The Belgian leave system: an overview of all leave types

Your HR manager walks in with a question. An employee wants two weeks off next month, then three days of short leave for a wedding, and by the way, she is also thinking about applying for parental leave. And you wonder: how many days does she actually have left? Which leave types run through the NEO, which ones through us, and what do I need to arrange as the employer?

Sound familiar? The Belgian leave system is a patchwork of statutory schemes, sector agreements and individual rights. Even seasoned HR professionals sometimes have to look up how it all fits together.

This article gives you a complete overview of employee leave: every leave type in Belgium at a glance, with the key rules, the number of days and what you, as an employer, need to know. From annual leave to palliative leave, from ADV days to educational leave.

Annual leave: the basis of the system

Annual leave is the leave everyone knows, and every full-time worker in the private sector is entitled to four weeks of paid holiday a year. That is 20 working days on a five-day week, or 24 days on a six-day week.

But watch out: those holiday days are based on the previous year's work (the holiday reference year). An employee who worked only six months last year is therefore entitled to just two weeks of leave this year. It is a detail many employers overlook.

Something else that occasionally surprises employers: holiday days must be taken before 31 December. You cannot carry them over to the next year. And you cannot pay them out instead of letting the employee take them (except at the end of employment). The inspectorate does actively check this.

The calculation of holiday pay follows specific rules that differ between white-collar and blue-collar workers. For white-collar workers, the employer pays the holiday pay directly. For blue-collar workers, it runs through the National Annual Holidays Office or a holiday fund.

Additional leave for new workers

Since 2024, the system of "European leave", or additional leave, has been in place. Employees who are new to the labour market, or who start working again after a long break, can take additional holiday days. It is paid leave, but the holiday pay is settled later. A useful arrangement, even if the administration behind it is not the simplest.

The ten statutory public holidays

Belgium has ten statutory public holidays a year, on which an employee may in principle not work while keeping their normal pay:

• New Year's Day (1 January)
• Easter Monday
• Labour Day (1 May)
• Ascension Day
• Whit Monday
• National Holiday (21 July)
• Assumption Day (15 August)
• All Saints' Day (1 November)
• Armistice Day (11 November)
• Christmas Day (25 December)

In 2026, some public holidays fall on a Sunday or Saturday. When that happens, the holiday must be replaced by another paid day of rest. You agree that replacement day at company level, or, if that fails, it becomes the first working day after the holiday.

Does an employee still work on a public holiday? Then they are entitled to compensatory rest within six weeks, plus a possible premium depending on the Joint Committee.

ADV days: working-time reduction

ADV days (working-time reduction days) are extra days off that employees receive as compensation when they work more than the weekly working time set for their sector. This is where things become sector-specific.

An example: in many sectors the effective working time is 38 hours a week. But employees work 40 hours a week and, in compensation, receive 12 ADV days a year. Those days bring the average working time back down to 38 hours.

The number of ADV days varies widely from one Joint Committee to another. In some sectors there are six, in others twelve, and in certain sectors they do not exist at all. So always check the sector collective labour agreements (CLAs) that apply to your company.

Important for employers: ADV days must be taken before the end of the calendar year. In practice, we regularly see at Recruit that employers forget to keep track of their staff's ADV balance. That can lead to disputes when ten days are still open at the end of December.

Short leave for special life events

Short leave, also called leave for special circumstances, is the right to be absent with full pay for specific family or civic events. The employee must notify you in advance (or as soon as possible if it is unforeseen) and take the leave at the time of the event.

The main situations and the minimum number of days:

Family events

• Own wedding: 2 days (some sectors give 3)
• Wedding of a child: 1 day
• Death of a partner or child: 10 days (3 days within the first 14 days, the other 7 within the year)
• Death of a parent, parent-in-law or step-parent: 3 days
• Death of a brother, sister, brother-in-law or sister-in-law: 2 days
• Death of a grandparent or grandchild: 1 day
• Legal cohabitation: 1 day (2 in some sectors)

Civic obligations

• Serving on a jury: for the duration of the session
• Being a witness at a court hearing: the time required
• Attending a family council meeting: 1 day

Bear in mind that this is the statutory minimum. Through sector CLAs or your work rules, you can grant more days. In our experience with thousands of employers, we see more and more companies offering extra bereavement leave on top of the legal minimum.

Want to know more about the specific rules and recent changes? See our detailed guide to short leave and compelling-reason leave.

Sick leave and guaranteed salary

An employee who falls ill is entitled to guaranteed salary, with the duration and conditions depending on their status:

White-collar workers continue to receive their full salary during the first 30 calendar days of illness. After that, the health insurance fund (mutualiteit) takes over with a benefit.

Blue-collar workers have a more complex system. During the first 7 days they receive 100% guaranteed salary. From day 8 to day 14: 85.88% of their salary. From day 15 to day 30: again a combination of employer and health insurance fund contributions.

