The table is annex 8a of the Aliens Regulations 2000 (Voorschrift Vreemdelingen 2000), article 3.20a. It is not a section of the Aliens Act. The pass mark is 30 points on each of three criteria, or 45 on experience and 45 on the plan. The IND still decides the permit.
Updated 15 October 2026. Bands below are from the Dutch text in force from 1 July 2026.
Last reviewed 15 October 2026
Article 3.20a says the Minister takes the advice of the Minister of Economic Affairs on the essential Dutch interest (wezenlijk Nederlands belang) in article 3.30 of the Aliens Decree. That advice uses this points system. RVO applies the table. The IND decides the residence application.
| Rule | What the regulation says |
|---|---|
| Ordinary pass | At least 30 points on personal experience, and at least 30 on the business plan, and at least 30 on added value for the Dutch economy. Article 3.20a(2) then says the essential Dutch interest is served. |
| 45 and 45 | If added value is under 30, but experience is at least 45 and the plan is at least 45, added value is set to 30. The annex calls this a positive advice. Article 3.20a(3) says the essential Dutch interest is served in that case as well. 45 plus 45 is the “90” the annex mentions. There is no further hurdle on top of those two scores. |
| What this does not decide | A points result is the essential-interest test. The self-employed residence permit still has its other conditions, including means. Open the IND self-employed page for the application you would actually file. This page does not estimate your score. |
Official text: article 3.20a and annex 8a, consolidated on wetten.overheid.nl, in force from 1 July 2026. The IND English PDF is a translation aid. Where it is unclear, this page follows the Dutch annex. NLVentureDesk is not a law firm. The IND decides.
On this page: personal experience, the business plan, added value, the 45 and 45 rule, the start-up facilitator line, who is outside the table.
Where the annex prints a range, such as 0–10 or 0–35, the score sits inside that range. The top of the range is the maximum. It is not a score you receive for mentioning the topic.
Minimum 30 points. The lines below sit inside this criterion.
| Diploma | Points | What the annex adds |
|---|---|---|
| PhD (doctor) | 35 | A copy of the diploma is required. The education must be recognised by IDW. The annex names Nuffic/Colo. If the diploma is not directly related to the knowledge the business needs, up to 5 points are deducted. |
| Master’s | 30 | |
| Bachelor’s | 20 | |
| MBO-4 | 10 |
The annex does not give a fixed point for each year. It scores from 0 to 35.
| Direction in the annex | Points | Evidence and limit |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer points, or none, if the experience is not relevant to the business, involvement was marginal, or the experience is under 1 year. | Toward the bottom of 0–35 | Written evidence, such as annual accounts and proof of the role. The evidence must be beyond doubt for a positive score. Active means more than shareholder or financier only. The annex says this score can compensate a lower score on other parts. It does not say the 30-point floor on each criterion is waived. |
| More points if the person was an active founder or owner, sat on the board or management team, the business had more than 10 employees, or the experience is more than 5 years. | Toward the top of 0–35 |
The annex lists three function levels. Each level is scored by length of experience. The criterion stays capped at 10.
| Level named in the annex | Length | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor or academic level | 1 year to less than 2 years | 1 |
| 2 years to less than 5 years | 5 | |
| 5 years or more | 10 | |
| Senior level | 1 year to less than 2 years | 1 |
| 2 years to less than 5 years | 5 | |
| 5 years or more | 10 | |
| Specialist function | 1 year to less than 2 years | 1 |
| 2 years to less than 5 years | 5 | |
| 5 years or more | 10 |
Written references from the employer. The annex says the strength of the evidence and the real level of the function must be beyond doubt.
