More stability for Highly Skilled Migrants in the Netherlands
More stability for Highly Skilled Migrants in the Netherlands
The Issue
Telegram channel related to the petition: https://t.me/hsmnaturalisationNL
If you are a Highly Skilled Migrant in the Netherlands, you need to know that the newly formed Dutch government intends to increase the time for citizenship from 5 to 10 years.
If you think this will not affect you and only affects newcomers to the Netherlands, you’re wrong.
In 2016, the government tried to retroactively increase the citizenship duration from 5 to 7 years, which would have affected those already living in the Netherlands. Although changes were made to exempt some people, the bill was eventually rejected. However, with the current government setup, such exemptions are unlikely, and the new bill will likely pass and affect everyone, regardless of being a newcomer or not.
This is like changing the rules of the game after we agreed to play the game, and this feels bad. And this won’t be the first time either. The 30% ruling was retroactively reduced from eight years to five. With this ongoing trend, how can we be certain the naturalization period won’t be extended to 15 years a couple of years from now, or the permanent residence period won’t be changed to 10 years? With the ongoing trend, that might very well happen.
As Highly Skilled Migrants in the Netherlands, we do want to contribute to this beautiful country. We want to keep the Netherlands on the edge of technology and help keep the likes of ASML, Booking, NXP, TomTom, and many other tech companies stay in the Netherlands and not relocate elsewhere. We want to keep them here. These companies bring an enormous advantage to the Netherlands on the local and international stage. Alongside that, none of us highly skilled migrants rely on the social benefits that the Dutch government provides, and with our significant tax contributions, we happily want to contribute to a fairer, richer Netherlands for everyone by making the pension system and the welfare system stronger.
What if our contributions are completely overlooked, we’re treated as unwanted people who bring nothing to the table, and our stability is compromised? We fill roles for which there are not enough qualified individuals in the Netherlands. We are a community of passionate professionals dedicated to our work and science, having studied tirelessly and worked hard for years. We want to contribute meaningfully.
Each morning, we wake up uncertain about what new law might be passed that could jeopardize our lives here and make us feel extremely unwanted. This pervasive fear of instability can erode the sense of belonging and commitment we’ve built over the years, and make it much harder for us to integrate and contribute effectively.
If you are a local, we understand that some of you might have concerns about expats. We've heard the concerns that our presence might drive up housing prices due to increased demand. However, the core issue is not our presence but the insufficient rate at which new housing is being built. Addressing the housing shortage requires policy changes and investment in construction, not limiting the number of skilled professionals. Limiting skilled professionals creates a range of other problems.
Is our existence in the Netherlands only bringing bad things here? Highly Skilled Migrants bring a lot of benefits here, and this is agreed upon unanimously both by the left-wing, centrist, and the right-wing parties. Don't just take our word for it; feel free to research this on your favorite websites. In 2022, the number of Highly Skilled Migrants who entered Netherlands was around 26,000. Can the country's issues be attributed solely to these 26,000 people?
Please know that we want to contribute to society. We want to be part of this community, strive to make a positive impact alongside our Dutch colleagues, make the economy bigger, and keep the Netherlands on the edge of technology, which will ultimately benefit everyone, as it strengthens the welfare and pension systems, and creates more job opportunities for everyone. We do want to contribute.
If you, like me, are also a highly skilled migrant in the Netherlands and feel threatened, you can make yourself heard and contribute by doing the following:
1- Share this petition with your Highly Skilled Migrant friends. They might not know these changes will be introduced, and it’s better for them to know earlier so that they can plan for their future.
2- Join this Telegram channel we have just created: https://t.me/hsmnaturalisationNL We intend to soon enable a mechanism here so that all of us can communicate together and come up with a plan to make ourselves heard to our companies and the Dutch government. Please join this channel and share with your friends!
3- Talk to your managers and directors at your companies. Companies can significantly influence political decisions because they generate a lot of tax revenue. Just recently, ASML wanted to move outside the Netherlands due to the unfavorable business and expat climate, and the Dutch government ended up reversing a lot of its decisions (see link at the end). Tell your managers about your concerns regarding the lack of stability and changing rules. Explain why the chance to become a Dutch citizen is important. Even if it's not your top priority or you don’t want it, remember this could be the start of more restrictions on permanent residency and stricter measures, which can drive you, and talents in general, out of the Netherlands. We know that we need to give back to society, and we try to do that every day, but we also don’t want to feel like a burden or parasite. The more you share this with your friends in your network and the more vocal you are about this, the higher chance we’ll have of being heard.
We can only make ourselves heard if we work together. Please sign this petition, join the Telegram channel, and share it with your friends.
