He moved to professional services firm Ernst & Young (EY) in 1994, and he became a partner in January 1998.

On 15 February 2020, Van Rij was appointed as the Island Governor of Sint-Eustatius, and he left EY.

On 10 January 2022, Van Rij became State Secretary for Finance in the fourth Rutte cabinet.

[4][5] Van Rij's term as state secretary ended on 2 July 2024, when the Schoof cabinet was sworn in.

[6] He started serving as deputy Executive Director of the Dutch-Belgian constituency at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington, D.C. on 1 November 2024.