Gross income over the 12 months before the application. The annex counts only income related to the activities in the CV. Evidence it names: wage or income tax assessments, annual accounts, and the annual salary statement.
| Gross income over those 12 months | Points |
|---|---|
| Under €12,000 | 0 |
| €12,000 to less than €25,000 | 5 |
| €25,000 to less than €45,000 | 7 |
| €45,000 or more | 10 |
| Line | Range | What counts |
|---|---|---|
| Entrepreneurship with Dutch trading partners or Dutch clients | 0–4 | Written evidence only. The strength of the evidence must be beyond doubt. |
| Language | 0–2 | The annex names NT2 level 4 or higher, or CEFR level B2 or higher. |
| Education or work in the Netherlands | 0–4 | Education in the Netherlands of at least MBO-4, or a doctorate, or work experience as a knowledge worker of at least MBO-4 level. |
The annex gives no points for a family visit, an integration course, or a holiday in the Netherlands.
The same line is repeated under the plan and under added value. It is set out once, under the start-up line.
Minimum 30 points.
| Part | Points | What the annex asks for |
|---|---|---|
| Product or service: features, application, demand, unique selling points | 0–10 | As much written evidence as possible, such as patents and references. Sources should be generally accepted or reputable. It must be credible that the business can take a position in the market and sell at the intended price, with returns for the Dutch economy. The price line needs a cost-price calculation in which the costs are included. |
| Market analysis: research, potential customers, competitors, barriers to entry, cooperation, risks, marketing and promotion | 0–10 | |
| Price | 0–5 |
| Part | Points |
|---|---|
| Whether the proposed structure, competences, knowledge, and skills fit the product or service | 0–10 |
| Extra points for an organisation that crosses sectors and is multidisciplinary | 0–15 |
The annex says written evidence can score more points than missing evidence.
Forecasts of at least three years. The realism of the assumptions matters. Show returns for the Dutch economy. Documents must be approved by an independent expert. The annex gives a Dutch bank as the example for the financing aspects. If the business is already active in the Netherlands: annual accounts, VAT and income-tax returns, and the assessments.
If a Dutch bank has granted the financing, the annex says 50 points can be given on this financing line without further checks. Fifty is the maximum of the financing line. It is not 50 points on the whole plan, and it is not a permit.
Solvency is the ratio of equity to total capital. The annex scores it against the balance-sheet total. A balance-sheet total under €5,000 scores 0 even at 100% solvency.
| Balance-sheet total, as the annex writes it | Solvency | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Under €5,000 | Any, including 100% | 0 |
| €5,000 – €25,000 | Under 20% | 0 |
| 20% to less than 35% | 1 | |
| 35% to less than 50% | 3 | |
| 50% or more | 5 | |
| €25,000 – €50,000 | Under 20% | 0 |
| 20% to less than 35% | 4 | |
| 35% to less than 50% | 9 | |
| 50% or more | 13 | |
| Above €50,000 | Under 20% | 0 |
| 20% to less than 35% | 9 | |
| 35% to less than 50% | 16 | |
| 50% or more | 20 |
The annex writes the middle balance-sheet bands as “€5,000 – €25,000” and “€25,000 – €50,000”, and the top band as above €50,000. It does not say which band includes a total of exactly €25,000 or exactly €50,000. The percentage steps do use “less than”.
| Turnover | Points |
|---|---|
| Under €35,000 | 0 |
| €35,000 to less than €100,000 | 5 |
| €100,000 to less than €250,000 | 10 |
| €250,000 to less than €500,000 | 15 |
| €500,000 or more | 20 |
The annex labels this row “turnover”. It does not say whether the figure is the latest year or a forecast year. The financing block asks for forecasts of at least three years and, if the business is already active in the Netherlands, for the accounts and tax filings.
A favourable liquidity expectation. The annex says this is used to show that the business is viable. In the Dutch table, “the first two years” and “the first three years” are separate lines in the same cell. Read in that order, the points are:
| Favourable expectation during | Points |
|---|---|
| The first year | 5 |
| The first 2 years | 8 |
| The first 3 years | 10 |
Minimum 30 points. The annex heading is the added value of the economic activities for the Dutch economy.
One score from 0 to 20 for these three questions. They are not three separate scores of 20. Written evidence can score more than no evidence.
Twenty is below the 30-point minimum for this criterion. Innovation alone does not pass added value.
