Residence permits for self-employed artists, designers and musicians: recent developments

_{By Simone Bisscheroux}

Are you an artist, designer or musician and have you recently graduated from an art school or conservatory in the Netherlands? Or have you just completed an artist-in-residence programme, for example at De Ateliers or the Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten in Amsterdam? If so, you probably have a so-called orientation year residence permit. With this residence permit you have free access to the Dutch labour market. The orientation year is a temporary residence permit for one year and cannot be extended.

If you wish to continue working in the Netherlands as an artist, designer or musician after your orientation year, you may consider applying for a residence permit to work as a self‑employed artist. Below, we explain what you can expect when filing for this residence permit and we highlight recent developments.

Residence permit as a self-employed artist

When applying for a residence permit to work as a self‑employed artist, you must demonstrate that your presence in the Netherlands serves a Dutch cultural interest. To prove so, you must have future assignments from or collaborations with Dutch cultural institutions and/or you must have been awarded funding from a national cultural fund. The Dutch cultural institution must receive structural subsidies from one of the national cultural funds, the Dutch government itself, or from certain provincial or municipal arts funds.

To assess whether the artist serves a substantial Dutch cultural interest, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND) requests advice from the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW). If the Ministry of OCW issues positive advice, and all other requirements are met (such as registration in the Trade Register of the Chamber of Commerce), the IND will grant the residence permit for a period of two years.

Lengthy processing times

Due to backlogs in the advisory process at the Ministry of OCW, the processing time is considerably longer than the standard three‑month decision period. Currently, it takes nine to ten months until a decision is made on an application for a self‑employed artist.

Working during the application procedure

If your orientation year residence permit is still valid, you have free access to the Dutch labour market. This means that you may for example work as a self‑employed artist and work in employment in a restaurant.

Once your orientation permit expires, and you are awaiting the outcome of your application as a self‑employed artist, you can obtain a residence endorsement sticker from the IND. This sticker demonstrates your legal residence in the Netherlands whilst awaiting for the outcome of the application, but you are not permitted to continue working, not even as a self-employed business owner or freelance.

You may consider initiating an objection procedure against the issuance of the sticker, to obtain the labour market notification that allows you to work as a self‑employed person or freelancer. Such a procedure generally takes about one to two months. You are not permitted to work during this procedure.

Travelling whilst awaiting the application

Another consequence of the long processing times for artist applications is that for those who are not visa‑exempt within the Schengen area, traveling becomes more difficult. Without an actual residence card, it is only possible to return to the Netherlands with a return visa. With a return visa, you are not allowed to travel to other Schengen countries. For that purpose, you would need a short‑stay Schengen visa.

In general, it is therefore advisable to submit the application as a self‑employed artist as early as possible during the orientation year, so that the period without a valid residence card is as short as possible.

The residence permit is granted for the duration of two years from the date of submission of the application. In practice, this means that nine to ten months of the two‑year validity period have already elapsed by the time the residence permit is issued. With this residence permit you may only work as a self‑employed person. Work in employment is only permitted with a separate work permit (TWV).

Extension

When applying for an extension of the residence permit for work as a self‑employed person, there is no further assessment of whether you serve a substantial Dutch cultural interest. For the renewal of the residence permit it is important that you can demonstrate that the average gross profit over the eighteen months preceding the application, meets the IND’s applicable income threshold for self‑employed persons at the time of the extension application. This standard amount is difficult for many recently graduated artists to achieve. In any case, it is advisable to include positive income projections and evidence of future artistic activities with the application. If the residence permit is extended, it will be for a period of five years.

Permanent residence

If you wish to remain in the Netherlands after the extension of your residence permit, there are several options for permanent residence. These options are also subjected to the above‑mentioned income requirement and the obligation to pass a civic integration exam. For more information on this topic, we refer you to our blog on permanent residency.

Do you have questions about the residence permit for self‑employed artists? Or do you have questions about the extension procedure or the options for permanent residence? Please feel free to contact us. We will be happy to provide you with further information.