Dutch immigration law: three basic conditions for applying for "permanent residence"

There are several different types of permanent residence permits in the Netherlands. One of them has a clear time limit, for example, you get a residence permit after you get married with a Dutch citizen or a resident with permanent residency; The other is indefinite permanent residence. The legal rules governing these two kinds of residence permits are Dutch domestic laws. There is also the so-called "EU Permanent Residence Permit". The legal basis of this permit is in line with relevant EU laws and regulations. This residence permit gives you the right and freedom to travel in EU countries.

Perhaps, many readers know more or less that in order to obtain a permanent residence permit in the Netherlands, three most important conditions must be met:

Dutch integration test;

Adequate income (future);

Have lived in the Netherlands legally for five consecutive years and hold a valid non-temporary residence permit;

The three requirements must be strictly met at the same time in order to obtain a permanent residence permit in the European Union. Today, this paper focuses on how to understand the meaning of the third element from the perspective of legal application and interpretation.

Among them, the content of the third element contains two meanings.

The first meaning is the requirement for the nature of the residence permit held by the applicant.

This means that some applicants with work nature will encounter problems when submitting applications for permanent residence permits in the EU, because residence permits issued for the purpose of work nature may be regarded as temporary residence permits by the Dutch immigration authorities.

The same applies to the so-called "looking for a job" residence permit. However, this is not entirely correct. The above three conditions are actually bound and governed by EU legal rules. However, as the administrative organ of the Netherlands, the Dutch Immigration Bureau still makes mistakes in the application and application of legal rules, which often leads to the rejection of qualified applicants. The European Court of Justice previously ruled that Dutch domestic law conflicts with relevant EU laws and regulations and shall not be applied arbitrarily.

For example, a residence permit based on the nature of work should not be automatically regarded as a temporary residence permit by the Dutch Immigration Service. Whether a residence permit with the nature of work is judged as a temporary residence permit does not depend on the length of stay decided by the immigration bureau, but the legal intention behind the work permit. For a simple example, the work permit is based on whether you are an employer or an employee. In other words, when your residence permit is "regarded" as a temporary residence permit by the Dutch Immigration Bureau, the allowed residence time limit can also contribute to the requirement of five-year cumulative time, because it conforms to the legal rules of the European Union.

For another example, "looking for a job" residence permit or seasonal work residence permit is usually regarded as a temporary residence permit, so it may not be helpful for the accumulation of a five-year period; However, from another perspective, such permission cleverly gives the parties a legal residence time, during which the parties can seek the possibility of obtaining a non-temporary residence permit.

Another meaning is "continuous" legal residence in the Netherlands. How to understand the abstract concept of "legal continuous residence", the Dutch Immigration Service itself may sometimes be biased in the application of EU laws and regulations. The concept of "legal continuity" means that illegal residence is not accepted. Even if you live illegally for one day, the parties are at risk of losing all the years accumulated during their legal residence.

However, the so-called "five years" is not necessarily continuous.

During this five-year period, if there is an interruption, as long as it is based on another reason of legal residence, it is acceptable. For example, after a routine application is rejected, you are not satisfied with the administrative decision of the Immigration Bureau, file an administrative reconsideration or appeal to the Dutch court. In this judicial procedure, your stay in the Netherlands is reasonable and legal. Although the stay during this period will not be included in the five-year accumulation, it will not cut off the years you have accumulated before.

However, it often happens that because the applicant submits the application too late, the Immigration Bureau will not take the initiative to trace the issue date of applying for a new residence permit or extended residence permit back to the expiration date of the "old" card, resulting in that even if your new residence permit application is successfully issued, the issue date can no longer meet the requirements of "legal continuous residence". What you need to do at this time is to consult the Immigration Bureau professionally and reliably about this administrative decision. Therefore, for China people living in the Netherlands, it is very important to guarantee and "legalize" your residence period at any time to apply for "EU Permanent Residence Permit".