Curaçao employee work and residence route — January 2025 snapshot
A foreign national taking local employment generally needs two linked permissions: the employer must obtain a tewerkstellingsvergunning (employment permit), and the worker needs an appropriate residence title from Curaçao's Admission Office.
Employment-permit sequence
The Government of Curaçao states that an employer seeking to hire a foreign worker must apply for the employment permit. Before filing, the employer must normally register the vacancy and show active local recruitment for at least five weeks.
The immigration authority's work guidance says the employer-side employment permit comes first; the residence-permit application follows after a positive employment-permit decision.
Skilled-worker positioning
Curaçao does not present this as a separate points-based skilled-worker visa. It is an employer-sponsored employment framework, so the legal focus is the job, employer authorization, labor-market process and residence admission.
For short remote work for a foreign employer, compare the remote-worker short stay.
See the Curaçao hub, self-employed route, Caribbean region, work visas, methodology, and legal disclaimer.
Official and supporting sources
- Immigratiedienst Curaçao — Workgovernment · accessed 2026-10-01
- Government of Curaçao — Employment permitgovernment · accessed 2026-10-01