Your notice period as an agency worker depends on exactly two things: which type of agency contract you have, and who is ending it. Look those two up in your contract and you have your answer within a minute.
So take out your agency contract first. Does it contain an agency clause? Then a different rule applies than for a contract without one. Below is the full overview, followed by two worked examples.
Which period applies to me?
| Your contract | Agency clause? | Who terminates | Period | Exception |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agency contract with an agency clause (phase A) | Yes | U | Notify the agency at least one working day in advance | – |
| Agency contract with an agency clause (phase A) | Yes | The agency, by invoking the agency clause | No notice period; the contract ends by operation of law. There is, however, a ten-calendar-day notification period once the placement has lasted more than 26 worked weeks | If the agency does not observe those ten days it owes compensation equal to the basic wage over the period not observed, unless it offers you suitable work during that period |
| Agency contract without an agency clause, fixed term (usually phase B) | No | You or the agency | The statutory notice period of Article 7:672 of the Dutch Civil Code, against the next working day | Early termination is only possible if it has not been expressly excluded in writing. If the contract is shorter than the statutory notice period, early termination is not possible at all |
| Agency contract without an agency clause, indefinite term (phase C) | No | You or the agency | The statutory notice period, against the next working day | The agency is also subject to ordinary dismissal law (UWV permission or dissolution by the court) |
The statutory notice period (Article 7:672 of the Dutch Civil Code). For u as the employee it is one month. For the employer it depends on how long the employment has lasted on the day notice is given: less than five years, one month; five to ten years, two months; ten to fifteen years, three months; and fifteen years or more, four months. Notice takes effect at the end of the month, unless another day has been designated in writing or by custom, and the collective agreement for agency workers has done exactly that: there, the next working day applies.
One exception you should know about. If the agency relies on exclusion of continued pay, you may terminate an agency contract without an agency clause with immediate effect. You then do not have to observe any notice period.
Two examples, with the date worked out
Example 1: you leave of your own accord
Starting points. You are in phase B on a fixed-term agency contract without an agency clause, running to 31 December. Early termination is not excluded in the contract. You have been employed for two years, so your statutory notice period is one month.
Action. You give notice in writing and the agency receives your message on Monday 6 April.
Calculated end date. One month from the date of receipt takes you to 6 May. Because the collective agreement allows notice against the next working day, your contract ends on Wednesday 6 May. If your contract had ordinary end-of-month notice, that would have been 31 May. The difference is therefore considerable: check which variant your own contract provides for.
Example 2: the agency ends the contract
Starting points. You are in phase A on an agency contract with an agency clause. The placement has now lasted 30 worked weeks, so more than 26. On Tuesday 7 April the hirer says it no longer wants to take you on.
Action. The agency invokes the agency clause and notifies you of this on Wednesday 8 April.
Calculated end date. There is no notice period, the contract ends by operation of law, but the ten-calendar-day notification period does apply. Counted from 8 April, your contract therefore does not end before Saturday 18 April. If the agency says you can stop immediately, you are entitled to compensation equal to the basic wage over the ten days that were not observed, unless it offers you suitable work during that period.
In both cases keep the evidence: send your notice by e-mail with a read receipt, and ask the agency for written confirmation stating the end date.
Assignment or contract? Two different things
This confusing point regularly costs agency workers money. Two agreements run alongside each other:
- The assignment between the agency and the hirer. The hirer can end it. That is an agreement to which you are not a party.
- Your employment contract with the agency. That is your employment.
Only where your contract contains an agency clause does the end of the assignment also bring your employment contract to an end by operation of law. Without an agency clause you simply remain employed by the agency even if the assignment stops, with everything that entails, including wages. What can be expected of the agency in that situation is set out in our article on termination of an agency contract.
Which phase you are in determines what type of contract you can have at all. That counting is explained in our article on phases A, B and C.
