Facts & stats
The Kingdom of Belgium (Dutch: Koninkrijk België) is a sovereign state, situated in western Europe, and split into three autonomous regions and 10 provinces.
Ranking 14th on the human development index, and 17th on the GDP index, Belgium hosts one of Europe’s most vibrant labor markets, driven by a stable democracy & a diversified economy.
Grow your team in Belgium with Remote
To employ in Belgium, companies must own a local legal entity in the country or work with a global employment solution. Managing payroll, benefits, taxes, and compliance in Belgium can get complicated, especially without established local relationships.
Using Remote’s Global Employer of Record solution makes it easy for your company to employ workers in Belgium quickly and in full compliance with all applicable labor laws. We take on the responsibility and legal risks of international employment so you can focus on attracting top talent and growing your business.
Risks of misclassification
Like many other countries, Belgium treats self-employed individuals or contractors and full-time workers differently and there are risks associated with misclassification.
Employing in Belgium
Although Belgium doesn’t have a codified employment law several labor regulations at the Federal level work in tandem to protect workers’ rights. Employees in Belgium enjoy protections against discrimination based on age, religion, sexual orientation, gender expression, and race.
Public holidays
| Date | Holiday Name | Extra information |
|---|---|---|
| New Year’s Day | ||
| Easter Sunday | ||
| Easter Monday | ||
| Labour Day | ||
| Ascension day | ||
| Pentecost Day | ||
| Pentecost Monday | ||
| Belgian National Day | ||
| Assumption of Mary | ||
| All Saints’ Day | ||
| Armistice Day | ||
| Christmas Day |
- Minimum
Wage -
Belgian labor laws stipulate a mandated minimum wage for all workers. The minimum wage, which is one the highest in the EU, is reviewed bi-annually to sync with existing price levels.
Belgium’s minimum wage was raised in 2021. The national minimum wage in Belgium now remains fixed at 1625.7 EURO per month.
- Payroll
Cycle - For customers of Remote, all employee payments will be made in equal monthly instalments on or before the last working day of each calendar month, payable in arrears.
- Social security
Contribution -
The employee's contribution to social security taxes is set at 13.07% of the gross salary.
The employer’s cost is between 25-27% depending on the date the employee was hired.
Belgian social security contributions cover:
- Old-age and survivor’s pensions
- Unemployment Insurance
- Insurance for occupational diseases
- Family allowances
- Sickness and disability benefits
- Onboarding
Time -
We can help you get a new employee started in Belgium fast. The minimum onboarding time we need is only 9 working days.
Our team ensures your employees are onboarded and paid as quickly as possible while keeping your business compliant with all local employment legislation. The minimum onboarding time begins after the employee submits all required information onto the Remote platform. The onboarding timeline is also dependent upon registration with local authorities.
For all non-nationals of the country of employment, the Right to Work assessment (if applicable) will add three extra days to the total time to onboard. There may be extra time required if we need to follow-up on the right to work assessment.
Please note, payroll cut-off dates can impact the actual first day of employment. Remote has a payroll cut-off date of the 10th of the month unless otherwise specified.
Competitive benefits package in Belgium
Besides providing your employees with all statutory benefits in Belgium, Remote can advise on and arrange for custom benefits and perks for your employees upon request.
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Supplementary private insurance
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Supplemental dental insurance
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Supplementary vision insurance
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Additional paid holidays
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Flexible work schedule
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Pension scheme
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Life insurance
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Other insurance
Taxes in Belgium
Learn how employment taxes and statutory fees affect your payroll and your employees’ paychecks in Belgium.
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Employer
- 9% - Pension fund
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Employee
- Minimum 7.5% - Pension fund
- 25% - up to 13,440
- 40% - 13,440 to 23,720
- 45% - 23,720 to 41,060
- 50% - more than 41,060
Types of leave
- Paid
time off Employees are entitled to 20 days if they work 5 days a week and 24 days if they work 6 days a week
- Pregnancy and
maternity leave -
Maternity leave is 15 weeks long. The mother must take a minimum of 1 week before the expected due date and can take up to a maximum of 6 weeks of leave before the due date.
Then the woman will take a mandatory 9 weeks which starts from the date of the birth of the child.
Women who have twins (or multiple births) will be entitled to an additional 2 weeks of maternity leave.
Belgium’s Health Insurance Fund pays for this parental leave as follows:
- 82% of the salary for the first 30 days of the leave
- 75% of the salary (maximum 106.9, EUR per day) from the 31st day onwards
- Parental
leave Parental leave can start from any time after the birth of the child and be taken as follows:
- A four month period taken consecutively
- Various periods broken into at least one month each (adding up to four months)
- Reduced working hours to 80% for a maximum of 20 months
- Reduced working hours to 50% for a maximum of eight months
- Half a day per week or one full day every two weeks (for a maximum of 40 months)
- Other
leave -
- Employees are entitled to a paid leave of absence to attend to unforeseen circumstances or civil obligations, provided they inform their employer in advance or as soon as reasonably possible.
- Likewise, employees can take up to 10 days of paid leave to handle emergencies, family issues, etc., provided they reach an agreement with their employer regarding how the leave will vest.
Employment
termination
Termination process
Workers can have their employment terminated by the employer, provided there are fair grounds for dismissal provided. These include:
- Employee's capability or qualifications for performing work of the kind the employee was employed to do
- Employee conduct
- Employee retirement
- Employee redundancy
- Employee inability to continue working in a position without contravening statutory duty or restriction
- Changing needs of the employer
- Other substantial reasons justifying dismissal
Terminations are only considered lawful when they’re due to factors regarding employee capability or an employer’s need to retain a worker’s services.
Notice period
In Belgium, the notice period required varies based on the length of employment:
Less than 3 months of employment: 2 weeks notice
- 3 to 6 months of employment: 4 weeks notice
- 6 to 9 months of employment: 6 weeks notice
- 9 to 12 months of employment: 7 weeks notice
- 12 to 15 months of employment: 8 weeks notice
- 15 to 18 months of employment: 9 weeks notice/li>
- 18 to 21 months of employment: 10 weeks notice
- 21 to 24 months of employment: 11 weeks notice
- 24 to 36 weeks of employment: 12 weeks notice
- 36 to 48 months of employment: 13 weeks notice
- 48 to 60 months of employment: 15 weeks notice
- 60 months to 19 years of employment: 60 weeks notice plus 3 weeks for every year exceeding 5 years
- 20 to 21 years of employment: 62 weeks notice plus 1 week for every year of employment
Probation periods
As of January 1, 2014, probation periods are no longer allowed in Belgium.
