific areas for improvement and an action plan

AAme Adviseurs works daily with Dutch and international recruitment firms, staffing agencies, temporary employment agencies, brokers, MSPs, and payroll companies.

Our services combine:

• labor law and contract management;
• Dutch and international payroll;
• accounting;
• Dutch and international taxation;
• support for SNA and regulatory framework processes;
• review of terms and conditions of employment;
• support for admission applications;
• and guidance on international staffing and secondment structures.

This allows us not only to determine what is legally required, but also to assess how those requirements can be implemented from a practical, administrative, and commercial standpoint.