Netherlands: Winner of the 2025 National Elections and Possible Changes to the Labour Market

On 29 October 2025, national elections were held in the Netherlands. D66, a progressive-liberal political party, received the most votes and was, therefore, considered the winner of the elections. This article highlights the most notable proposed changes in the election program of D66.

 

A. Proposed changes in the election program of D66

Fair and future-proof labour market

• Reduce tax and social security gaps between employees, self-employed workers and other forms of work
• Raise minimum wage and allow work after retirement age
• Lower labour taxes and introduce a tax credit for people working at least four days a week
• Personal learning budget for continuous development and retraining

Reform of the Unemployment Insurance Act (Werkloosheidswet)

• Higher initial benefits

• Shorter duration from two years to one year to encourage permanent employment contracts

Employment conditions & protection

• Better protection for migrant workers through stricter employer requirements and stronger enforcement by the Labour Inspectorate
• Minimum internship allowance; combat internship discrimination with strict enforcement
• Expand sheltered and suitable employment opportunities for people with a distance to the labour market
• Better secondary employment conditions, particularly in sectors such as healthcare

Approach to false self-employment legislation

In the L&E tracker of May 2025, we discussed how the Netherlands now has two legislative proposals on the approach of false self-employment. D66 has mentioned in their programme  to have a preference for the Self-Employer Persons Act (Zelfstandigenwet) as opposed to the earlier proposed Clarification Assessment of Employment Relationships and Legal Presumption Act (Wet Verduidelijking Beoordeling Arbeidsrelaties en Rechtsvermoeden).

 

B. Overview of the process of forming a government in the Netherlands

After parliamentary elections, parties negotiate to form a coalition with the aim to hold a majority in the House of Representatives. The largest party usually takes the initiative, often supplying the information to explore viable coalitions and opening initial talks with potential partners. In order to create a coalition, parties will have to make compromises on their election program. These compromises are laid down in a coalition agreement. This means that the biggest party cannot unilaterally propose legislation but is dependent on the views of other parties within the coalition. As a result, it is not said that all the abovementioned changes will be enforced.

Key Points for HR

Because of how the process of forming a government works in the Netherlands, it is not certain that all proposed changes will be implemented. However, it shows the intentions of the biggest party in the Netherlands and the direction of possible changes in the future.