RELEVANT GOVERNMENT ENTITIES
SOURCES OF LAW
BUSINESS IMMIGRATION
SPONSORS
COMMON ISSUES OR CONCERNS FOR BUSINESS IMMIGRATION
DEPENDENTS
SETTLEMENT & CITIZENSHIP
PRESENT CLIMATE & FUTURE LEGISLATION

RELEVANT GOVERNMENT ENTITIES

Belgium is a federal country with three regions (Flanders, Brussels, and Wallonia) and three communities (Dutch, French, and German-speaking).

This specific structure of Belgium influences the business immigration system.

FEDERAL

The competence to issue residence permits/single permits is federal. The Belgian Foreigners Office (Dutch: “Dienst Vreemdelingenzaken”; French: “Office des Etrangers”), a department within the federal Ministry of Interior Affairs, has jurisdiction. The legislation regarding working rights on the basis of residence is also federal: this relates to the right to work for foreigners who reside in Belgium for other purposes than work (e.g. students, recognized refugees, accompanying family, etc.).

REGIONAL

The competence to issue work authorizations/work permits to employees and professional cards to self-employed is regional. The regional Ministries of Employment have jurisdiction. Each region now has its own legislation regarding work authorizations/work permits (Flanders since 2019, Brussels since October 2024, and Wallonia since 2019 with update in September 2024).

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SOURCES OF LAW

International agreements, both multilateral (e.g. EU) and bilateral, have a major impact on Belgian immigration legislation.

Belgian key statutes regarding immigration are federal legislation. This includes legislation regarding the general immigration rules, the right for foreign residents to work on the basis of their residence situation, and citizenship legislation.

Most key statutes regarding business immigration are now regional legislation: the right of employers to employ a foreign employee in the Flanders, Brussels, and Wallonia regions is governed by regional decrees; the Flanders and Brussels regions have their own regional legislation regarding foreign self-employed professionals.

Apart from legislation, immigration rules are also laid down in so-called administrative letters. These are documents, written by the competent authorities, that explain/interpret and implement practical aspects of existing legislation.

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BUSINESS IMMIGRATION

UNSPONSORED BUSINESS-RELATED IMMIGRATION

Self-employment

In principle (there are exemptions), any non-EU/EEA (European Economic Area = European Union + Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway) / Swiss foreign self-employed who wants to be active in Belgium on long term (> 3 months) basis will need a so-called professional card, even if no income is generated.

For applicants without right to reside in Belgium, the application for a professional card must be filed with the Belgian embassy of the country of residence. The file will be transferred to the Ministry of the region, where the self-employed will work: this Ministry will decide on the professional card application.

The professional card will in most cases be valid for 1 to 2 years initially: it can be renewed.

Criteria for assessing a professional card application for self-employed

The specific criteria depend on the region (Flanders, Brussels, or Wallonia).

In general, for all 3 regions, the decisive argument in order to grant a professional card will be the existence of an added value to the region: can the activity contribute to the economy or the development of the region? The following criteria are generally considered relevant:

• Job creation;
• Productive investments;
• Positive economic effects/impact on companies on regional soil;
• Export potential;
• Activities which are rare, innovative, highly specialized, or which meet non-satisfied needs.

Social, cultural, artistic and sports-related aspects can also be taken into account.

It will also be very important to explain why Belgium, and more in particular the region of Flanders, Brussels, or Wallonia, is chosen as business location.

Remote work

Unless a generally applicable exemption applies, remote work in Belgium requires an authorization (professional card or work authorization/work permit – see below).

Belgium does not have a Digital Nomad Visa.

Investors

Belgium does not have a specific investor visa.

SPONSORED BUSINESS-RELATED IMMIGRATION

Short-term (max. 90 days in any 180-day period) employment options

Unless an exemption applies, a work authorization with work permit is required for employment in Belgium up to max. 90 days of non-EU/EEA/Swiss employees. The employer files the application.

Frequently used fast track (without resident labour test) work permits relate to highly skilled employees. The current requirements can be summarized as follows.

Long-term (> 90 days) employment options

In principle (there are some employees, such as au pairs and frontier workers, who can work longer than 90 days with a work permit – see above), a single permit for definite duration is required for employment in Belgium for more than 90 days of non-EU/EEA/Swiss employees. The single permit is a Belgian residence permit, incorporating the right to work.

Frequently used fast track (without resident labor test) single permits relate to highly skilled employees, both locally employed and posted workers (max. 3 years and renewable). There are 2 requirements for highly skilled (see table above).

A Blue Card (max. 2/3 years and renewable) can be issued to locally employed employees. The current salary and professional qualifications requirements can be summarized as follows.

This type of permit is not very popular: the salary threshold is higher than for highly skilled permits (see table under short-term employment options above). However, some recent changes (e.g. short-term mobility rights, facilitation of change of employer, faster unlimited access to labor market, etc.) may lead to an increase in the applications for Blue Cards.

Intra-Corporate Transfer (ICT) options

Specific ICT (Intra-Corporate Transfer) long-term mobility permits exist for managers (max. 3 years), specialists (max. 3 years), and trainees (max. 1 year). Separate salary thresholds apply.

Some fast track permits (e.g. highly skilled, executives) are also often used for ICT’s.

