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My employer is not paying my salary — what can I do?

EmploymentLegislation verified on Ook in het Nederlands

Short answer

If your employer does not pay your salary, you are not without protection. Dutch law gives you three main tools: (1) claim the unpaid salary (plus a statutory penalty increase and statutory interest) before the subdistrict court (kantonrechter); (2) suspend your work, and in serious cases terminate the contract with immediate effect and claim a billijke vergoeding and transitievergoeding; and (3) if the employer is insolvent, claim the unpaid wages from UWV under the loongarantieregeling.

The employer's basic obligation to pay on time

The employer must pay salary in money "telkens na afloop van het tijdvak waarover het loon op grond van de overeenkomst moet worden berekend", and that interval must be at least one week and at most one month (Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 623) [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005290&artikel=623]. The salary must be paid in euros or by bank transfer (Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 620 and Artikel 622) [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005290&artikel=620]. The employer is also obliged to give you a written pay slip showing the components and period of the salary (Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 655) [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005290&artikel=655].

Penalty if the employer pays late

If the salary is not paid within the third working day after the date on which it should have been paid, and the delay is attributable to the employer, you are entitled to a statutory increase (wettelijke verhoging wegens vertraging). That increase is 5% per working day for the 4th to 8th working day and 1% per working day for each subsequent working day, capped at 50% of the unpaid salary (Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 625) [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005290&artikel=625]. The subdistrict judge may lower this increase if the employer had no fault, for example because of insolvency, but only the increase; the salary itself cannot be reduced (Rechtspraak.nl, "Loonvordering procedures" [https://www.rechtspraak.nl/Onderwerpen/Loonvordering/Paginas/procedure.aspx]). In addition you are entitled to statutory interest (Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 6, Artikel 119–120) on the overdue amount from the day the salary became due, and this interest cannot be reduced by the court [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005289&artikel=119].

Going to court for the unpaid salary

The fastest and cheapest route is a wage claim (loonvordering) at the subdistrict court (kantonrechter). You can choose:

  • a kort geding (urgent interim injunction) to obtain a provisional payment order quickly, or
  • a regular bodemprocedure, which gives you a final and enforceable judgment.

The court fees (griffierecht) for a kanton case are modest and depend on the amount you claim; the defendant pays no court fee. You can submit claims for up to five years of unpaid salary; older claims are time-barred (Article 3:313 Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 3) [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005291&artikel=313] (Rechtspraak.nl [https://www.rechtspraak.nl/onderwerpen/loonvordering/kosten]). On a loonvordering the kantonrechter will normally also award the wettelijke verhoging and statutory interest.

Suspending your own performance

A reciprocal contract such as employment gives you the right to suspend your own obligation to work if the employer fails to pay what is due. The general rule is Artikel 6:263 Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 6 [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005289&artikel=263]. The salary claim remains alive while you suspend, and you can set a final payment deadline (Article 6:88 BW 6) before turning to the court.

Terminating the contract on the spot

Persistent non-payment is explicitly listed as an urgent reason (dringende reden) entitling you to terminate the employment contract immediately: "wanneer hij het loon niet op de daarvoor bepaalde tijd voldoet" (Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 679 lid 2 sub c) [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005290&artikel=679]. The termination must be communicated "onverwijld" (without delay) together with the reason (Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 677 lid 1) [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005290&artikel=677].

If you do so, the employer owes you:

If you do not want an immediate dismissal, you can instead ask the kantonrechter to dissolve the contract and again claim the transitievergoeding and a billijke vergoeding (Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 671c).

When the employer is insolvent

If the employer cannot pay because of insolvency, your salary claim becomes a preferred debt in the bankruptcy (loonvordering is preferent — Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 666; Faillissementswet, Artikel 213m and the priority rules of Article 40 Fail.) [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0001860&artikel=213m]. Practically more important: under the loongarantieregeling, UWV pays an advance on outstanding salary (the faillissementsuitkering) to employees of an employer that is declared bankrupt or granted suspension of payments, after which UWV steps into your claim against the employer (UWV, "Werkgever gaat failliet of betaalt niet meer" [https://www.uwv.nl/werkgevers/werknemer-betalingsonmacht]). If the employer is still able to pay but simply refuses, that route is not available; you must claim through the court.

Main exceptions and limits

  • Non-payment is attributable to you. The statutory increase is reduced or set aside if the delay is not attributable to the employer (Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 625 lid 1).
  • No work performed, no pay. The general rule in Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 627 is "geen loon is verschuldigd voor de tijd gedurende welke de werknemer de bedongen arbeid niet heeft verricht" [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005290&artikel=627]. So if you simply stopped coming to work, the employer may have a partial defence to a salary claim for that period. The principal statutory exception is Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 628 (continued payment during short interruptions) and Artikel 629 (continued payment during illness up to 104 weeks) [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005290&artikel=629].
  • Set-off is restricted. The employer may only set off the few debts listed in Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, Artikel 632 (e.g. damage, written loan, overpayment, written rent), and never against the minimum-wage portion [https://wetten.overheid.nl/jci1.3:c:BWBR0005290&artikel=632].
  • Immediate termination has conditions. To invoke Artikel 679 sub c you must act "onverwijld" and usually need a clear pattern of non-payment; one isolated delay does not normally justify summary dismissal.
  • Time bar. Unpaid-salary claims are subject to a five-year limitation period.

Practical checklist

  1. Ask the employer in writing (registered letter or email) to pay within a short, reasonable deadline (Article 6:88 BW 6).
  2. If that fails, file a loonvordering at the kantonrechter (kort geding if urgent), claiming the salary, the wettelijke verhoging under Article 7:625 BW and statutory interest.
  3. If the employer still does not pay and you want out, either give immediate notice under Article 7:679 sub c BW (with the Article 7:677 BW compensation and the Article 7:673 BW transitievergoeding) or request dissolution and a billijke vergoeding under Article 7:671c BW.
  4. If the employer has gone bankrupt or is in suspension of payments, file a faillissementsuitkering claim with UWV.

This article is general information, not legal advice. The application of these rules to your situation (especially the assessment of ernstig verwijtbaar handelen and the level of any billijke vergoeding) depends on the specific facts. For a binding opinion, consult a qualified employment-law adviser or a lawyer at the Rechtspraak-listed juridisch loket [https://www.juridischloket.nl].