On 19 June 2025, the Limburg subdistrict court ruled on the question of whether a verbalised employment contract can be binding if agreement has been reached on the essential terms. The subdistrict court also considered the question of whether the employer must pay compensation to an employee despite the fact that no written employment contract had been concluded.

What is the case about?

An employee applied for a vacancy for the position of receptionist. After several interviews, the employer informed her that it wished to offer her an employment contract. The parties then reached agreement on all the essential elements of the employment contract: the position, the hourly wage, the number of hours per week, the fixed working days, the travel allowance, the start date and the duration of the employment contract.

The employee subsequently resigned from her job at the time and prepared for the transition to the new employer. Shortly before the planned start date, however, the employer withdrew and announced that it did not wish to honour the employment contract.

Judgment of the Subdistrict Court

The subdistrict court ruled that an employment contract had been concluded. According to the subdistrict court, the decisive factor was that agreement had been reached on the so-called essential elements, i.e. the core conditions.

The fact that no written agreement had yet been signed did not alter this, according to the subdistrict court. According to the subdistrict court, the employment contract was legally valid at the moment of verbal acceptance of the offer by the employee.

Since the employer had not fulfilled the agreement, the employee was entitled to fixed compensation under Section 7:677(4) of the Dutch Civil Code. This compensation was equal to the salary for the applicable notice period, in this case one month. The subdistrict court did, however, decide to reduce the compensation, partly because the employee had found another job at short notice.

Read the full judgment here.

Verbal commitments are binding

This judgment emphasises that employers and employees must be careful in their communication during a job application process. After all, a verbal offer, once accepted, can already lead to a legally valid employment contract. Withdrawing an offer after the employee has legitimately relied on it and, for example, has resigned from his or her previous job, can have unpleasant financial consequences.

What does this mean for employers and employees?

For employers, this judgment means that it is important to draw clear boundaries in application procedures and only make an offer if you actually want to be bound by it. Employers would also be well advised to put any offer in writing, attach clear conditions to it and inform the applicant whether or not it is a definitive offer that will lead to an employment contract if accepted. For employees, this judgment confirms that they can derive rights from verbal commitments under certain conditions, provided that there is agreement on the essential terms of the employment relationship.

Would you like advice on entering into or terminating an employment contract, or do you have other employment law questions? The employment lawyers at SPEE advocaten & mediation are here to help you. Feel free to contact us for expert advice!.