FAQ
Frequent Asked Questions
No, the BSN number is a unique number, given only once in a lifetime. It can therefore not be deleted, changed or renewed.
A BSN (burgerservicenummer in Dutch) is a citizen service number, a unique registration number for everyone who lives in the Netherlands. A BSN is needed when opening a bank account, applying for health insurance and government benefits, or even buying a phone subscription. Your employer also needs it in order to be able to pay your salary. Without it, you cannot get paid. Upon your arrival in the Netherlands, our coordination department will arrange an appointment for you at the city hall and will email you all the details. You will receive your BSN after attending the appointment. You will need to bring a valid passport or a valid national ID card with you (if you are an EU citizen).
Yes. In order to open a bank account, you will need to make an (online) appointment at your desired bank. Depending on how busy their schedule is, some banks will also open an account for you even if you do not have an appointment. You can just walk to the nearest branch and ask whether they can fit you into their schedule. You can find a list of the most popular banks in the Netherlands here. Most banks will require you to bring your BSN and a valid passport or ID card. If needed, we can provide a 'werkgeversverklaring' which you can request by sending an email to [email protected].
DigiD is a secure login method that allows you to identify yourself online when dealing with government institutions, health care, education institutions or pension funds. You can apply for it for free in the DigiD app or by visiting their website. You will need your BSN number for the application. After a successful application, you will receive a letter at home with your activation code within 3 working days.
Yes. You start accruing a pension under the Stipp Basic Plan immediately from your first working day. After 52 worked weeks, you will be enrolled in the Stipp Plus plan.
Yes, our coordinators will pick you up from the airport or from the train/bus station. They will drive you to the accommodation. This is a one time service.
No, when going on holiday you need to arrange the transport yourself. You can of course ask one of your housemates to bring you to the airport/bus station or use the public transport. Don't know how the public transport works? Read all about it in our blog.
When you come to the Netherlands, you should bring the following documents with you:
- a valid ID (this can be your ID card if you are a national of a country from the European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA) or a passport if you are not a national of an EU or EEA country. The ID card or passport need to be valid for at least 2 more months after entering the Netherlands
- a valid bank account on your name, where you are able to receive your salary in euros
- proof of your BSN if you already have one. This needs to be a document that has your name and BSN on it like the BSN proof you received from the city hall, an old salary specification, a document from the tax authority (belastingdienst in Dutch) or an annual statement from your previous employer in the Netherlands (jaaropgave in Dutch).
You might be eligible to get child benefits if you work or live in the Netherlands. You need to apply for it on the website of the SVB. You can read more about the conditions here.
To be eligible for the Dutch AOW pension, you need to have lived or worked in the Netherlands for a certain number of years. If you are 50 years old or older, the minimum requirement is 10 years. If you are younger than 50 years old, you must have lived or worked in the Netherlands for at least 50% of the time between the age of 15 and the age at which you reach the AOW pension age. You can read more about it in our blog.
This depends on the company you work for. They need to be able to miss your work for the period that you are on holiday. Before planning and booking any holiday, you should discuss your plans with your supervisor and get their approval first. After you have the approval from the company you work for, you need to notify our coordination department about your holiday period. Please send an email to [email protected] with your name and holiday period and our coordinators will register it in our database.
Yes, when you go on holiday, the holiday money you built up during your working time is paid out proportionally to the number of days you go on holiday and the amount you built up.
During times when you're away on holiday and not utilizing the room, Eastmen continues to cover the rental costs. This allows us to make the room available for others in need of accommodation. If you're planning to leave your belongings in the room while you're away and wish to return to the same space afterwards, you have the option to take over the payment for the vacation period. This payment amounts to 100 euros per week and ensures the room remains reserved exclusively for you during your absence. Alternatively, if you choose not to cover the rental expenses for the vacation period, we kindly request that you remove all your personal belongings from the room and leave the room clean. This will enable us to prepare the space for someone else to use.
You are entitled to 25 days of paid holiday leave per year if you work on a full-time basis. However, you first need to work and build up those days before you can take any time off.
All accommodations are within a reasonable distance to work. Our policy is to place our workers as close as possible to their workplace, depending on the possibilities. However, the Netherlands is a small and overcrowded country and it is not always possible to find an accommodation that is very close to your workplace. Most people, even the Dutch, travel to their workplace 30-50 km one way daily. Their roads, highways and public transport are very good which makes travelling very easy and comfortable.
Our houses are fully equipped and include a free Wi-Fi connection and a washing machine. In the kitchen you can find pans, plates, glasses and cutlery, as well as a fridge, cooking stove and a microwave. For sanitary reasons, you will need to bring your own blanket and bedsheets. If you think that there is something missing in the accommodation, please contact our coordinators at [email protected].
Yes, at Eastmen we find it important that the living conditions of our experts are up to the standards required by our SNF certificate and that everyone has a nice room where they can relax and have some privacy.
Yes, you are free to rent and live in a private house. You will need to inform our coordination department, in writing, 4 weeks prior to moving. Please send an email to [email protected] with your request.
Yes, in case you move to a private accommodation Eastmen will pay you an extra €30 net per worked day, with a maximum of 5 days a week.
The amount of people living in an accommodation depends on how big the house/apartment is and how many bedrooms it has. Most accommodations have 3 or 4 bedrooms.
This might be possible for a short period of time and it costs 100 euro per week extra. Please send your request to [email protected] and our coordinators will let you know if this is possible.
