Suggested contract templates for organizations operating in the Netherlands. Each template is adapted from an agreement we use ourselves, generalized so you can start from it.
Good to know
- For volunteers, check out our Hiring volunteers in the Netherlands: legal basics and our recommended form article.
- Fields to fill in are shown in caps and highlighted in blue, like ORGANIZATION LEGAL NAME .
- These templates assume Dutch employment law and a Netherlands-based legal entity . They don't apply if the legal entity is incorporated elsewhere. For US, UK, German or Belgian contractors, Anti Entropy has independent contractor guidance per country, plus a note on misclassification risk. A contractor billing a US funder or entity will also be asked for a W-8BEN (individuals) or W-8BEN-E (organizations).
- The templates are a starting point, not legal advice. Have a lawyer review one before using it for a real contract.
- Employment contracts: If the entity doesn't have a specific CAO, keep two statutory rules in mind:
- (1) For fixed-term contracts of 6 months or longer, the employer must notify the employee in writing at least one month before the end date whether the contract will be renewed (the aanzegverplichting, art. 7:668 BW).
- (2) After 3 consecutive fixed-term contracts or 3 years, whichever comes first, the contract automatically becomes a permanent contract by law (the ketenregeling, art. 7:668a BW). A gap of more than 6 months between contracts resets this count.
- Why there's no probation period (Art. 1.3): The law doesn't allow probation in contracts of 6 months or less. For contracts longer than 6 months but under 2 years, the maximum is 1 month, in writing. Moral Fabric recommends a trial (half-)day before hiring, with the fixed term itself as the evaluation period. A 1-month probation clause is an option if the first contract runs longer than 6 months.
- Why there's a 1-month notice clause (Art. 1.2): A fixed-term contract can only be ended early if it contains this clause, so this lets the employee resign with 1 month's notice. It does not let the employer dismiss with 1 month's notice. Early dismissal still needs valid legal grounds (via UWV or the court) or a mutual agreement. Without the clause, neither side can leave early except by mutual agreement.