Deducting housing from agency pay (NL)

01May an agency deduct housing costs from wages?

Yes, under strict conditions. The starting point of the Dutch Minimum Wage Act (Wet minimumloon) is clear: the employer may not deduct anything from the minimum wage or set anything off against it (article 13). The act does allow an exception for payments designated by decree. Housing is one of them. The rules are in article 2a of the Minimum Wage and Minimum Holiday Allowance Decree, in force since 1 January 2017.

For staffing agencies, the rules of the collective labour agreement (cao) come on top. So you always check two layers:

The law: how much may come off the minimum wage, and under which conditions?
The cao: what is the maximum price of the housing, given its quality?

The lower of the two is your limit. Then there is the ET scheme, a tax scheme for the extra costs of workers from abroad. It works differently from a deduction; more on that below.

This article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rules and cao texts change. Consult a lawyer or your payroll administrator before you change your payroll or contracts. eyesonrooms does not rent out or broker housing itself.

02What is the maximum deduction under the Minimum Wage Act?

According to the Dutch government, an employer may deduct at most 25% of the gross minimum wage for housing. The decree says that rent, service charges and the costs of utilities with an individual meter together may not exceed 25% of the minimum wage that applies to the employee in that pay period.

That 25% is a ceiling, not a standard amount. In September 2026 the government wrote that employers often deduct the maximum, even when the quality of the housing does not justify it. That is one of the reasons for the plans discussed below.

Note what falls within the 25%: the total housing costs, meaning rent, service charges and energy with an individual meter. The scheme does not mention energy without an individual meter. Whether such costs may be included is a question for your lawyer. For more on energy, read passing on energy costs to tenants.

03Which conditions must the deduction meet?

A deduction is only allowed if all conditions of the decree are met:

Certified or housing-association home. The landlord is a housing association, or it is certified against the housing quality requirements of the cao, after assessment by an accredited certification body. In the staffing sector this is the standard of the Stichting Normering Flexwonen (SNF). See the SNF standard explained.
A written authorisation. The employee gives written permission (a volmacht). According to the government it states the names of employee and employer, the amount you deduct, and what it covers: rent, service charges and energy with an individual meter.
Documents first. Under the decree, the employee gives you a copy of the tenancy agreement and of the documents showing the landlord meets the requirements. You only pay on after checking those copies.
Not for posted workers. The decree makes an authorisation for housing costs void for an employee who is posted to the Netherlands temporarily from abroad. If in doubt, check the worker’s status.

Visibility matters too. In answers to parliament (November 2025) the minister stated that the deduction must be visible on the payslip. The Netherlands Labour Authority checks whether the conditions are met. So show the deduction as a separate, recognisable line on the payslip.

Contracts and beds per resident in one place

With eyesonrooms you track per bed who lives there, which contract applies and when the last inspection was. So the evidence is ready when someone asks.

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04What does the agency cao say about housing?

We used the ABU Cao voor Uitzendkrachten, 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2028 (May 2026 version) and the NBBU Cao voor Uitzendkrachten 2026 to 2028 (publication version 1.9). The NBBU cao states that its content is the same as the ABU cao. Housing is covered in:

Part	Subject
Article 49	Agency workers not permanently resident in the Netherlands: housing, transport and healthcare costs
Article 51	Deductions from wages
Appendix IV	Housing standards
Appendix V	Price-quality system (PKS) for housing

The core of the system, in place since 1 January 2025:

Costs are allowed, but quality sets the maximum. The agency may charge for housing. The price-quality system (PKS) sets the maximum price. A home scores points for privacy (people per bedroom, toilet, shower and kitchen), space and extra facilities. The official calculation model gives the maximum price per location.
25% remains the standard limit. According to the ABU the maximum is 25% of the statutory minimum hourly wage times 40 hours a week.
Exception for higher pay. If the worker earns a fixed base wage of at least 140% of the minimum hourly wage times 40, the 25% limit does not apply. The price may still not exceed the PKS calculation.
No debt from low pay. If wages are too low to deduct the housing costs, the ABU says the remaining debt lapses.
SNF is mandatory. If you house agency workers yourself, SNF certification is mandatory, according to the ABU.

The amounts per point can change from one cao period to the next. Always use the current Appendix V and the calculation model from the ABU or NBBU, not an amount from an old overview.

05What is the ET scheme and how does it relate to the deduction?

