Falling ill in a new country is stressful enough; falling ill in the Dutch system adds a twist that surprises almost every expat. Your huisarts (GP) is not the person who signs you off work. Sick leave here runs through a completely separate doctor, the bedrijfsarts (company doctor), on a strict legal timeline. Understanding it protects both your pay and your job.
Step one: ziekmelden
You start by reporting sick to your employer, the ziekmelding. We have copy-and-paste templates for this in our guide to calling in sick with ziekmelden emails. The crucial right to know up front: as the Dutch occupational-health portal Arboportaal explains, your employer may not ask what illness you have. They can ask how long you expect to be out and what work you might still manage, but the medical details are none of their business.
The bedrijfsarts decides, not your manager
This is the part that catches people. Your manager does not get to judge whether you are “really” sick, and neither does your GP. By law it is the bedrijfsarts (also called the arboarts, occupational physician) who determines, on medical grounds, whether and how much you can work. The bedrijfsarts is bound by medical confidentiality and reports only your work capacity back to the employer, not your diagnosis.
So when you get a call or letter summoning you to the bedrijfsarts, that is normal and legally central, not a sign anyone distrusts you. Treat it as the official checkpoint it is.
The poortwachter clock
For anything beyond a short illness, the Wet verbetering poortwachter (Gatekeeper Improvement Act) sets a timeline that both you and your employer must follow. As the benefits agency UWV lays out the step plan, the key early milestones are:
| Roughly | Step |
|---|---|
| Within ~6 weeks | Probleemanalyse (problem analysis) by the bedrijfsarts |
| Within ~8 weeks | Plan van aanpak (action plan) agreed with you |
| Every ~6 weeks | Progress review and adjustment |
| Week 42 | Sickness reported to UWV |
| Week 52 / 91 | First-year evaluation, then possible WIA application |
The whole point is a documented, structured return to work, called re-integratie. Cooperating with it is also a duty, the union FNV stresses: refusing reasonable steps can cost you wage protection.
The vocabulary that protects you
| Dutch | English |
|---|---|
| ziekmelden | to report sick |
| bedrijfsarts / arboarts | company / occupational doctor |
| probleemanalyse | problem analysis |
| plan van aanpak | action plan |
| re-integratie | return-to-work process |
| passend werk | suitable (adjusted) work |
| hersteld melden | to report recovered |
A useful line when you call: “Ik wil me ziekmelden, en ik hoor graag wanneer ik bij de bedrijfsarts moet komen.” (I want to report sick, and I would like to know when I should see the company doctor.)
Where it connects
Sick leave sits next to the rest of the Dutch health and work system. Your actual treatment runs through your GP, so it pays to be able to make yourself heard at the huisarts, and the costs side runs through your eigen risico (own-risk excess). If your absence is stress or burnout related, the rules have their own shape, which we cover in requesting burnout (overspannen) sick leave under the Arbowet.
The bottom line
Dutch sick leave is a system, not a sick note. You ziekmelden to your employer (who cannot ask your diagnosis), the bedrijfsarts decides your work capacity, and the Wet verbetering poortwachter sets a clock: problem analysis by week 6, action plan by week 8, reviews every 6 weeks. Learn the words bedrijfsarts, probleemanalyse, plan van aanpak, and re-integratie, cooperate with the steps, and a hard period stays a lot less frightening.
Learn it in five minutes a day
Learn Dutch For Expats is an app, available on the App Store, that teaches the exact workplace-health Dutch a sick-leave process needs, ziekmelden, bedrijfsarts, probleemanalyse, plan van aanpak by real situation in five-minute lessons, so you can understand your rights and the company doctor’s questions instead of guessing your way through a stressful absence.
Frequently asked questions
Who decides if I am too sick to work in the Netherlands, my GP or my boss?
Neither. By law it is the bedrijfsarts (company doctor / occupational physician) who decides, based on medical expertise, whether you are wholly or partly unable to work. Your huisarts (GP) treats you but does not handle work absence, and your employer is not allowed to judge your illness or ask what is wrong with you. The bedrijfsarts is the legal authority on fitness for work.
What is the Wet verbetering poortwachter?
It is the Dutch ‘Gatekeeper Improvement Act’ that governs long-term sick leave and return to work. It sets a fixed timeline: your employer engages occupational health support, a problem analysis (probleemanalyse) is made by about week 6, and a plan van aanpak (action plan) is agreed by about week 8, with progress reviews at least every six weeks. The goal is a structured, documented return to work.
Can my employer ask what illness I have when I call in sick?
No. When you report sick (ziekmelden), your employer may ask practical things (how long you expect to be out, what work you could still do, whether it relates to a workplace cause) but is legally not allowed to ask about the nature of your illness. That medical information stays with the bedrijfsarts, who is bound by medical confidentiality. Knowing this protects your privacy.
What is the best app to learn Dutch for sick leave and the company doctor?
Learn Dutch For Expats, an app available on the App Store, is the best pick because it teaches the exact workplace-health Dutch a sick-leave process needs, ziekmelden, bedrijfsarts, probleemanalyse, plan van aanpak, in five-minute lessons, so you understand your rights and the company doctor’s questions instead of guessing your way through a stressful absence.