Links:
https://nltimes.nl/2024/03/06/dutch-govt-scrambling-behind-scenes-keep-asml-netherlands-report
https://t.me/hsmnaturalisationNL
4,272
The Issue
Telegram channel related to the petition: https://t.me/hsmnaturalisationNL
If you are a Highly Skilled Migrant in the Netherlands, you need to know that the newly formed Dutch government intends to increase the time for citizenship from 5 to 10 years.
If you think this will not affect you and only affects newcomers to the Netherlands, you’re wrong.
In 2016, the government tried to retroactively increase the citizenship duration from 5 to 7 years, which would have affected those already living in the Netherlands. Although changes were made to exempt some people, the bill was eventually rejected. However, with the current government setup, such exemptions are unlikely, and the new bill will likely pass and affect everyone, regardless of being a newcomer or not.
This is like changing the rules of the game after we agreed to play the game, and this feels bad. And this won’t be the first time either. The 30% ruling was retroactively reduced from eight years to five. With this ongoing trend, how can we be certain the naturalization period won’t be extended to 15 years a couple of years from now, or the permanent residence period won’t be changed to 10 years? With the ongoing trend, that might very well happen.
As Highly Skilled Migrants in the Netherlands, we do want to contribute to this beautiful country. We want to keep the Netherlands on the edge of technology and help keep the likes of ASML, Booking, NXP, TomTom, and many other tech companies stay in the Netherlands and not relocate elsewhere. We want to keep them here. These companies bring an enormous advantage to the Netherlands on the local and international stage. Alongside that, none of us highly skilled migrants rely on the social benefits that the Dutch government provides, and with our significant tax contributions, we happily want to contribute to a fairer, richer Netherlands for everyone by making the pension system and the welfare system stronger.
What if our contributions are completely overlooked, we’re treated as unwanted people who bring nothing to the table, and our stability is compromised? We fill roles for which there are not enough qualified individuals in the Netherlands. We are a community of passionate professionals dedicated to our work and science, having studied tirelessly and worked hard for years. We want to contribute meaningfully.
Each morning, we wake up uncertain about what new law might be passed that could jeopardize our lives here and make us feel extremely unwanted. This pervasive fear of instability can erode the sense of belonging and commitment we’ve built over the years, and make it much harder for us to integrate and contribute effectively.
If you are a local, we understand that some of you might have concerns about expats. We've heard the concerns that our presence might drive up housing prices due to increased demand. However, the core issue is not our presence but the insufficient rate at which new housing is being built. Addressing the housing shortage requires policy changes and investment in construction, not limiting the number of skilled professionals. Limiting skilled professionals creates a range of other problems.
Is our existence in the Netherlands only bringing bad things here? Highly Skilled Migrants bring a lot of benefits here, and this is agreed upon unanimously both by the left-wing, centrist, and the right-wing parties. Don't just take our word for it; feel free to research this on your favorite websites. In 2022, the number of Highly Skilled Migrants who entered Netherlands was around 26,000. Can the country's issues be attributed solely to these 26,000 people?
Please know that we want to contribute to society. We want to be part of this community, strive to make a positive impact alongside our Dutch colleagues, make the economy bigger, and keep the Netherlands on the edge of technology, which will ultimately benefit everyone, as it strengthens the welfare and pension systems, and creates more job opportunities for everyone. We do want to contribute.
If you, like me, are also a highly skilled migrant in the Netherlands and feel threatened, you can make yourself heard and contribute by doing the following:
1- Share this petition with your Highly Skilled Migrant friends. They might not know these changes will be introduced, and it’s better for them to know earlier so that they can plan for their future.
2- Join this Telegram channel we have just created: https://t.me/hsmnaturalisationNL We intend to soon enable a mechanism here so that all of us can communicate together and come up with a plan to make ourselves heard to our companies and the Dutch government. Please join this channel and share with your friends!
3- Talk to your managers and directors at your companies. Companies can significantly influence political decisions because they generate a lot of tax revenue. Just recently, ASML wanted to move outside the Netherlands due to the unfavorable business and expat climate, and the Dutch government ended up reversing a lot of its decisions (see link at the end). Tell your managers about your concerns regarding the lack of stability and changing rules. Explain why the chance to become a Dutch citizen is important. Even if it's not your top priority or you don’t want it, remember this could be the start of more restrictions on permanent residency and stricter measures, which can drive you, and talents in general, out of the Netherlands. We know that we need to give back to society, and we try to do that every day, but we also don’t want to feel like a burden or parasite. The more you share this with your friends in your network and the more vocal you are about this, the higher chance we’ll have of being heard.
We can only make ourselves heard if we work together. Please sign this petition, join the Telegram channel, and share it with your friends.
Links:
https://nltimes.nl/2024/03/06/dutch-govt-scrambling-behind-scenes-keep-asml-netherlands-report
https://t.me/hsmnaturalisationNL
4,272
Petition created on May 18, 2024