As of 1 January 2026, the minimum hourly wage will be changed. What are the new amounts?
As of 1 January 2024, the statutory minimum wage has become a statutory minimum hourly wage. This means, the hourly wage no longer depends on the extent of full-time employment, as was the case until then. The minimum wage remained the same regardless of whether the employee’s full-time work week was 36, 38 or 40 hours. As a result, the amount of the minimum wage per hour varied.
The new minimum hourly wage is based on the old minimum wage for a 36-hour work week. Employees who work more than 36 hours for the minimum wage will, in practice, receive an additional wage increase as a result, on top of the regular indexation of wages.
The amounts for the statutory gross minimum hourly wage for employees 21 years of age and older and the minimum hourly youth wage as of 1 January 2026 can be found in the table below. Different amounts apply to apprentices working through vocational training (bbl):
| Age | Percentage | Hourly wage | Hourly wage bbl |
| 21 years and older | 100% | € 14.71 | € 14.71 |
| 20 years | 80% | € 11.77 | € 9.05 |
| 19 years | 60% | € 8.83 | € 7.72 |
| 18 years | 50% | € 7.36 | € 6.69 |
| 17 years | 39,5% | € 5.81 | € 5.81 |
| 16 years | 34,5% | € 5.07 | € 5.07 |
| 15 jaar | 30% | € 4.41 | € 4.41 |
Because the minimum wage has become a minimum hourly (youth) wage, it does no longer matter whether the working time is shorter than the customary working time.
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