Unfortunately this is not allowed as most landlords do not accept pets.
Yes, if you live in an accommodation provided for by Eastmen, your room is free of charge.
Your insurance covers all the basic things that are mandatory in the Netherlands plus 8 physiotherapy sessions and emergency dentists costs to a maximum of 200 euro, once a year. More details can be found in the Health insurance agreement that will be sent to you if you decide to take an insurance via Eastmen.
No, we do not provide a physical insurance card. Having a BSN is enough in the Netherlands. You do not need to show your insurance card when going to the doctor. However, if you would like to receive a digital card, you can send your request to [email protected] and we will ask the insurance company to provide us with your digital card.
This is not something we send to our employees automatically, as this is rarely used or required in the Netherlands. However, if you do need a copy of it, you can send your request to [email protected] and we will ask the insurance company to provide us a copy of it.
Please send your request to [email protected] and mention the name of your insurance company that you have back home. Eastmen will take care of the rest and the form will be sent directly to your health insurance company.
Yes, please request it by sending an email to [email protected] and you will receive it in your email.
An A1 from needs to be requested from the social insurance company, SVB in Dutch. In order to make it easy for you, Eastmen will request it on your behalf. All you need to do is send your request to [email protected].
Of course, but please keep in mind that once you switch to another health insurance, you can only switch back to the insurance that Eastmen facilitates for you at the start of the next calendar year.
Yes, you can apply for a private health insurance in the Netherlands. There are a number of health insurance companies that you can choose from. You can read more about it here.
Children under the age of 18 can be co-insured on your insurance. Did we arrange your insurance? Send us a request to register your child/children to [email protected]. Only after the registration they are insured. Did you arrange a private insurance? Then you need to contact them and ask them to register your child/children. Other family members need to get their own private insurance.
You will receive your contract digitally after you have completed your onboarding, signing the contract being the last step. Normally this happens before you arrive in the Netherlands, but exceptions might occur, depending on your situation.
Yes, that is possible. You have to notify the coordinators in a written email to [email protected] and provide a picture of your new bank account with the IBAN and your name on it. If you send the email before Tuesday, your next salary will be sent to your new bank account.
Being happy at work is something both Eastmen and our clients find very important. Before considering changing your job, it might help to let your recruiter know the reasons why you would like to change jobs. Who knows, maybe something can be changed in order to make you happy again. If this is not possible and you are still unhappy, your recruiter can give you more information regarding our available jobs and possibilities.
No, according to the contract for phase 1 and 2 a contract can be terminated, from both sides, without a document to confirm it. If requested, Eastmen can provide a Statement of Employment as proof of your worked period at Eastmen. Please request it by sending an email to [email protected].
No, according to Dutch law it is illegal to transfer your salary in someone else´s bank account.
Salaries are paid out weekly on Thursdays, for the week before. So for example, in week 2 you will get the salary for week 1. Usually it takes one working day for the payments to be processed, so the next day you should have the money in your bank account. Depending on the bank you are using and the services your bank offers, it might take a bit longer for the transaction to be processed. If something is not right regarding the payment, please click on ´answer not found´ button to open a chat with us. Please contact your bank if you have a question regarding how long it takes for the transfer to be processed.
The salary specification that you receive from us is in Dutch. This is required by Dutch law. However, we translated the salary specifications to English, Romanian and Hungarian. You can send an email to [email protected] to request a copy of it.
Salaries are paid out weekly on Thursdays, for the week before. So for example, in week 2 you will get the salary for week 1. Usually it takes one working day for the payments to be processed, so the next day you should have the money in your bank account. Depending on the bank you are using and the services your bank offers, it might take a bit longer for the transaction to be processed. If something is not right regarding the payment, please click on ´answer not found´ button to open a chat with us. Please contact your bank if you have a question regarding how long it takes for the transfer to be processed.
Unfortunately, we are not able or allowed to pay you in advance. When coming to the Netherlands you should be able to pay for your living expenses until you get your first salary.
PAWW is an additional social fee on the account of the employer (Eastmen) to ensure allowance when a person is sick or unemployed for the third year. We will deduct it, but we also add it back on your payslip further down. This is because it must be visible to authorities and the tax office. Eastmen then also pays the fee to the government.
If you are not feeling well, you need to call in sick by informing the company you work for (your foreman) and our coordination department, before the start of your workday/shift. When you are feeling better and will be going back to work, you also need to inform the company you work for and our coordination department.
Yes, everyone can rent a car from Eastmen. Please send an email to [email protected] for more information and the actual availability of cars.
Yes, if you rent an Eastmen car, you will get a petrol card that you can use for free. If you drive your own car, you will get a kilometre allowance to-from work. This is either paid by the client or by Eastmen, depending on which of the 2 has a more favourable allowance for you. The rules by the client can be different depending on the client. At Eastmen you get a kilometre allowance of 0,19 euro cent net per kilometre above 10 kilometres, one way, with a maximum of 80 kilometres if you live in a private accommodation. If you live in an Eastmen house, there is no maximum.
You can use the Eastmen car for private trips but only in the Netherlands. You are not allowed to use the car for private purposes outside of the Netherlands.
Yes, that is possible. You can arrange this among yourselves.
If you live within 15 km from your workplace and would prefer to bike to work instead of driving, you can send an email to [email protected] and request an electrical bicycle. Using the bicycle to commute to work costs €17.50 per week and is subject to availability.