The ET scheme covers extraterritorial costs: the extra costs a worker from abroad incurs because they work in the Netherlands temporarily, such as double housing and trips to the home country. An employer may reimburse these costs tax-free under conditions. In the staffing sector this often happens through an exchange (uitruil): part of the gross wage is converted into a tax-free allowance.

Article 37(2) of both the ABU and the NBBU cao sets these conditions:

only for the actual costs of double housing and travel to and from the place of residence in the home country;
the allowance is shown on the payslip;
the wage after the exchange may not be lower than the statutory minimum wage;
the exchange is at most 30% of the gross wage before the exchange;
holiday days, holiday pay and pension still accrue on the exchanged wage.

Under article 37(1) the exchange must be agreed in writing, in (an addendum to) the agency employment contract. You inform the worker in advance about the effects on wage- and income-related schemes.

The difference with a deduction matters. A deduction comes off the wage, within the 25% limit. An ET allowance comes on top of the minimum wage, from the part of the wage above it. The same housing costs may not be used twice. Ask your payroll administrator or tax adviser to check how both schemes fit together in your payroll.

06What happens to the housing when the work ends?

Since the Good Landlordship Act (Wet goed verhuurderschap), the tenancy agreement must be recorded separately from the employment contract. Housing and work are two agreements, on paper. Even so, the government notes that in practice housing regularly ends straight away when the work ends, because migrant workers often have little tenancy protection. The ministry is preparing legislation to strengthen that position. See also the Good Landlordship Act explained.

What exactly applies when an agency contract ends depends on your tenancy agreement and on article 49 of the cao. We deliberately do not give a period here: read the current cao text and have a lawyer review your tenancy agreement. In practice:

Agree clearly in the tenancy agreement how and when the tenancy ends, separately from the work.
Stop the deduction once there is no more wage to deduct from, and settle the last period correctly.
Record the condition of the room at departure, with date and photos, so the settlement can be explained.

07What changes in 2026 and beyond?

The rules have moved a lot in recent years:

Phase-out cancelled (2025). The government planned to phase out the deduction gradually. In November 2025 the minister said the scheme would stay, because abolishing it at that point would do migrant workers more harm than good. The 25% limit stayed in place.
New intention (September 2026). On 10 September 2026 the Minister of Social Affairs and Employment announced that employers should no longer be allowed to deduct rent from the minimum wage from 1 July 2028. This is to coincide with new tenancy legislation on tenancy and rent protection for migrant workers.

In October 2026 the abolition is an intention, not law. Until something changes, the current rules apply. It is still wise to separate rent and wages in your administration now, with a tenancy agreement and a payment flow per resident. Then you are prepared for any outcome.

08How do you keep the paperwork in order?

A deduction can only be defended if the paperwork is right. A short checklist per resident:

a valid SNF certificate for the location (or a housing-association home);
a separate, written tenancy agreement;
a signed authorisation with names, amount and types of cost;
the PKS calculation for the location, and confirmation of points and price to the resident;
the deduction as a separate line on the payslip;
for an ET exchange: the written addendum to the agency contract.

Software helps you track this per bed. In the eyesonrooms housing management software you record residents, beds, contracts and inspections with photos. Calculating wages and deductions remains the job of your payroll administration.

09Frequently asked questions

What is the maximum an agency may deduct for housing?

At most 25% of the gross minimum wage for rent, service charges and energy with an individual meter combined, and only for certified or housing-association homes. Under the cao, the price may also not exceed the outcome of the price-quality system (PKS).

Is a written authorisation required?

Yes. Without a written authorisation from the employee you may not deduct anything for housing from the minimum wage. It states the names of employee and employer, the amount and the types of cost.

Can I use an ET allowance and a deduction at the same time?

They are different schemes: a deduction comes off the wage, an ET allowance comes on top of the minimum wage through an exchange of at most 30% of the gross wage. The same costs may not be used twice. Have the combination checked by your payroll administrator or tax adviser.

Is the minimum wage deduction going to disappear?

The government intends to abolish it from 1 July 2028 (announced September 2026). In October 2026 this is not yet law; the current rules apply.

Does this also apply under the NBBU cao?

Yes. According to its own text, the NBBU Cao voor Uitzendkrachten 2026 to 2028 has the same content as the ABU cao, including housing and the ET scheme.

Deducting housing costs from agency workers’ pay: the rules