# American Looking to do a Working Holiday in Amsterdam



## jazzman517 (Feb 12, 2011)

Currently, I am an American student spending 6 months studying at a university in Dresden, Germany. However, before coming to Germany, I went to Amsterdam for a few weeks and absolutely fell in love. Essentially, what I would like to do is, after my semester in Dresden is over in July, to go to Amsterdam for 6 months to a year and live and work there. After a bit of research, though, I've learned that working holiday visas are granted in the EU only to citizens of commonwealth countries. I guess my question is: is there any way at all that I could take a year off from school and live and work in the Netherlands as an American, without being worried about deportation and being banned from the Netherlands for life? Sadly, I don't speak Dutch (yet), but I am fluent in German. Is there any hope for me, or should I just start looking for a Dutch woman to marry?


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## jkveenstra (Feb 7, 2011)

As you probably found on the internet, this is not a easy thing. 

I found this link: Nuffic - International students - Living in Holland - Working while studying

It mentions that you are allowed to work for a limited number of hours during your study (I assume you have a Germans student Visa). I'm not sure whether it is possible to work on a German visa in the Netherlands.

"Your employer must apply for the work permit at the UWVWERKbedrijf in Zoetermeer. It will take about five weeks before a decision has been taken. You are not allowed to start work before a work permit has been granted, otherwise your employer risks being fined."

Even if you marry a dutch girl, you still need a work permit. I hope have helped you (a little bit).


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

As a non-EU citizen, you're subject to visa requirements. Basically, you need to find a job with an employer willing and able to sponsor you for a work visa and THEN you apply for the visa once the employer has gotten the proper authorizations to hire a foreigner from outside the EU. It's not easy, to put it mildly, but it's also not impossible.

The Dutch, however, are very strict about visas and visa requirements. I would study the website of the Dutch consulate in the US pretty carefully to see what might be possible.
Cheers,
Bev


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