✍️ Written by Seliz Demirci, employment lawyer at GMW lawyers.
Being fired on the spot can come as a shock. One moment you’re at work, and the next your employer tells you that your employment contract has ended with immediate effect.
However, in the Netherlands, an employer can’t simply dismiss an employee instantly because something has gone wrong at work.
Ontslag op staande voet, or summary dismissal, is the most severe form of dismissal under Dutch employment law.
The consequences for an employee are significant, which is why strict legal requirements apply. An employer must have a sufficiently serious reason, must act promptly, and must immediately explain to the employee why they are being dismissed.
If these requirements are not met, the dismissal may not be legally valid. An employee can then challenge the dismissal before the Dutch courts.
Therefore, it’s important not to assume that an instant dismissal automatically means that your employment has validly ended.
Unsure of whether your instant dismissal stands? The experts at GMW lawyers have helped hundreds of internationals through situations just like this. Contact their employment law experts to see what they can do for you.
What does “instant/summary dismissal” actually mean?
First things first, let’s understand it. Under Dutch law, summary (or instant) dismissal means that your employer terminates your employment contract with immediate effect.
There is no notice period, and the employer does not need to obtain prior permission from the UWV or ask the court to terminate the employment contract. This makes summary dismissal fundamentally different from an ordinary dismissal.
Normally, an employer who wants to terminate an employment contract must follow the applicable statutory dismissal procedure.
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Depending on the reason for dismissal, an ordinary dismissal generally means obtaining permission from the UWV or requesting the court to terminate the employment contract. The employer must also comply with the applicable notice period.
With a summary or instant dismissal, these safeguards don’t apply beforehand: the employment contract ends immediately if the dismissal is legally valid.
This is precisely why Dutch law sets a very high threshold for dismissal on the spot. It’s reserved for situations involving conduct or circumstances so serious that the employer can’t reasonably be expected to allow the employment relationship to continue, even temporarily.
Need an example? Think theft, fraud, violence or serious threats in the workplace.
However, whether there’s a sufficient reason for instant dismissal always depends on all the circumstances of the case. The employee’s position, length of service, personal circumstances, previous conduct and the seriousness of the incident may all be relevant.
An employer cannot simply label misconduct as a reason for instant dismissal. Whether the dismissal is justified ultimately depends on whether all statutory requirements for summary dismissal have been satisfied.
The three conditions your employer must meet to fire you instantly
Dutch law sets a high bar for instant dismissal. For summary dismissal to be legally valid, the employer must meet three conditions at the same time:
1. There must be an urgent reason (in Dutch: dringende reden)
Your conduct or the circumstances must be sufficiently serious to justify ending the employment relationship immediately. More on this below.
2. Your employer must act without delay (in Dutch: onverwijld)
Once your employer becomes aware of the alleged misconduct, they must investigate and act promptly. An employer generally can’t wait for a considerable period and then rely on the same incident to dismiss you on the spot.
A reasonable amount of time to investigate the facts or obtain legal advice may, however, be permitted.
3. The reason must be communicated immediately
Your employer must tell you clearly, at or immediately around the time of dismissal, why you are being dismissed. This is important because you must be able to understand exactly what conduct is being relied upon, and assess whether you want to challenge the dismissal.
These requirements are cumulative. If even one of them is not satisfied, the instant dismissal may be successfully challenged before the court.
What counts as an “urgent reason”?
An urgent reason is conduct or a circumstance that is so serious that your employer can’t reasonably be expected to continue the employment relationship.
Dutch law provides examples of situations that may constitute an urgent reason. These can include:
- theft, fraud, or embezzlement;
- violence or serious threats in the workplace;
- serious insubordination or persistently refusing to perform work without a valid reason;
- appearing at work under the influence of alcohol or drugs in circumstances where this is sufficiently serious; and
- serious breaches of trust or other serious misconduct.
Of course, this isn’t an exhaustive list, and the fact that your conduct falls within one of these categories doesn’t automatically mean that summary dismissal is justified.
Context is crucial
A Dutch court will consider all the circumstances of the case.
This includes the nature and seriousness of the misconduct, your position and responsibilities, your length of service, your previous employment record and your personal circumstances.
The consequences that summary dismissal has for you may also be relevant.
For example, misconduct committed by an employee in a position of significant financial responsibility may be assessed differently from the same conduct in another role. Similarly, a single incident involving an employee with a long and otherwise exemplary employment record may be viewed differently from repeated misconduct following previous warnings.
Summary dismissal is therefore regarded as an ultimum remedium: a last resort.
Given its far-reaching consequences, the circumstances must justify the employer choosing immediate termination rather than a less severe measure, such as a warning or another form of disciplinary action.
What does NOT count (the grey areas)
Not every mistake or workplace conflict provides a valid reason for summary dismissal. Employers sometimes resort to summary dismissal in situations where the legal threshold is simply not met.
For example, a single mistake at work, poor performance, one heated argument with a manager or colleague, calling in sick, or a relatively minor breach of company rules will generally not be sufficient on its own to justify instant dismissal.
Poor performance, in particular, normally requires an employer to inform you clearly of the shortcomings and give you a genuine opportunity to improve.
In these situations, an employer will generally have to follow the normal dismissal route. Depending on the circumstances, this may require warnings, a performance improvement process or an application to the UWV or the court.
