Zero-hours contracts in the Netherlands: current rules and the 2028 changes

A zero-hours contract (nulurencontract) is an employment contract without a guaranteed number of hours: the employee works only when called and is paid for the hours worked. Under current Dutch law it is a form of on-call contract, protected by Article 7:628a of the Dutch Civil Code: calls at least four days in advance, pay if a call is cancelled late, a minimum of three hours' pay per call in small contracts, and an offer of fixed hours after 12 months. From 1 January 2028 the Act on more security for flexible workers largely ends the zero-hours contract: working hours must as a rule be more than zero, and zero-hours arrangements remain possible only for young people, pupils, students and pensioners working at most 16 hours a week on average.

Zero-hours contracts in the Netherlands at a glance

• Legal nature: an on-call contract under Article 7:628a of the Dutch Civil Code.
• Same basic rights: minimum wage, holiday, holiday allowance and the transition payment when the employer ends the contract.
• Four-day rule: calls must come at least four days in advance; later cancellation or changes are paid.
• Three-hour minimum: pay for at least three hours per call in contracts of fewer than 15 hours without fixed times.
• After 12 months: the employer must offer fixed hours based on the average worked.
• From 1 January 2028: hours must be more than zero, except for a small group of workers; existing zero-hours contracts become bandwidth contracts by operation of law.

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What Is a Zero-Hours Contract Under Dutch Law?

An employment contract in which no fixed number of working hours is agreed: the employer calls the employee when there is work, and the employee is paid for the hours actually worked. Dutch law treats it as an on-call contract (oproepovereenkomst).

There is an on-call contract if the working hours are not laid down as one number of hours per period of at most a month (or at most a year with wages spread evenly), or if the employee has no right to wages for agreed work not performed (Article 7:628a(9) of the Dutch Civil Code). A zero-hours contract is the most flexible version: the agreed hours are nil. A zero-hours worker is an employee, not a freelancer, with an employment contract that is either fixed-term or permanent. For the general rules on on-call work, see on-call contracts under Dutch law; for contracts with a minimum number of hours, see min-max contracts.

What Rights Does a Zero-Hours Worker Have?

The same basic employment rights as any other employee, calculated on the hours actually worked: at least the statutory minimum wage, paid holiday, holiday allowance, and sick pay. When the employer ends the contract, the employee is entitled to the transition payment from the first day of employment (Article 7:673 of the Dutch Civil Code).

The transition payment is one third of a month's salary for each year of employment, pro rata for shorter periods, with a statutory cap (Article 7:673(2)). Its calculation is explained on the transition payment. Because the contract is an employment contract, the ordinary rules on fixed-term contracts and the chain rule also apply; see the chain rule.

What Rules Apply to Calls, Cancellations and Minimum Pay?

An on-call employee does not have to respond to a call made less than four days in advance, and is entitled to wages if the employer cancels or changes a call within those four days (Article 7:628a(2) and (3) of the Dutch Civil Code).

• Four-day notice: the call must be made in writing or electronically. A collective agreement may shorten the four days, but not to less than 24 hours (Article 7:628a(4)).
• Late cancellation: if the employer withdraws or changes the call within four days of the start, the employee is paid as if the work had been performed; the cancellation must also be in writing or electronic (Article 7:628a(3)).
• Three-hour minimum: where fewer than 15 hours a week are agreed and the working times are not fixed, or where there is an on-call contract, the employee is paid for at least three hours for each period of work shorter than three hours (Article 7:628a(1)).
• Seasonal work: a collective agreement may disapply the four-day rule and the fixed-hours offer for designated seasonal jobs that can be performed for at most nine months a year (Article 7:628a(11)).

These rules are mandatory: they cannot be set aside to the employee's disadvantage by individual agreement (Article 7:628a(12)).

When Must the Employer Offer Fixed Hours?

Each time the on-call contract has lasted 12 months, the employer must, within one month, offer in writing or electronically a fixed number of hours at least equal to the average hours worked in the previous 12 months (Article 7:628a(5) of the Dutch Civil Code).

The fixed hours must start no later than the first day after two months have passed, and the employee has one month to accept. Contracts that follow each other with gaps of no more than six months count together. The employee may refuse the offer and stay on the on-call contract. If the employer does not make the offer, the employee is entitled to wages over the hours that should have been offered, for as long as the employer fails to comply (Article 7:628a(8)).

Can a Zero-Hours Worker Ask for More Predictable Work?

Yes. An employee with at least 26 weeks of service can ask in writing for a form of work with more predictable and secure working conditions, such as a contract with fixed hours (Article 2b of the Flexible Working Act).

