Social legal

As of 1 January 2026, employers in Belgium who offer company cars will also be required to offer a mobility budget. Although the legal framework has not yet been finalised, it is a good idea to review your company’s mobility policy now and prepare for the upcoming changes.

On July 30, 2025, the tax administration published the circular on the exemption from remittance of payroll withholding tax for shift work. It clarifies the application of the bis scheme and introduces an administrative tolerance.

On 21 July 2025, the De Wever federal government reached a political agreement known as the Summer Agreement 2025. It includes a series of reforms aimed at increasing labour market flexibility, making work financially more attractive, and ensuring the long-term affordability of pensions.

At the end of March 2025, the Chamber of Representatives approved a bill raising the limit for student employment to 650 hours per calendar year. This measure expands the temporary increase to 600 hours that applied in 2023 and 2024 and will be applied retroactively as of January 1, 2025.

International providers of Employer of Record (EoR) services can now operate legally in Belgium, provided they obtain a temporary employment agency license. Where this service previously existed in a grey area, there is now clear guidance regarding the legal conditions.

Since 1 January 2020, all companies with at least 11 employees over a consecutive 12-month period are required to establish employee representation within the company or, at a minimum, organize elections.

The new federal coalition agreement introduces far-reaching reforms aimed at boosting purchasing power and simplifying the Belgian tax and social systems. Employers will gain more flexibility in wage policies and dismissal procedures, while employees — especially those in lower income brackets — may benefit from higher net wages.

As of 1 January 2025, new and stricter rules will come into force in Flanders, further tightening the existing system of chain responsibility for the illegal employment of third-country nationals. This legislation increases the responsibility of contractors and clients.

This book introduces new rules regarding non-contractual liability, which have significant implications for auxiliary persons such as employees, directors, and subcontractors. The law is expected to take effect on 1 January 2025.

On April 24, France introduced an important legislative change regarding the accumulation of leave days during employee illness. This change was introduced to align French labor law with European regulations. Now, employees can partially accumulate paid leave (80%) during periods of illness.

On June 21, 2024, the law amending the Social Penal Code was published. The changes took effect on July 1, 2024. A significant aspect of this legislative amendment involves the introduction of penalties for non-compliance with regulations regarding flexible working hours.

Since 1 July 2024, a new obligation has been introduced for companies and self-employed persons based in Belgium. From now on, they are required to register their working partners and helpers in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (KBO-CBE).

Providing a company bike to employees is rapidly gaining popularity among employers. This initiative not only promotes the physical and mental health of employees but also offers an attractive way to optimize the salary package.

Since its introduction in 2015, the flexi job has already undergone several extensions and adjustments. In this article, we take a look at the most recent changes that came into effect on 1 January 2024 as a result of the Programme Act of 22 December 2023.

From 1 April 2024, the rules governing the validity of the BTP card for posted workers will change. According to the decree of 15 February 2024, the card of an employee posted to France by a foreign employer will be valid for 5 years.

On 1 July 2023, the framework agreement on cross-border telework signed by 18 European member states came into force. This historic agreement marks an important development in how telework is handled within social security frameworks.

The next social elections are to be held between 13 and 26 May 2024. Organised every four years, social elections are held to elect employee representatives to works councils and committees for prevention and protection in the workplace.

In a previous article, we explored in greater detail the statutory minimum wage in France and its indexing. As this explained, the statutory minimum wage is usually adjusted on 1 January to the cost of living; although if the price index has risen more than 2% over the previous year, this minimum wage is likewise adjusted.

A draft law was recently approved that provides for further easing of the rules concerning homeworking for cross-border workers between Belgium and Luxembourg. With effect from 1st January 2022, cross-border workers will be able to work 10 days longer at home without fiscal consequences.

A previous article discussed the Belgian Law of 28 April 2022 introducing Book 1 “General Provisions” of the Civil Code. These provisions stipulate that working days are all days other than public holidays, Sundays and Saturdays (Article 1.7). However, this law does not apply under all circumstances. We will explain.

The federal government reached an agreement on the reform of the taxation of income from intellectual property rights just before the Christmas holidays. Although there was commotion about the interpretation of the material scope, the initial texts were adopted by the Parliamentary Committee.

On 10th November a new law about transparent and predictable working conditions came into force, which was the transposition of a European directive. This law stipulates that specific information of an individual or collective nature has to be provided. The law also provides for a number of new minimum requirements in respect of working conditions for employees. We would like to explain it to you.

On 10 November 2022, the Miscellaneous Labour Provisions Act was published in the Belgian Official Gazette. This law delineates the measures taken in view of the long-awaited 'Labour Deal'. In this article, we list the specific measures that have a direct impact on labour flexibility within your company.

The transition period for teleworkers in cross-border employment was recently extended to 30 June 2023. As a result, the measures in place during the coronavirus pandemic are still in place. Also, the social security system currently applicable to cross-border workers working from home will in principle continue to apply. We are happy to tell you more about it.

On 1 July 2022, the Belgian Official Gazette published the Law of 28 April 2022 containing Book 1 “General Provisions” of the Civil Code. These provisions stipulate that working days are all days other than public holidays, Sundays and Saturdays. The law enters into force on 1 January 2023, meaning that from this date, Saturday is no longer considered a normal working day.

From 1 April 2022, the Law of 28 March 2022 on the reduction of labour costs posed stricter requirements to be eligible for a partial withholding tax exemption. This article explains the changes in detail.

Working from home is not so straightforward for today’s employees. Combining work and family life is not an easy exercise. To support families, the Cabinet approved a corona parental leave policy last weekend. But what exactly does this entail? And how can you apply for corona parental leave? We list the key principles for your convenience.

Self-employed persons can obtain a payment deferral of social security contributions for the first and second quarters of 2020. The deferral is granted until 31 March 2021 and 30 June 2021 respectively.

Until now, however, there have been no special rules regulating tax and social security contributions with regards to these student entrepreneurs. Thanks to the Act of 18 December 2016, self-employed students still qualify as dependent children.