More residents in neighbouring countries commute to the Netherlands for work

New figures from Statistics Netherlands (CBS) have revealed that there has been an increase in the number of people who commute to work in the Netherlands while living in neighbouring countries such as Germany or Belgium. 

Increasing number of cross-border commuters in the Netherlands

2023 saw almost 90.000 people travelling to the Netherlands for work from across the border - 3.000 more than a year earlier and almost 10.000 more than 10 years ago. 44.000 of the cross-border commuters live in Belgium, while 45.000 live in Germany.

Almost half of the cross-border commuters are Dutch, followed by workers who have Belgian or German nationalities. There was also an increase in other nationalities who work in the Netherlands while living in another country, namely those from Poland. 

Limburg and Brabant popular with cross-border workers

Six in 10 of the cross-border commuters work in Limburg or Brabant, closer to the shared borders. Among Belgian residents, Limburg and North Brabant were the most popular Dutch provinces to work in, with cities like Maastricht and Eindhoven being the most favoured. German commuters mainly worked in Limburg, Gelderland and Overijssel.

Why so many people live in a neighbouring country while working in the Netherlands is not mentioned in the report. However, several factors could be behind it, such as the rising Dutch wages or the worker shortage, leading to companies hiring foreign workers. Another reason could be the rising costs of Dutch housing or the housing shortage, which has even led to first-time buyers delaying life events.