A provisional residence permit (MVV) is an entry visa for long-term residence in the Netherlands. This is about staying in the Schengen area longer than 90 days.
A foreign national from outside the EU who wants to stay in the Netherlands for more than three months to work, study or stay with his family needs a residence permit. The conditions for this are laid down in national laws and regulations for which the Ministry of Justice and Security bears policy responsibility, and the IND, as the final authority, bears implementation responsibility.
The MVV is applied for at the Dutch embassy in the country of residence, which asks the IND for advice. If the IND gives a positive advice, the visa will generally be issued. The procedure takes approximately 3 months. The main purposes of residence for which an MVV is applied for are
- Working in the Netherlands (often a work permit is also required for this).
- Studying in the Netherlands.
- Living in the Netherlands with a Dutch partner (“family formation” or “family reunification”).
Most nationalities must first apply for a provisional residence permit (mvv, entry visa) before departure before they can travel to the Netherlands. The application for an mvv and residence permit have been merged into one 'Access and Residence' (TEV) procedure.
After a positive decision on an application by the IND, the foreign national can collect the MVV from the consular department of a Dutch representation abroad. The vast majority of applications are initiated by a sponsor in the Netherlands, whereby the Ministry of Foreign Affairs only plays a role in the MVV issuance process after approval by the IND.
Corona pandemic
In 2019, an MVV was issued 61.042 times. That number was significantly lower in 2020 with 39.647 MVV issues (-35%). The cause of this is the corona pandemic. Due to the entry restrictions, the provision of MVV services also came under great pressure as a result of the pandemic. At the start of the corona crisis (mid-March 2020), consular services, and therefore MVV issuance at the posts, were forced to stop.
The fact that persons in possession of a valid MVV were exempted from the entry ban did not automatically mean that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was able to issue MVVs anywhere in the world. While chain partners (such as the IND) in the Netherlands were mainly dependent on the Dutch situation and measures, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was mainly dependent on the local situation, such as lockdowns, domestic travel restrictions, exit or flight bans, when it came to issuing an mvv. In some countries where medical facilities were not adequate, posted personnel were repatriated to the Netherlands, so that at various posts there was only a minimum staffing for emergency services for a longer period of time.
MVV is now back to pre-corona level in 2021.
Source: State of the Consular Edition 2021
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