An employer with 10 or more employees must decide in writing, with reasons, within one month; an employer with fewer than 10 employees within three months. Without a timely decision, the form of work is adjusted as requested. The employee may not be disadvantaged for making the request. See flexible working in the Netherlands.

What Changes for Zero-Hours Contracts on 1 January 2028?

The Act on more security for flexible workers (Wet meer zekerheid flexwerkers, Bulletin of Acts and Decrees 2026, 205) enters into force on 1 January 2028. From then on, an employment contract must as a rule state one number of hours greater than zero per period of at most a year (Article 7:628aa(1) of the Dutch Civil Code as amended). The zero-hours contract therefore disappears for most workers.

If a contract from 2028 onwards does not state valid working hours and no exception applies, the law fills the gap: the working hours are the average per week over the previous three months, if the contract has lasted at least three months, and always at least three hours a week (Article 7:628aa(5)).

What Happens to Existing Zero-Hours Contracts on 1 January 2028?

A contract that on 1 January 2028 qualifies as an on-call contract under the old rules, which includes a zero-hours contract, becomes a bandwidth contract under Article 7:628ab(1) of the Dutch Civil Code by operation of law (Article 228(1) of the Transitional Act for the new Civil Code, inserted by the Act on more security for flexible workers).

• Exceptions: the conversion does not apply if a derogation is permitted under Article 7:628ac(5), (7) or (9), which covers the exception group described below, or under Article 7:691(7) for temporary agency work, or if the contract already meets the conditions of Article 7:628ab(1) and (2)(a).
• Minimum hours: the minimum equals the average hours worked in the 12 preceding months; for a contract that has lasted less than 12 months, the average over the originally agreed remaining term. Contracts that followed each other with gaps of at most six months are counted together (Article 228(3)).
• First offer of fixed hours: for a converted contract, the employer makes the first offer under Article 7:628ab(5) 12 months after 1 January 2028 (Article 228(2)).

Who May Still Work on a Zero-Hours Contract From 2028?

Only employees who work on average at most 16 hours a week for the employer and who are younger than 18, a pupil, a student during their enrolment, or have reached state pension age (Article 7:628ac(1) of the Dutch Civil Code as amended). For them, the parties may agree in writing to depart from the fixed-hours rule (Article 7:628ac(9)).

Pupils and students are defined by reference to enrolment at a school, a vocational or adult education institution, a university or university of applied sciences, or a comparable institution in the European Economic Area (Article 7:628ac(2) and (3)). For these workers the wage-payment obligation for work not performed may also be excluded for the first six months, in total over successive contracts (Article 7:628ac(5) and (6)).

What Happens When a Worker No Longer Falls Within the Exception?

The contract then automatically counts as a bandwidth contract under Article 7:628ab, with a minimum number of hours equal to the average hours worked in the previous 12 months, or since the start of the contract if it has lasted less than 12 months (Article 7:628ac(10) of the Dutch Civil Code as amended).

This happens, for example, when a student finishes their studies or the average hours exceed 16 a week. Under a bandwidth contract the maximum may be at most 130% of the minimum per period of at most a quarter, the four-day call rule applies, and the employer must offer fixed hours after 12 months (Article 7:628ab). For contracts that already count as a bandwidth contract under this conversion, the first offer is due 12 months after the conversion (Article 7:628ab(6)).

What Should Employers and Workers Do Now?

1. Check the calendar: until 31 December 2027 the current on-call rules apply; the new rules apply from 1 January 2028.
2. Map the workforce: identify which zero-hours workers fall within the exception group (at most 16 hours a week on average and young, pupil, student or pensioner).
3. Plan the change: for other workers, decide on a fixed-hours contract or a bandwidth contract with a minimum and a maximum of at most 130%.
4. Keep making the 12-month offers under the current rules; failure to offer gives a wage claim.
5. Workers: after 26 weeks, consider a written request for more predictable work under Article 2b of the Flexible Working Act.

For how temporary agency work and fixed-term chains change in 2028, see temporary agency work and fixed-term and permanent contracts.

Which Legal Sources Govern Zero-Hours Contracts?

• Article 7:628a of the Dutch Civil Code, on-call contracts (current text)
• Article 7:673 of the Dutch Civil Code, the transition payment
• Article 2b of the Flexible Working Act, request for more predictable work
• Wet meer zekerheid flexwerkers (Bulletin of Acts and Decrees 2026, 205), in force from 1 January 2028 (2026, 206): new Articles 7:628aa, 7:628ab and 7:628ac of the Dutch Civil Code
• Article 228 of the Transitional Act for the new Civil Code (inserted by the Act on more security for flexible workers), conversion of existing on-call contracts