Checks on 218 companies employing staff under the highly-skilled migrants’scheme last year turned up problems at 25% of them, the social affairs ministry said on Monday.

In most cases, staff were not paid enough salary to qualify as highly-skilled migrants while in others they were still working even though their permit had expired.
IInspectors checked up on companies where the immigration service had doubts about the applications. In 2008 there were errors at 22% of the firms inspected and in 2007 at 16%.
The scheme allows companies to employ non-EU staff with particular skills and expertise. They must earn €50,183 if aged 30 or over and €36,801 if younger. Permits run for a maximum five years.
Some 26,000 people live in the Netherlands as official highly-skilled migrants.