Are you ill? Different rules apply
This is the most important warning on this page. If you fall ill while working on an agency contract with an agency clause, the placement does not end because the hirer no longer wants you, and so your agency contract does not end either. Your employment contract continues.
What does take effect: if a specific end date has been agreed in your agency contract, the contract ends on that date, even if you are ill. If you are then unfit for work and entitled to sickness benefit, the agency tops it up to 90% of the benefit daily wage for the first 52 weeks, and to 80% for weeks 53 to 104.
Report sickness on the first day, as early as possible and in any event before 10:00, to both the agency and the hirer, and give the correct address where you can be reached.
If you are presented with a settlement agreement while ill, do not sign without advice: it affects both your wages and your benefit. Read our article on a settlement agreement during illness.
Sending notice and keeping evidence
- In writing. Always give notice in writing, even where oral notice is allowed. State your name, staff number, the date and the desired end date.
- Proof of receipt. The period runs from receipt, not from sending. Ask for confirmation of receipt or send by registered post.
- Ask for confirmation. Have the agency confirm the end date in writing, and check it against your own calculation.
- Keep your timesheets. The number of worked weeks determines your phase, and with it your rights. Keep payslips and timesheets.
- Check the final settlement. Outstanding holiday hours, holiday allowance and any supplements should appear in it.
Note: a different collective agreement may apply
Does your temping agency fall under the NBBU collective agreement? We have set both collective agreements side by side. On the points covered on this page, the NBBU collective agreement for temporary workers 2026–2028 and the CAO for Temporary Workers 2026–2028 are identical: the same 52 worked weeks, the same three years and six contracts in the next phase, the same interruption period of more than six months, the same ten-calendar-day notification period, the same sickness arrangement and the same StiPP contribution. What differs is the terminology: the NBBU speaks of phases 1-2, 3 and 4 where the other collective agreement uses A, B and C. Both agreements expressly permit the other designation, so those names mean the same thing. Check your payslip or your contract to see which collective agreement has been declared applicable, and for a specific question consult the text of that agreement itself.
What changes on 1 January 2028. The Act on greater security for flexible workers has been adopted and takes effect in two parts: the part on pay expected on 1 January 2027, and the part on flexible contracts on 1 January 2028. From that later date, phase B will among other things be shortened and the agency clause can no longer be applied in phase B. Until then the rules on this page apply in full. If you are deciding something just before a transition date, always check which regime applies to your situation.
Unsure about your end date or a final settlement? Contact us without obligation.
Frequently asked questions
Does my phase affect the notice period?
Not directly. The phase determines which type of agency contract you can have, and that in turn determines the period. In phase A you usually work under an agency clause (uitzendbeding): there is then no notice period, but there is a ten-calendar-day notification period once the placement has lasted more than 26 worked weeks. In phases B and C you work without an agency clause and the statutory notice period of Article 7:672 of the Dutch Civil Code applies. So check your contract first to see whether it contains an agency clause.
Does my contract end as soon as the hirer ends the assignment?
Only if your agency contract contains an agency clause. Your employment contract then ends by operation of law because the placement ends at the hirer’s request. If there is no agency clause you remain employed by the agency even though the assignment has finished, and in principle you keep your claim to wages. The assignment between the agency and the hirer and your own employment contract are two different agreements.
I am ill and the hirer no longer wants me. Does my contract end?
No. Under the collective agreement the placement does not end while you are unfit for work, so the agency contract does not end through the agency clause either. What does still take effect is an end date agreed in the contract: on that date the contract ends by operation of law, even if you are ill at the time. If you are then entitled to sickness benefit, the agency tops it up to 90% of the benefit daily wage for the first 52 weeks and to 80% in weeks 53 to 104.
Can I simply give notice early on a fixed-term contract without an agency clause?
You can, against the next working day and observing the statutory notice period, unless early termination is expressly excluded in writing in your agency contract. If the contract is shorter than the statutory notice period, early termination is not possible at all. One exception: if the agency relies on exclusion of continued pay, you may give notice with immediate effect.