One important financial benefit of moving to the Netherlands as an academic is the ‘30% rule’ (30%-regeling), a special tax exemption on thirty percent of one’s salary.

Foreign researchers must apply for this (limited term) tax exemption together with the institution at which they are employed. More information can be found on this webpage of the Dutch Tax and Customs Administration (Belastingdienst). The Belastingdienst also provides a checklist of other things to know when moving to the Netherlands.

Most Dutch universities do not have a ‘double career’ policy. Partners and spouses cannot expect to receive more help than a general introduction to the job market. 

Diversity and inclusion mean first and foremost the fair distribution of opportunities for everyone in the field of science and scholarship. Many scientific studies show, however, that gender, race, ethnicity, class, and sexuality result in unequal opportunities for researchers.

A National Action Plan on Diversity was launched by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science in 2020. This and other initiatives are intended to eventually lead to greater diversity and inclusion at universities. Often, universities manage to attract underrepresented groups, but then fail to retain them. To do so means ensuring an inclusive climate and structure for all employees.

Most universities have a (chief) Diversity Officer, academics or professionals who work in the field of diversity and inclusion, some even more than one. The duties of a diversity officer include raising awareness of diversity and inclusion, creating and developing diversity policy, encouraging cultural change, identifying and stimulating initiatives that promote diversity and inclusion, monitoring and reporting, as well as setting up and maintaining a network. Read more, e.g., on the website of UNL. 

All Dutch funding procedures take parental leave into account in their eligibility criteria. Women are usually allowed an 18-month extension on their eligibility for major grants for each child, up to a maximum of three children. NWO also allows the other parent a six-month extension per child (if the child is part of their own household, at least 50% of the time), with a maximum of five years. This applies for the major NWO grants. However, at the time of writing, there is no national consensus on how parental leave should be factored into tenure-track procedures. NWO applicants can also receive an extension if they have completed training as a clinical specialist or can provide evidence that proves they were on care leave or extended sick leave.

Generally speaking, there are two childcare options for kids from 0-4 years: a day care centre (kinderdagverblijf) or a child minder (gastouder) (note that Dutch employees often rely on grandparents to fill in the remaining hours, a luxury not usually available to international staff). To the best of our knowledge, there is currently no dedicated funding in support of childcare at Dutch universities. It is not unusual, and not frowned upon, for young researchers to work for four days per week temporarily. Parents in the Netherlands can apply for a childcare benefit covering childcare expenses.

Once children are in school, parents have the option of paying for ‘afterschool care’ (buitenschoolse opvang, bso), often organised on the school premises or nearby and consisting of supervised play. This makes it possible to drop children off at school at the beginning of the work day, and to pick them up from bso at the end.

Depending on where you are living, finding a spot in a day care or school for your children can be challenging. Particularly in busy urban areas like Amsterdam, schools are quite full and a ‘lottery’ system is sometimes used to allocate spots.