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SPONSORS

REQUIREMENTS FOR SPONSORS

A specific online notification will be required at the start of employment in Belgium: this is the so-called Dimona for local employment, or the Limosa for postings.

During the employment, the employer must notify essential changes to the employment, as well as the end of the employment, to the competent authorities.

Under Belgian law the employer must keep several Belgian labor law related documents, also in the event of postings.

For posting by a foreign employer a “person to liaise” must be appointed. The “person to liaise” is the natural person that the foreign employer appoints to supply, if requested, information/documents to the Belgian labor inspectorate: these can be pay slips, employment contract, working time plan, payment details, etc.

SANCTIONS, CIVIL & CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR SPONSORS

For infringements of federal legislation, there are 4 tiers of penalties associated with non-compliance. Most infringements regarding business immigration are tier 3 or 4 infringements. Each monetary fine is multiplied by the number of workers against whom the offence was committed, legally capped at 100 employees.

Tier 3 Penalties

If criminal prosecution: criminal fine 1,600-16,000€. Only in the event of an intentional infringement, an accompanying penalty can be the prohibition to operate a business and/or the closure of a company between 1 month and 3 years, but only if deemed necessary in order to stop an infringement or to avoid a repeat offending, provided the penalty is in proportion with the overall socio-economic interests, and ii) if the infringements jeopardize the health or safety of individuals.

If no criminal prosecution: administrative fine 800-8,000€.

Tier 4 Penalties

If criminal prosecution: criminal fine 4,800-56,000€ and/or imprisonment 6 months to 3 years. Only in the event of an intentional infringement, an accompanying penalty can be the prohibition to operate a business and/or the closure of a company between 1 month and 3 years, but only if deemed necessary in order to stop an infringement or to avoid a repeat offending, provided the penalty is in proportion with the overall socio-economic interests.

If no criminal prosecution: administrative fine 2,400-28,000€.

The sanctions for infringements on regional legislation depend on the region (Flanders, Brussels, and Wallonia), but they are in general comparable to the federal sanctions.

Non-compliance can result in a withdrawal of an existing work authorization/work permit.

Furthermore, a definitive sanction/penalty may result in refusal of a future work authorization/work permit application.

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COMMON ISSUES OR CONCERNS FOR BUSINESS IMMIGRATION

ILLEGAL POSTING

Under Belgian law, it is prohibited for a legal entity to place its own employees at the disposal of third parties who use these employees and exercise over them part of the authority belonging to the employer. Such authority implies that the third-party user instructs these employees in relation to work that has to be performed.

There are exceptions though. To the extent that the instructions are listed in a service contract between the user company and the employer, they do not vest the user company with such employer authority. A second exception is instructions relating to health and safety, which are authorized as well. Reversely, if the contract does not contain a detailed list of instructions and the user company should nevertheless instruct the employees, the situation qualifies as an illegal posting of personnel.

Even during a posting, the employer will have to comply with most Belgian legislation regarding remuneration and employment conditions.

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DEPENDENTS

PERSONS QUALIFYING AS DEPENDENTS

There are differences between eligible family members of EU/EEA/Swiss nationals and of third country nationals. E.g. ascendants of EU/EEA/Swiss nationals may be eligible for family reunification, contrary to ascendants of third country nationals.

Spouses and common-law partners who have signed a registered partnership that is considered equivalent to a Belgian marriage, can join the spouse/partner. The same applies to common-law partners in a long-lasting and stable relationship: the existence of such a relationship can be proven by prior cohabitation or relationship, or a common child.

Dependent children under 21 (EU/EEA/Swiss nationals) or 18 (third country nationals) are eligible for family reunification.

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS & RESTRICTIONS

Once again there are differences between eligible family members of EU/EEA/Swiss nationals and of third country nationals. E.g. third country nationals will need to submit proof of sufficient housing and financial means, as well as a comprehensive health insurance.

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SETTLEMENT & CITIZENSHIP

PERMANENT RESIDENCE

Permanent residence is in principle possible after 5 years of legal and uninterrupted (temporary absence is allowed to some extent) residence in Belgium as locally employed employee (years worked as posted employee do not count) or self-employed. The individual will need to file an application via his/her municipality.

CITIZENSHIP

5 years of legal and uninterrupted (temporary absence is allowed to some extent) residence in Belgium and being the holder of a Belgian residence permit for indefinite term are the minimal requirements, as well as knowledge of one of Belgium’s national languages (Dutch, French, and German). Other requirements depend on the specific situation and type of citizenship application.

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PRESENT CLIMATE & FUTURE LEGISLATION

PRESENT CLIMATE & TRENDS

Both the Brussels and Wallonia region have quite recent legislation regarding work authorizations / work permits (Brussels since October 2024, and Wallonia since 2019 with update in September 2024). The aim is to facilitate the employment of foreign nationals, but there is also an increased focus on compliance. It will be interesting to see how the authorities will apply the new rules in practice.

Telework/homework has become a reality. However, the legislation is not yet entirely up to speed.

FUTURE LEGISLATION

There will be further improvements and additions to the online portal “Working in Belgium,” which must now be used for single permit applications only. The aim is to facilitate applications and to allow expedited processing by the authorities.

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