Can my partner work in NL on a dependent/partner visa?

Short answer

It depends on who your partner is, what kind of Dutch residence permit they hold, and what is written in the "arbeidsmarktaantekening" (labour-market annotation) on your residence document. In many situations a partner who is admitted as a family member may work in the Netherlands without a separate work permit (TWV), but there are important exceptions.

Below is the framework as it applies in current Dutch immigration law.

Note on research. My tool attempts to look up the relevant articles of the Vreemdelingenwet 2000 (the statute that governs admission, residence and the labour-market annotation) did not resolve to that law in the BWB search backend; the candidate BWBR identifiers I tried returned unrelated product-board, fisheries and police-register regulations. Because of that I cannot cite a verified article number from the tools. The overview below is consistent with how the Vreemdelingenwet 2000 and the Vreemdelingenbesluit 2000 are applied in practice by the IND, but you should verify the exact legal basis for your situation with the IND or a qualified migration lawyer.

1. EU / EEA / Swiss citizens and their family members

If you yourself are an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen (or a family member of one), and your partner is in the Netherlands exercising EU treaty rights (for example as a worker, self-employed person, job-seeker, student, or as a family member of such a person), your right of residence and your right to work in the Netherlands flow from EU free-movement law as implemented in Dutch law, not from the Vreemdelingenwet 2000.

Practically:

• You do not need a TWV (tewerkstellingsvergunning) to take up work.
• You do not need a separate residence permit; if you stay more than three months you register at the municipality.
• The same applies to the non-EU spouse/partner of an EU citizen who is lawfully resident in the Netherlands under Directive 2004/38/EC.

2. Non-EU partners joining a non-EU main permit holder

This is the typical "dependent/partner visa" situation. The framework is the Vreemdelingenwet 2000 and the Vreemdelingenbesluit 2000, especially the rules on family formation and reunification (verlening van een verblijfsvergunning regulier voor verblijf bij een partner/echtgeno(o)t(e)).

Whether you can work depends on the arbeidsmarktaantekening placed on your residence permit. The main practical categories are:

Key cases where the partner commonly receives "arbeid vrij toegestaan":

• Partner of a holder of a knowledge-migrant permit (kennismigrant) under the kennismigranten scheme. Since 1 October 2014 partners of recognised highly skilled migrants are issued a residence permit that allows them to take up any work without a TWV. The partner does not need to satisfy the separate salary threshold.
• Partner of a holder of an EU long-term resident permit issued by the Netherlands or another EU member state.
• Partner who arrives in the framework of asylum-based residence (e.g. holder of a verblijfsvergunning asiel, after a positive decision).
• Partner of a holder of a regular residence permit with a "humanitarian" or "non-temporary" purpose where policy attaches the free labour-market annotation.

Key cases where the partner typically does not get free access to the labour market:

• Partner of a student (verblijfsvergunning voor studie). Work is limited: during the academic year the student and the partner may work a maximum of 16 hours per week; full-time work is only allowed during the summer months (June, July and August). Self-employment is generally not permitted.
• Partner of a holder of a permit for "search year" for orientation (zoekjaar) – work is restricted.
• Partner of a holder of a permit under family reunification where the main permit holder themselves has restricted work access and the dependent permit mirrors that restriction.
• Holders of an MVV ("toegang" / temporary admission) before the actual residence permit is issued – work is normally not allowed until the residence permit with annotation is in the Basisregistratie Personen.

3. What the partner needs to do

1. Check the sticker or document issued by the IND: the back of the residence document shows the arbeidsmarktaantekening. This text is decisive.
2. The employer (not the employee) applies for a TWV at the UWV if the annotation says a TWV is required. A TWV is employer- and post-specific.
3. For self-employment, the relevant permit is the "verblijfsvergunning met arbeidsmarktaantekening zelfstandige toegestaan" – without that annotation, running your own business is not allowed even if paid work is permitted.
4. Working without the right annotation or without a TWV where one is required is treated as illegal employment. Both employer and employee face administrative fines and the residence permit can be revoked.

4. Common exceptions

• Even where the annotation allows work, certain professions remain closed to non-EU nationals (for example some roles in the civil service, the police, the judiciary and parts of healthcare) because of nationality rules outside the Vreemdelingenwet.
• Time-limited permits can lose the "vrij" annotation on renewal if the underlying purpose changes (e.g. the relationship ends before the qualifying period – check the dependency rules in the Vreemdelingenwet 2000 on continuation of residence after relationship breakdown).
• The annotation can also be added, removed or changed by an IND decision after a change of sponsor or purpose. Always re-check the annotation after any renewal or change of permit.

Practical next step

For a binding answer on your specific case, the IND (telephone and website) and the government information portal can confirm the exact annotation on your residence document and which TWV (if any) the employer must request. For self-employment you typically also need to apply for a separate annotation or convert the permit purpose. Because my statutory search backend did not return the verified text of the Vreemdelingenwet 2000 today, the above is a structured framework rather than a citation of a specific article number; treat it as orientation, not as legal advice.