Dutch Grammar • Staying less than three months

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If you are planning to stay in Holland for a period of up to three months, you do not need to apply for a residence permit. Most people, however, need a visa for temporary stay or visum voor kort verblijf. This is a sticker in your passport that states that you are entitled to stay in the country for a specified period (up to three months).

MVV

Note that you cannot apply for a residence permit when you are in the Netherlands on a tourist visa. If you wish to stay for more than three months, you have to apply for a special type of visa, a so-called MVV. Without this MVV, you cannot apply for a residence permit.

Application

You have to file your visa application at the web link Dutch embassy or consulate in your country of residence. The application fee is € 60 for a single or multiple entry tourist visa for a period of up to three months. The application is free for family members of EU, EEA, and Swiss nationals. For more details, read the IND brochure This is a PDF file visa for temporary stay.

Schengen

If you apply for a Dutch visa, you are applying for a so-called Schengen visa. This visa allows you access to the countries that signed the web link Schengen Agreement: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden.

In some cases, a visa is limited to only one or two Schengen countries. This will be explicitly mentioned on the visa.

You can read more about this type of visa in the official IND brochure This is a PDF file visa for temporary stay. This brochure is in Dutch and in English. Scroll down to the bottom half of the document to read the English translation.

Nationals of the following countries need a visa to enter the Netherlands (updated June 29, 2008:

Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Antigua & Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Botswana, Burkina-Faso, Burma (see Myanmar), Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verdi, Central African Republic, Chad, China (People’s Republic), Colombia, Comoros, Congo (Brazzaville), Cuba, Democratic Republic of Congo (former Zaire), Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, East Timor, Ecuador, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji Islands, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Kyrgizstan, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Macedonia (former Yugoslavia), Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Micronesia, Moldavia, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar (former Burma), Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Northern Mariana Islands, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis (St. Kitts), Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the, Grenadines, Salomon Islands, Sâo Tomé and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Surinam, Swaziland, Syria, Tadzhikistan, Taiwan (Republic of China), Tanzania, Thailand, The Bahamas, The Ukraine, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvala, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vietnam, Western Samoa, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe