- 2017Implementation
- 2018Implementation
- 2019Implementation
- 2020Implementation
- 2021Implementation
- 2022Implementation
- 2023Implementation
- 2024Implementation
Background
Upper secondary VET offers two equivalent pathways: school-based (BOL) and dual/apprenticeship (BBL). The work-based learning requirements in VET are regulated by law (the Adult and vocational education Act, 1996 and the VET and education Law, 2006).
The decreasing number of students in dual VET programmes (from 170 000 in 2009/10 to less than 100 000 in 2015/16) raised worries about labour market polarisation and concerns about the employability prospects of upper secondary VET graduates (at levels 2 and 3, where apprenticeships are predominantly found). In response, the Social and Economic Council of the Netherlands (SER) was instructed by the government to look closely into labour market changes and developments (including the potential impact on recent education choices of students) and to reflect how to improve workplace learning.
In 2016, the preliminary findings of the SER study identified possible explanations for the declining number of dual VET students, such as the economic crisis, increased participation in general education and the negative image of dual VET. Reference was also made to a number of government measures, such as the intensification of certain subjects (central exams being introduced for languages and maths), and the 2014 cascade funding scheme (funding decreases when students need more time than the intended duration of the training) that might have caused uncertainty among employers. The final results of the study included recommendations on encouraging workplace learning in both pathways and cooperation between the education and business community.
Objectives
Subsidy schemes for workplace learning are meant to encourage employers to offer apprenticeships and work placements by covering their costs for supervising apprentices and students.
Description
The existing subsidy scheme for companies to cover the costs of offering learning places to apprentices (BBL students, and also applicable to VMBO, MBO and higher professional education - HBO VET programmes) was extended in 2017/18 to cover the costs related to learners enrolled in secondary special needs education (voortgezet speciaal onderwijs), practical education (praktijkonderwijs) and upper secondary VET EQF level 1 programmes. In December 2018, it was decided to extend the duration of this subsidy scheme for employers till 2023. Work-based learning is subsidised not only for VET students in the dual track (BBL), but also for higher education students on dual track pathways in technology, care and agriculture.
Further, to raise the attractiveness of work-based learning among employers, minimum wages for dual track students were not increased.
The Cabinet decided to abolish cascade funding for both dual and school-based VET, starting from the 2019/20 school year. This type of funding existed for only a few years. The reason for this decision was that the longer students stay in education, in either dual or school-based VET programmes, the less funding the school receives in every sequential year.
After a decline of several years, the number of apprenticeships (BBL) has increased from 118 000 in 2018 to 127 000 in 2020. As part of the third Recovery package and of the Educational support programme to tackle bottlenecks caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, subsidies for apprenticeships will be increased up to EUR 2 700. By increasing the budget for the subsidy scheme for employers to hire apprentices in the academic years 2020/21 and 2021/22, the government is encouraging employers in sectors hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic to maintain apprenticeships. This makes it cheaper for companies to retain the professionals of the future in these difficult economic times in the interests of students and companies. Additional funding is available for apprenticeships in agriculture, hospitality and recreation to stimulate the learning culture in these sectors.
For the period 2020-24, there is additional funding available for apprenticeships in agriculture, hospitality and recreation. The aim of this additional funding is to stimulate the learning culture in these sectors. For 2022, an evaluation of the subsidy scheme is scheduled, which will be performed by an independent research institute. One of the additional aims of the evaluation is to investigate whether expanding the subsidy scheme into the Caribbean Netherlands is desirable and feasible.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, additional funding is available for apprenticeships in sectors sensitive to economic cycles in order to help maintain the number of available apprenticeships. Additional funding is also made available for health and technology because of the significant labour market shortages of personnel in these sectors.
The relevant review is pending. The subsidy scheme for workplace learning has been extended by one year, from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023.
The evaluation of the subsidy scheme has been published, revealing a rise in the number of applications over recent years. Employers who applied for the subsidy generally express positive feedback. Regarding the scheme's effectiveness, 28% of employers report that the subsidy motivated them to offer apprenticeships, while an equal percentage state that they were already inclined to establish apprenticeships regardless of the subsidy. In response to the review, the minister has decided to extend the subsidy scheme for the period 2024-2028.
The national budget for the education ministry for 2025 shows a reduction in the subsidy scheme budget for workplace learning. According to the budget memorandum, the ministry intends to reduce the yearly budget from EUR 274 000 in 2024 to EUR 79 000 in 2029. The accompanying letter from the minister states that the subsidy cuts in the draft budget for 2026-2029 are provisional, meaning that the minister intends to reduce subsidy budgets but that decisions on how to implement these cuts have not yet been made.
Bodies responsible
- Ministry of Education, Culture and Science
Target groups
Entities providing VET
- Companies
Thematic categories
Governance of VET and lifelong learning
This thematic category looks at existing legal frameworks providing for strategic, operational – including quality assurance – and financing arrangements for VET and lifelong learning (LLL). It examines how VET and LLL-related policies are placed in broad national socioeconomic contexts and coordinate with other strategies and policies, such as economic, social and employment, growth and innovation, recovery and resilience.
This thematic category covers partnerships and collaboration networks of VET stakeholders – especially the social partners – to shape and implement VET in a country, including looking at how their roles and responsibilities for VET at national, regional and local levels are shared and distributed, ensuring an appropriate degree of autonomy for VET providers to adapt their offer.
The thematic category also includes efforts to create national, regional and sectoral skills intelligence systems (skills anticipation and graduate tracking) and using skills intelligence for making decisions about VET and LLL on quality, inclusiveness and flexibility.
This thematic sub-category refers to the ways VET is funded at the system level. Policies include optimisation of VET provider funding that allows them to adapt their offer to changing skill needs, green and digital transitions, the social agenda and economic cycles, e.g. increasing the funding for VET or for specific programmes. They can also concern changing the mechanism of how the funding is allocated to VET schools (per capita vs based on achievement or other criteria). Using EU funds and financial instruments for development of VET and skills also falls into this sub-category.
This thematic sub-category refers both to formal mechanisms of stakeholder engagement in VET governance and to informal cooperation among stakeholders, which motivate shared responsibility for quality VET. Formal engagement is usually based on legally established institutional procedures that clearly define the role and responsibilities for relevant stakeholders in designing, implementing and improving VET. It also refers to establishing and increasing the degree of autonomy of VET providers for agile and flexible VET provision.
In terms of informal cooperation, the sub-category covers targeted actions by different stakeholders to promote or implement VET. This cooperation often leads to creating sustainable partnerships and making commitments for targeted actions, in line with the national context and regulation, e.g. national alliances for apprenticeships, pacts for youth or partnerships between schools and employers. It can also include initiatives and projects run by the social partners or sectoral organisations or networks of voluntary experts and executives, retired or on sabbatical, to support their peers in the fields of VET and apprenticeships, as part of the EAfA.
Subsystem
Further reading
Country
Type of development
Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Changing funding provisions in dual VET: Netherlands. In Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Timeline of VET policies in Europe (2024 update) [Online tool].
https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/mt/tools/timeline-vet-policies-europe/search/28433