If you want to work in the Netherlands as an employee of an Asian cuisine restaurant / cafe, then you need to obtain a residence permit.

In the Netherlands, there are a number of general conditions for applying for a residence permit, you can see them here. In this article, you will learn about the additional conditions for obtaining a residence permit for workers in the field of catering (Asian cuisine).

Conditions for the employee

In the Netherlands, there are a number of conditions for obtaining a residence permit that apply to all immigrants who plan to come to the Netherlands. In addition to these conditions, the following conditions apply to you as an Asian food worker:

• Your place of work will be a specialized restaurant (snack bars, catering1delivery companies and delivery companies are not specialty restaurants) with one or more of the following cuisines: Chinese, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Thai, Tibetan, and Vietnamese.
• Your position will be: Specialty Chef (specialiteitenkok), Sous-Chef / Allround Kok, or Chef (chef-kok).

Conditions for an employer in the Netherlands

• Your restaurant is a specialty Asian restaurant (Chinese, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Thai, Tibetan or Vietnamese).
• You are not: a snack bar, catering[1] company and delivery service. But if you can show that a qualified chef is really needed, for example, in your snack bar, the Dutch government can make an exception.
• You must indicate why you need a chef.
• You must explain that a highly skilled chef is required for your restaurant: a specialized chef (specialiteitenkok), a sous-chef / allround kok, or a chef (chef-kok).
• You, as an employer, should be able to present a diploma or certificate confirming that the chef has the skills to perform this position.
• During the period of validity of this residence permit, you, as an employer, must: train staff or offer workers an internship in cooking courses (ROC-koksopleiding).
• You are training personnel to work in Asian cuisine. You conduct at least 1 of these courses for your employees:
• Training courses for the leadership of kitchen staff. You are required to provide your worker's certificate at the end of the course.
• License-free courses for kitchen staff (on-the-job training) please attach this form to the application form.
• Passing an internship in the framework of training for chefs (ROC- koksopleiding). In this case, you must provide a contract between the internship organizer and the intern.

The Dutch organization, the UWV Employment Service, will check whether you comply with the rules: whether you have fulfilled the conditions and whether you have paid the foreign chef the agreed salary. To see what are the standard amounts of required income for a specialist, you can here.

If you have any questions about immigration, please contact us - we are always ready to help you!

A catering company is a company that provides all this range of services indoors or outdoors, at any remote location.