The annex counts jobs excluding the applicant. The number and kind of jobs must appear in the business plan, and the realism of the plan on this point matters. Within 1.5 years the jobs must have been created and the people actually taken into employment. The annex does not publish a score below 0.5 fte on the general scale, or below 1 fte on the high-level scale. The line is capped at 40.
| Scale | Jobs | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Number of jobs, excluding the applicant | 0.5 fte to less than 2 fte | 10 |
| 2 fte to less than 5 fte | 20 | |
| 5 fte to less than 10 fte | 30 | |
| 10 fte or more | 40 | |
| High-level jobs, above €45,000 | 1 fte to less than 3 fte | 20 |
| 3 fte to less than 6 fte | 30 | |
| 6 fte or more | 40 |
Tangible and intangible fixed assets. The amount must appear in the business plan, and the realism of the plan on this point matters. The investments must be realised within 1 year.
| Investment | Points |
|---|---|
| €0 to less than €5,000 | 0 |
| €5,000 to less than €50,000 | 10 |
| €50,000 to less than €100,000 | 20 |
| €100,000 to less than €500,000 | 30 |
| €500,000 or more | 40 |
The annex states this under added value, not as a fourth score you add on top.
If the applicant already has the minimum of 90 points on parts A and B, which the annex spells out as at least 45 on A and at least 45 on B, and part C does not reach 30, part C is set to 30. The annex says the applicant then receives a positive advice. Article 3.20a(3) says the essential Dutch interest is served. The other permit conditions remain, and the IND decides the application.
Up to 30 points, repeated inside experience, inside the plan, and inside added value.
The annex awards 30 points on this line when both of these are true.
Thirty is the minimum on each criterion. The line is not, by itself, the IND’s decision on the later self-employed permit. A facilitator is not obliged to issue the statement. The start-up permit lasts one year and is not extended as a start-up permit. The later self-employed application is a new application.
Compare the two routes on Startup Visa versus the self-employed permit. The start-up scheme itself is on the Startup Visa page.
Article 3.20a(4) says the points system does not apply to nationals of the Republic of Turkey who exercise an independent profession or business. Their test is annex 8aa, which is a reading of the business plan, not these bands. See the IND page for Turkish citizens.
For self-employed artists, article 3.20a(5) uses the advice of the Minister of Education, Culture and Science and the framework in annex 8aaa. That framework is not this table.
A Chamber of Commerce registration is not a line in annex 8a. A patent, a venture-capital term sheet, a headcount, or the word “tech” is not a substitute for the innovation questions, which still cap at 20 inside added value.
The ordinary self-employed permit has no facilitator. An ordinary freelance practice should not be pushed onto the start-up route to avoid this table. The start-up route has its own test. Work on one application is not a credit toward the other.
The start-up residence permit asks whether the product or service is innovative, with a facilitator and a step-by-step plan. RVO advises. The IND decides. Those innovation questions look like the three questions above. On this annex they are a score of at most 20. On the start-up route they are not this points table.
If you are already in the Netherlands on a zoekjaar, the year still ends. Read zoekjaar to Startup Visa and count from the date on the card.
No. The regulation wants at least 30 on each of the three criteria, or at least 45 on experience and at least 45 on the plan, in which case added value is set to 30. That covers the essential Dutch interest. The IND still decides the permit.
No. Innovation is scored from 0 to 20. Added value needs 30.
No. A Chamber of Commerce registration is not a line in the annex, and it is not a residence permit.
No. The annex says 50 points can be given on the financing line, without further checks, if a Dutch bank has granted the financing. Financing is capped at 50.
No. For Turkish nationals exercising an independent profession or business, article 3.20a points to annex 8aa.
Not ready to book? Start here. The requirements the IND and RVO assess, the facilitator conditions, and a realistic cost and timeline breakdown.
Bring the business as it stands. You leave with whether this points test is the right route, or whether the start-up route is, or whether neither is. Not a predicted score, and not an IND decision.
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