He made, what could have been, a complicated and confusing process very simple and straightforward.

I knew that there had been budget cuts in the Dutch cultural sector. The future looked rather pessimistic. Stephan Roelofs gave me the self-confidence to believe and trust that my artistic work was important, not only for Georgia where I came from, but also for The Netherlands. Now being a Dutch citizen, I am very proud to have voted and happy to see, that despite hateful populist tendencies towards immigrants, The Netherlands remains a tolerant country. Immigrants contribute to the cultural diversity. Stephan Roelofs believes that this is important, not only for me, an artist from Georgia, but also for Dutch society.

With our case, it was double the trouble because both my wife and I are freelance musicians from Turkey. Susanne Mooij helped us first with my case…then a couple years later with my wife’s. Her knowledge and expertise helped us during every step of our applications. Previously, for my wife’s application, we had worked with another lawyer. Susanne Mooij was not available due to a change of companies. That brief experience showed us and proved to us both, that working with Susanne Mooij is a true privilege. We recommend her to everyone with our eyes closed.

With professional consultancy and assistance of Stephan Roelofs, I successfully secured a Freelance Artist Visa to live and work in The Netherlands.

He is highly experienced in artist cases. He provided me with sound and effective suggestions during the process. He also gave me a feeling of confidence during the pending time, until the day I received approval from IND. I very much appreciate all of his efforts working on my case. It wasn’t that easy, but I succeeded with his assistance. Currently, I always highly recommend Stephan to our fresh graduated schoolmates when they’re trying to apply for an Artist Residence Permit. I believe Stephen is definitely the best immigration lawyer for artists.

His name came to me through the success story of another dance colleague who had applied for the same visa, so I knew I was in good hands. From beginning to end, Stephan was so easy to work with. To this day I have so much to thank him for!

My case was not easy, as I had just graduated from an art school in Amsterdam and had only two group shows in my CV. I still remained hopeful to stay in The Netherlands. Stephan managed my case until it was approved. Even when I received a negative response from the Dutch Ministry of Cultural Affairs, after resending additional information about my upcoming shows, in six weeks we received a positive response from the Ministry of Cultural Affairs. After one year, I applied for permission to stay in The Netherlands permanently. Four months later, I received a positive answer from IND. I can freely recommend Stephan Roelofs to my friends and colleagues as a highly knowledgable, skillful and professional lawyer, that manages cases to a successful end.

Thankfully, Susanne Mooij was able to step in and provide invaluable strategic advice, essential to the success of my application. Navigating the many challenges associated with immigrating, and eventually in regaining my Dutch nationality, would have been impossible without Susanne's help. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

This man takes things very seriously. When I met him for the first time, he looked at me and said "Slim! you have the profile. We just need supportive proof. We have to work on this.” I had just finished my study at the Sandberg Institute in Amsterdam, in the fine art ceramic department. I wanted to stay in The Netherlands as an independent ceramic artist, so I had to switch my residence permit identity from “student” to “artist.” When necessary, Stephan stayed in contact with me every day to make it possible. My situation was not easy. It is important to hire a good, knowledgeable lawyer who understands artist cases. Stephan is excellent.

Although I had successfully completed my studies on a student visa, I found myself at a loss as to how to set up my professional life from a legal standpoint. Stephan Roelofs was a godsend to me and my Israeli wife (which of course made our situation more complicated than we thought). Over a period of months we worked with Mr. Roelofs to build a strong case that resulted in my wife and I achieving the necessary immigration status to pursue our careers in Amsterdam and in Europe. He was wonderful to work with and gave us a strong sense of security throughout the process. We recommend him to all of our friends and hope you'll consider his services!