Netherlands · for applicants from Nigeria
A one-year residence permit letting recent graduates and researchers stay to look for work or start a business, with full, unrestricted work rights and no salary threshold during the year. Its biggest payoff: afterwards you can be hired as a highly skilled migrant at the much-reduced €3,122/month threshold. Once-in-a-lifetime; cannot be extended.
Rules last verified: 20 August 2026 · by Elizabeth O
Embassy processing
Often decided within weeks for Dutch-study switchers
Our turnaround
5–7 working days
Done-for-you Standard
Government fees
~£217
≈ ₦395,374
University not top-200 / outside 3-year window
Foreign degree not top-200 in the graduation year, or graduated too long ago.
Fix: Check the ranking for your award year and apply within 3 years.
Already used the orientation year
Permit previously held.
Fix: It is once-per-lifetime, plan the timing carefully.
Required
Valid passport
When: "all"
Diploma / proof of graduation (or research completion)
When: "all"
Evidence the university is top-200 (if foreign)
When: "foreign graduates"
MVV (if applying from abroad; Nigeria is MVV-required)
When: "from abroad"
Proof of funds + Dutch health insurance
When: "all"
1. Prepare your application
Gather documents, draft supporting letters, complete forms
1–3 weeks
2. Rekoja review (if Done-for-you)
Specialist checks your file before you submit
5–7 working days
3. Submit online or at visa centre
Biometrics appointment may be required
1 day
4. Embassy decision
Standard processing. Priority options may be available.
Often decided within weeks for Dutch-study switchers
These are the fees you pay to the government, not Rekoja's service fee. Shown at the indicative exchange rate.
Mandatory
Orientation Year (zoekjaar) permit
£217
₦395,374
Total government fees
~£217
≈ ₦395,374
Indicative. 1 GBP = 1,822 NGN · 16 September 2026. Government fees change. Confirm on the official website before paying.
A free AI can tell you the rules. Rekoja does the harder part: we verify them against the official government source, prepare the actual application file, catch what gets people refused, and a specialist checks everything before you submit. We stand behind our work.
Free. The documents this route asks for and the all-in cost, in your currency. No signup to see them.
We carry Netherlands and the work route over from this page. The first screen shows both so you can change them, then it is two answers about you and picking your route. Your full profile is checked later, with your desk team.
Sourced answers to the most-searched questions about this corridor are being verified and will appear here. Start the free assessment or ask the desk directly.
Real, consented, initials-only outcomes with days-to-decision will appear here as cases close. The embassy decides; past results do not guarantee future outcomes.
Many work routes include an interview or credibility check. Done-for-you Premium includes a live interview-preparation session with a specialist: the questions officers actually ask on this route, practised with you before the real thing.
Preparation improves your readiness, not the decision. Practice, never a guarantee.
Other routes to Netherlands
Free. Two answers about you, then your checklist and the all-in cost for this route. No signup to see them.
Get my checklist and prices free →Not a visa decision or legal advice. Rules shown are as of the last verification date above. Immigration rules change. Confirm before filing. The embassy decides, not Rekoja.