When can I apply for WIA early?
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Detailed explanation, checklist and sources
Early WIA is a special Dutch route where it becomes clear early on that you cannot work now or in the future. First consult the occupational physician or UWV insurance physician. You can make only one early application; entitlement requires UWV’s decision.
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1. Distinguish early and ordinary WIA
This concerns early Dutch WIA, not every prolonged illness. It must already be clear that you cannot work now or in the future. A diagnosis or your own assessment does not establish entitlement: ask the occupational physician or UWV insurance physician whether this route is appropriate. Where recovery remains possible or uncertain, the ordinary WIA route may remain appropriate.
2. Check illness week and the one-application rule
UWV allows an application between 3 and 68 weeks of illness. Record the first illness day and have the week checked if uncertain. Only one early WIA application is possible. Do not apply as a trial or let the boundary pass without advice. Outside this route the ordinary application procedure applies; UWV describes a letter around illness week 88 starting that process.
3. Choose the correct physician route
With an employer, or a former employer bearing its own Ziektewet risk, you need a Verklaring bedrijfsarts, an occupational-physician statement containing the medical opinion and advice to apply early. Without an employer, call UWV to discuss this with its insurance physician. The payer’s name alone does not settle the route; clarify which physician applies to your circumstances.
4. Apply through Mijn UWV
Use the early WIA application through Mijn UWV. State when you will upload or post the occupational-physician statement, or arrange for the physician to send it. Without an employer, indicate your discussion with UWV’s insurance physician. Prepare the first illness date, education details and bank account, and follow current form instructions. Call UWV if online filing is not possible. Do not share medical records through our chat or preparation tool.
5. Check the consequences of an award
If UWV awards the early benefit, it is IVA, a type of WIA, starting ten weeks after the application. This does not guarantee a decision within ten weeks. With an ongoing employment contract, wages and employment remain distinct from the benefit decision: UWV describes two years of continued wages, with IVA deductible by the employer, and no reintegration duty after an award. Do not assume IVA automatically extends a fixed-term contract; have your own wage and contract position checked.
6. Keep evidence and arrange help
Keep the application, physician appointment, acknowledgement and decision. Check the starting date and instructions; ask UWV what follows after refusal or a missing statement. A refusal is not a reason to submit another early application on your own initiative. Keep the ordinary WIA route and your income in view too. In a dispute follow the remedy and deadline in the decision. Our assistance request supports your next step, but files nothing and pauses no deadline.
Can I apply early without an employer?
Call UWV and discuss with its insurance physician whether early WIA is possible. Mention that discussion in the application. If a former employer bears its own Ziektewet risk, an occupational-physician statement may instead be required. Check this before your one early application.
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- First illness date and current illness week
- Previous early WIA application: yes/no
- Employer or Ziektewet own-risk employer
- Occupational statement or UWV physician contact
- Official application and receipt
- Wages, contract, decision and next step
Contact with a lawyer
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View the current application processSources
Need personal assistance? Request a lawyer through our chat. We explain the next step; submitting a request does not engage a lawyer. The links below support the legal information.
UWV · Vervroegde WIA aanvragen ↗UWV · WIA aanvragen ↗Sources may be in Dutch. General information about Dutch law, not individual legal advice.