What does the Dutch WTTA mean for companies that hire temporary staff?

The Wet toelating terbeschikkingstelling van arbeidskrachten, the WTTA, comes into force on 1 January 2027. Until now, anyone in the Netherlands can start a staffing agency: registering with the Chamber of Commerce (KVK) is enough, and the SNA quality mark is voluntary. Under the WTTA, a company may only supply workers if it holds a licence or an exemption from the new Dutch Labour Supply Authority, the Nederlandse Autoriteit Uitleenmarkt (NAU).

The law looks at what happens, not at the label. A supplier is any company that makes an employee available to another company for a fee, where the employee works under that company's direction and supervision. That covers staffing agencies, but also secondment firms, payroll companies and businesses that only supply staff now and then. A foreign agency whose workers actually work for a client in the Netherlands needs a licence too.

To get a licence, a supplier must show in advance that it meets a set of standards. These check not only finances and administration but also how the company treats its workers. On top of that it pays a deposit of 100,000 euros, or 50,000 euros for a start-up with a six-month provisional licence. An agency that has been registered with the KVK as a supplier of staff for four uninterrupted years on 31 December 2026, and has actually supplied workers in that time, can be exempted from the deposit on its first application.

Existing suppliers can use a transitional scheme in two steps. First they register online between 1 November and 31 December 2026 at toelatinguitleenmarkt.nl. Then they apply for the licence or exemption itself between 1 May and 30 June 2027. An agency that registers this way may keep supplying staff while the NAU assesses its application, even if no decision has been made by 1 January 2028.

An agency that misses the registration window cannot use the transitional scheme. Agencies with an SNA quality mark do not have to register, but the NAU advises them to: if they lose the mark before 30 June 2027, they would otherwise fall outside the scheme and may have to stop on 1 January 2028. As a client, that is your risk, and you may only hear about it when it is too late.

From 1 January 2028, the Netherlands Labour Authority enforces the rules. If you work with a supplier that needs a licence and does not have one, you can be fined and must end the arrangement. The WTTA therefore gives hirers their own duty to check, and the NAU has published a checklist for it.

Start with a list of every party you hire staff from: the agency for the production floor, the secondment firm on a project, the payroll company that employs people you recruited yourself. In manufacturing and in construction and infrastructure there are often more of these than you think. Ask each one whether it will register for the transitional scheme in November or December, and get the answer in writing.

Then update your contracts. Agree that you will only work together while a licence or exemption is in place, that it must stay valid for the whole term, and what happens if it lapses. Watch out for chains: if your agency hires in from another agency, you are responsible for checking the company that actually employs the worker. From 1 July 2027 a public register will be available at toelatinguitleenmarkt.nl. Check it at the start of every placement, keep proof of the check on file and sign up for alerts when a status changes.

This may be a good moment to review how much you hire in and how much you recruit yourself. The differences are set out in RPO versus a staffing agency and RPO versus secondment.

Does the WTTA apply to a recruitment agency?

Usually not. A recruitment agency finds candidates who are then employed by you. Nobody is supplied, because the worker is on your payroll and not on the agency's. The same goes for an RPO partner. How to compare agencies is covered in choosing a recruitment agency.

Does the WTTA apply to freelancers I hire?

A freelancer who works for you directly and decides how to do the work probably does not need a licence, according to the NAU. If in practice you direct and supervise that person, the Labour Authority can treat it as supplying staff, and both of you can be fined. If someone works for you through their own company and that company has employees placed with you, a licence is probably required.

What happens if my agency loses its licence?

A suspension or withdrawal is shown in the public register up to four weeks in advance. During that period you may keep the workers already placed with you, but you may not take on new ones from that agency. Once the suspension or withdrawal takes effect, you must stop working with it altogether, so it pays to have a second supplier lined up.

Does anything change on 1 January 2027?

The law takes effect and applications start, but enforcement of the licensing duty only begins on 1 January 2028. On that date the current Waadi register at the KVK moves to the NAU register. What else changes for wage costs and hiring in the Netherlands from 2027 is covered in our article on Budget Day 2026.

SocialFind wrote this article based on the pages of the Dutch Labour Supply Authority on the transitional scheme, the licensing requirements and the duties of hirers, the government page on business.gov.nl and the Statistics Netherlands release of 28 January 2026, checked on 12 October 2026. SocialFind is not a staffing agency and does not supply staff. This is not legal advice. If you want articles like this in your inbox, sign up for our newsletter.