Dormant employment and WIA: checking income, work and pension

Dormant employment and WIA: checking income, work and pension

Termination compensation does not answer how you will meet monthly expenses afterwards. Employment, WIA, supplements and pension operate alongside each other. This guide helps prepare a financial overview and questions for UWV, the employer and pension provider. It does not calculate an individual benefit or pension entitlement.

Employment and WIA are separate legal relationships. Ask how the actual change affects your award.

No. UWV distinguishes income types. Check the particular payment and follow the applicable reporting instructions.

That depends on the scheme and any premium waiver. Request an answer from the pension provider for your situation.

1. Start with the current WIA decision

Compare the initial award with later changes. Record the benefit type, effective date and associated reporting or participation obligations. Saying only that you receive WIA is insufficient to assess work and income reliably. Whether an employment agreement exists and whether a benefit is awarded are separate legal questions.

Keep reassessments, payment statements and any objection documents. Make an unresolved decision or ongoing investigation visible. An employment settlement does not determine a dispute about the degree of incapacity. Ask UWV about concrete changes and record any formal challenge deadline. Do not let negotiations about compensation obscure a separate decision that still needs a timely response.

2. Check whether wage continuation was extended

Establish the actual end of wage continuation and any extension or sanction. UWV describes circumstances requiring the employer to keep paying longer. Assuming a fixed 104-week endpoint without checking can create a false income gap or a premature termination proposal. Use the actual documents rather than adding two calendar years to the first sickness date.

If paid suitable work continues, list those hours and amounts separately. Ask which duties, hours and pay arrangements remain. This may affect whether employment is truly dormant and the financial comparison between continuation and termination. You do not need to make every legal classification yourself, but an adviser needs the correct facts to distinguish different situations.

3. Describe each kind of income separately

UWV publishes specific rules about income that must be reported. Identify wages for work, arrears, compensation and other payments by type. Do not assume every departure payment is processed as ordinary monthly earnings. Equally, a bank description using the word compensation does not prove that no reporting is required.

Ask about the actual item where uncertain and keep the explanation. Follow the applicable reporting instructions. Separate one-off capital from continuing monthly income in your household budget. A large compensation offer cannot be evaluated reliably without understanding benefits, supplements, expenses and the purpose for which the money will be needed. This guide does not provide personal tax or investment advice.

4. Investigate supplements and insurance independently

A collective agreement, employer arrangement or insurance policy may provide payments outside the WIA award. Ask who pays, under which terms, for how long and what employment termination changes. Obtain the policy or scheme and current statements. A payment that arrived automatically for years does not establish that it continues unchanged after departure.

Compare the written conditions for maintaining or ending employment without assuming which is preferable. Request confirmation from the insurer or administrator about the relevant date and event. Have unclear wording reviewed. The employer can explain its own arrangement but does not necessarily give a binding answer on an external insurance policy or UWV entitlement.

Illustrative example

An employee compares termination compensation with continuing employment. They first check WIA, a collective-agreement supplement and pension premium relief, keeping the one-off payment separate from monthly income. Fictional example, not a recommendation for an individual choice.

5. Check pension accrual and incapacity-related premium relief

Ask the pension provider about current accrual and any premium waiver for incapacity. Check whether the correct incapacity information is registered and whether termination requires notification or another action. Coverage depends on the pension scheme and individual position. There is no reliable universal answer covering every dormant employment arrangement.

Keep a written reply and its conditions. Ask about changes in incapacity, new work or recovery as well. An employer no longer paying salary has not thereby explained pension accrual. Keep this check separate from the compensation calculation so a one-off amount does not hide a longer-term effect. An employment adviser may need the provider's answer before assessing a proposed agreement fully.

6. Separate compensation from the final employment account

List compensation, outstanding wages, holidays, expenses and other claims individually. Check gross and net processing and payment dates. A total with final discharge may settle more rights than the original compensation question. Ask which items are included and which remain outside the agreement before comparing offers or accepting that the account is complete.

The valuation date requires legal assessment; the last negotiation day is not automatically correct. Use [requesting termination](guide:slapend-dienstverband-beeindiging-verzoeken) for the proposal and [checking final pay](guide:eindafrekening-controleren) for outstanding amounts. Assess post-agreement income separately. An employer statement promising benefit preservation is not a general guarantee from UWV or an external provider.

7. Prepare a decision sheet with separate deadlines

State the actual choice: continuation, termination, an offered amount or an incorrect benefit decision. For each income source list the current amount, duration, legal or contractual basis and unanswered question. Put one-off payments separately. This helps an adviser obtain missing information rather than making a recommendation from an incomplete total.

Track agreement, court and UWV deadlines independently. Do not wait for one organisation's final answer while a deadline with another expires. The main [dormant-employment guide](guide:slapend-dienstverband) connects the issues, while your individual circumstances determine the appropriate choice. Written confirmations and a clear timeline support that assessment without assuming every financial consequence follows automatically from one settlement clause.

Compare the relevant dates with the current agreement or decision.

Keep the application, payslips, correspondence and proof of receipt.

Ask for a written explanation of discrepancies and monitor the deadline in the decision.

Discuss medical details with the occupational physician and a legal dispute with appropriate legal assistance.

Does WIA automatically stop when employment ends?

Employment and WIA are separate legal relationships. Ask how the actual change affects your award.

Are all payments reported in the same way?

No. UWV distinguishes income types. Check the particular payment and follow the applicable reporting instructions.

Will pension always continue?

That depends on the scheme and any premium waiver. Request an answer from the pension provider for your situation.

Can an employer guarantee benefits?

Employer wording does not automatically bind UWV or an external administrator. Check their own conditions and decisions.

Sources and editorial notes
Sources current as of: November 5, 2026
1. UWV: ontslag na twee jaar ziekte
Publisher: UWV
https://www.uwv.nl/nl/ontslag/ontslag-na-2-jaar-arbeidsongeschiktheid-ziekte
2. UWV: welke inkomsten bij arbeidsongeschiktheidsuitkeringen doorgeven
Publisher: UWV
https://www.uwv.nl/nl/inkomsten-doorgeven/wia-wao-waz-wajong-ziektewet-welke-inkomsten-doorgeven
3. Hoge Raad: Xella en het einde van een slapend dienstverband
Publisher: Hoge Raad der Nederlanden
https://www.hogeraad.nl/actueel/nieuwsoverzicht/2019/november/hoge-raad-verplicht-einde-slapend-dienstverband-0/
4. UWV: huidige compensatieregeling langdurige arbeidsongeschiktheid
Publisher: UWV
https://www.uwv.nl/nl/ontslag/compensatie-transitievergoeding-langdurige-arbeidsongeschiktheid
5. Rijksoverheid: compensatie transitievergoeding en plannen
Publisher: Rijksoverheid
https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/themas/werk/ontslag/compensatie-transitievergoeding
6. Rijksoverheid: Prinsjesdag 2026 en uitstel arbeidsmarktmaatregelen
Publisher: Rijksoverheid
https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/actueel/nieuws/2026/09/15/prinsjesdag-2026-maatregelen-op-het-gebied-van-szw
The source publications are in Dutch. All language editions cover Dutch law.