Dutch Health Insurance for Temporary Workers: What You Pay and What You Get
9 November 2026
Every November, Dutch health insurers announce their prices for the next year. If you work in the Netherlands, this matters to you: health insurance is compulsory here, and it is one of the deductions on your weekly payslip.
Here is how it works, what it costs, and how to get some of it back.
Why you must have it
If you work in the Netherlands for a Dutch employer and pay Dutch wage tax, you must take out Dutch health insurance (zorgverzekering). When you work through Jobroad, your employer is a Dutch employment agency, so this applies to you.
It applies even if you do not live in the Netherlands, and even if you still have health insurance at home. You have 4 months from the start to arrange it. If you are later than that, you are not insured backwards: you pay for any care before that date yourself, and you can be fined.
What the basic policy covers
Everyone has the same basic policy (basisverzekering). The government decides what is in it, so the cover is the same at every insurer. It includes:
- visits to the GP (huisarts), including the out-of-hours GP post
- hospital care, specialists and emergency care
- most prescription medicines
- mental health care
- maternity care and the midwife
- ambulance transport
It does not include adult dental care (apart from surgery and X-rays), most physiotherapy for adults, or ordinary glasses and contact lenses. For those you need supplementary insurance (aanvullende verzekering), which is optional and costs extra.
The deductible: the first part is yours
The deductible (eigen risico) is the part of your care costs you pay yourself each year before the insurer pays.
- 2026: €385 for everyone aged 18 and over.
- 2027: it is expected to rise to €400, the first rise since 2016. That is the estimate in the government's 2027 budget and the amount in the first insurer's 2027 prices. The government's own question-and-answer page still says €385 for 2027, so check the figure on your 2027 policy.
Some care is free of the deductible, most importantly GP visits. A hospital visit, a scan or prescription medicines usually do count.
One thing to know: the bill for the deductible often arrives weeks or months after the treatment, sometimes after you have already gone home. Keep your insurer's contact details.
What it costs
You pay a monthly premium. Prices differ by insurer and policy, so these are government averages, not your price:
- 2026: an estimated average of €159 a month for the basic policy.
- 2027: the government estimates an average of about €169 a month. Insurers must publish their 2027 prices by 12 November 2026, and the first one already announced a price above that average.
Supplementary insurance comes on top.
The healthcare allowance: get part of it back
If your income is low, the Dutch tax office can pay you a monthly healthcare allowance (zorgtoeslag). Many temporary workers miss it.
In 2026 you can get it if:
- you are 18 or older,
- you have Dutch health insurance,
- your income is not higher than €40,857 a year (or €51,142 together with a partner), and
- your savings are not too high.
The maximum in 2026 is €129 a month for a single person. The lower your income, the more you get. The amounts for 2027 will be announced after the insurers publish their prices.
You apply online in Mijn toeslagen at toeslagen.nl, which needs a DigiD login. You only apply once; after that it continues while you still qualify. For 2026 you can still apply until 31 December 2027.
Three things to watch:
- Extra rules apply if you are not Dutch or live outside the Netherlands. Check toeslagen.nl/zorgtoeslag.
- Report changes within 4 weeks, for example a higher income. Anything paid too much is paid back after the year ends.
- Stop it yourself when you leave the Netherlands.
Insurance through your agency
Many Dutch employment agencies offer a collective policy for their workers. The premium is usually deducted from your wage every week, so you do not have to arrange anything yourself, and the cover starts with your job.
It is ordinary Dutch health insurance, often with some supplementary cover. Since 2023, insurers may no longer discount the basic policy for groups, so a collective policy is not automatically cheaper. The weekly deduction should be agreed with you and shown on every payslip.
Switching insurer
You can switch insurer once a year, for the new year:
- Insurers publish next year's prices before 12 November.
- Cancel your current policy by 31 December.
- Take out a new one before 1 February. You are then insured from 1 January, backwards.
If you take out the new policy before 31 December, the new insurer usually cancels the old one for you.
When you leave the Netherlands
Your insurance does not stop on its own when you go home. When you stop working in the Netherlands, tell your insurer and cancel the policy; they may ask for proof, such as the end of your contract or your deregistration from the municipality. Otherwise the premium keeps running.
If you live in another EU country but work in the Netherlands, ask your Dutch insurer about the S1 form (formerly E106). It lets you register with the health insurer where you live, so you can also get care there. Family members at home may be covered through the CAK, under conditions; ask before you assume they are.
Questions to ask your agency
- Do you offer a collective health insurance policy, and from which date does it start?
- How much is deducted each week, and does that include supplementary cover?
- Am I free to choose my own insurer instead?
- What happens to the policy when my contract or my job ends?
- Do you help with applying for the healthcare allowance?
- Who sends me the bill for the deductible, and when?
A good agency answers these before your first day.
This article explains the general Dutch rules for 2026 and 2027 as known in November 2026. Your own policy and the official sources (government.nl, toeslagen.nl) are what apply to you.