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An employer can’t use summary dismissal simply to bypass these requirements.
There can, however, be grey areas. A breach that appears minor in isolation may become more serious if it has happened repeatedly, if you have previously received clear warnings, or if your particular position requires a high degree of trust.
Ultimately, the court will assess all the circumstances.
Being sick or pregnant won’t protect you
Dutch employment law contains several dismissal prohibitions (in Dutch: opzegverboden) that provide employees with additional protection in certain circumstances.
The best-known examples include protection during illness and pregnancy and protection connected with membership of a works council.
However, these dismissal prohibitions do not prevent a valid instant dismissal.
If there’s a genuine urgent reason and all the requirements for summary dismissal have been met, an employee can, in principle, be dismissed with immediate effect even while sick or pregnant.
This doesn’t mean that illness or pregnancy itself can constitute the urgent reason, as your employer must still establish a separate and legally sufficient urgent reason for the dismissal. The same strict test for instant dismissal continues to apply.
Why timing is everything
An employer who believes there is an urgent reason for dismissal must act onverwijld — without undue delay.
This requirement reflects a simple principle: if the conduct is genuinely so serious that the employment relationship cannot continue even temporarily, the employer can’t leave the issue unresolved for an extended period and then dismiss the employee on the spot.
That doesn’t mean an employer must dismiss you immediately after first hearing an allegation.
The employer is entitled to take a reasonable amount of time to investigate what happened, speak to those involved, gather evidence and, where necessary, obtain legal advice.
During an investigation, an employee may also be temporarily suspended from work, for example, while continuing to receive a salary.
However, the employer must proceed with sufficient urgency. If the employer knows the relevant facts but then waits for days or weeks without a proper explanation before taking action, this may undermine the argument that immediate dismissal was necessary.
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Whether an employer acted quickly enough will depend on the circumstances, including the complexity of the investigation and the steps that reasonably had to be taken.
The key question is whether the employer acted as promptly as could reasonably be expected once the potential urgent reason became known.
What happens to your money and benefits
Summary dismissal can have serious financial consequences. If the dismissal is legally valid, your employment contract ends immediately and your entitlement to salary stops.
Firstly, you will not receive your salary for the notice period.
In addition, you may lose your entitlement to the statutory transitievergoeding (transition payment). This is the case if the conduct leading to the dismissal is considered ernstig verwijtbaar — seriously culpable.
However, an urgent reason for dismissal does not automatically mean that there is also seriously culpable conduct. In exceptional circumstances, a court may therefore still award all or part of the transition payment.
Secondly, your entitlement to Dutch unemployment benefits (WW-uitkering) may be at risk. If the UWV considers that you became unemployed through your own culpable conduct (verwijtbare werkloosheid), unemployment benefits can be refused.
Depending on your financial and personal circumstances, you may instead qualify for social assistance (bijstand) from your municipality.
Finally, you may even owe compensation to your employer.
If you gave your employer an urgent reason to terminate the employment contract immediately, the employer may be entitled to claim statutory compensation from you. Usually, this is the salary for the notice period.
These financial consequences make it particularly important to establish whether the instant dismissal was actually legally valid.
What to do if it happens to you
If you are dismissed on the spot, what you do next can make a significant difference. In particular:
- Do not sign anything immediately. You do not have to agree with the dismissal or sign a document confirming the employer’s version of events.
- Ask for the dismissal and the exact reason in writing. The reason given by your employer is crucial because it determines what the employer will later have to prove.
- Write down the timeline. Record what happened, when your employer became aware of the alleged conduct, when any investigation took place and exactly when and how you were dismissed.
- Consider your preferred outcome. You can ask the court to annul the dismissal and seek continued employment and payment of salary. Alternatively, depending on the circumstances, it may be preferable to negotiate an amicable settlement.
- Get legal advice quickly. In most cases, you have only two months from the date of the summary dismissal to submit the relevant application to the court. This is a strict statutory deadline.
GMW lawyers’ employment experts can help you fight this battle, all while making it accessible to you. Let them handle the legal side of things, while you take care of yourself during this stressful time.
Can you fight it and actually win?
Yes. The fact that your employer has told you that you are dismissed with immediate effect does not necessarily mean that the dismissal will stand.
Summary dismissals are regularly challenged successfully because the legal requirements are strict.
For example, the alleged misconduct may not be serious enough, the employer may have waited too long before acting, the reason for dismissal may not have been communicated clearly enough, or the employer may not be able to prove the allegations.
Broadly speaking, there are two routes.
You can ask the court to annul the summary dismissal
If the court agrees, the employment contract is treated as having continued, and you may be entitled to payment of your salary.
This route can be appropriate if you want to keep your job or preserve your employment rights.
You can look for a financial solution
Alternatively, you may decide not to seek reinstatement and instead pursue a financial solution.
Depending on the circumstances, this can involve claiming statutory compensation or negotiating a settlement with your employer.
A settlement may also address practical matters such as the wording of the termination, a positive or neutral reference and arrangements intended to protect your position when applying for unemployment benefits.
Which option is best depends heavily on the facts of your case. Because both the legal merits and the deadlines need to be assessed quickly, an employment lawyer can help determine at an early stage whether challenging the dismissal or pursuing a negotiated exit is the stronger route.
Have you experienced an instant dismissal in the Netherlands? Tell us about your experience below.