As an employer, you have to handle a number of things correctly when someone falls ill: request the medical certificate (if your work rules provide for it), calculate the guaranteed salary, and, after 30 days, ensure the handover to the health insurance fund runs smoothly. Among many of the employers we support, we notice that it is above all the calculation of guaranteed salary for part-time staff or variable work schedules that causes headaches. With a payroll system that automatically calculates the right amount based on the work schedule, you save yourself that puzzle.

You can read more about the obligations during illness in our article on employee illness and employer obligations.

Thematic leave: parental, palliative and medical

Thematic leave covers specific forms of career break, with a benefit paid by the NEO (National Employment Office). They stand apart from time credit and are not deducted from it.

Parental leave

Parental leave is intended for employees with children under the age of 12. You can take it in several ways:

• Full-time: 4 months of complete suspension (splittable per month)
• Half-time: 8 months of half-time work (splittable per 2 months)
• 1/5: 20 months of working one day a week less (splittable per 5 months)
• 1/10: 40 months of working half a day a week less (splittable per 10 months)

Both parents are each entitled to parental leave. So you cannot "transfer" it to your partner. The employee has protection against dismissal from the moment of the application until three months after the leave ends.

Leave for medical assistance

Leave for medical assistance is available to employees who want to support a seriously ill household or family member. The maximum duration is 12 months of full-time suspension or 24 months of half-time reduction.

Palliative leave

Palliative leave allows an employee to reduce their working time or suspend it completely in order to provide palliative care. The basic period is 1 month, extendable to a maximum of 3 months (through monthly applications).

Carer's leave

For several years now, carer's leave has also existed. The employee must be a recognised informal carer. The maximum duration is 6 months of full suspension or 12 months with a half-time reduction. New from 2026: employees on carer's leave no longer count towards the threshold that determines how many employees may take time credit at the same time.

With all of these thematic leave types, the employee receives an interruption benefit from the NEO. The amounts are indexed regularly. The employee has to submit the application to the NEO themselves, but as the employer you have to co-sign the application and inform the employee about their rights.

Time credit: career flexibility

Time credit is the system that allows private-sector employees to interrupt their career temporarily or reduce their work. This is where it gets legal, but it is essential to know the difference with thematic leave.

There are two forms:

Time credit with a motive - for this you need a reason the law recognises: caring for a child under the age of 8, assisting a seriously ill family member, following a training course, or caring for a disabled child under the age of 21. The maximum duration is 36 or 51 months, depending on the motive.

End-of-career scheme - for employees aged 55 or older (in certain cases 50). They can reduce their work until retirement, with a half-time or 1/5 reduction.

Thresholds apply: no more than 5% of the workforce may take time credit at the same time (unless a company CLA provides otherwise). The employee also has a seniority requirement of at least 24 months with the employer.

Want to know exactly what is changing around time credit and the end-of-career scheme? We wrote a separate article with the 2026 changes.

Flemish training leave (educational leave)

Flemish training leave (VOV) is the right for employees to follow approved training while keeping their (capped) salary. What used to be called "paid educational leave" has been renamed Flemish training leave in Flanders. The employer receives a flat-rate reimbursement from the Flemish government afterwards.

The rules for the 2025-2026 school year:

• Maximum of 125 hours per school year
• The employee must be employed at least 80% of the time (at least 28 hours a week on average)
• The training must be registered in the Flemish Training Database
• Minimum of 3 credits or 32 contact hours
• The maximum monthly salary that is paid is 3,714 euro gross (indicative, 2026)

From the 2025-2026 school year, the conditions have become stricter. The flat-rate contribution for employers has dropped from 21.30 euro to 14.91 euro per hour. That is a serious reduction that raises the cost for employers.

Wallonia and Brussels have comparable schemes, but with their own conditions and procedures. Check with the relevant region for the correct rules.

Unpaid leave: the flexible option

Unpaid leave, contrary to what many people think, is not a statutory right. There is no general law giving employees a right to unpaid leave. It is an agreement between employer and employee.

That means you, as an employer, are not obliged to grant unpaid leave. But in practice many employers do allow it, for example for a longer trip, a personal project or a sabbatical.

What to watch out for as an employer with unpaid leave:

• The employment contract is suspended, not terminated
• The employee builds up no holiday rights during unpaid leave
• No social security contributions are paid, which has consequences for pension and health insurance
• It is best to make written arrangements about the duration, return guarantee and conditions

Leave for compelling reasons

Alongside short leave, there is also leave for compelling reasons. This is unpaid leave (unless a CLA provides otherwise) for unforeseeable situations that require the employee's urgent intervention. Think of a child who suddenly falls ill at school, a water leak at home, or an accident involving a close family member.

An employee is entitled to a maximum of 10 days of leave for compelling reasons per year. The employee must notify you as soon as possible and, if you ask, provide proof.

In short

The Belgian leave system is extensive. That is good news for employees, but it demands sound administration and a clear overview from employers. Here are the leave types you will deal with as an employer, with the core of each scheme:

• Annual leave: 20 days (full-time, 5-day week), paid, must be taken
• Public holidays: 10 a year, paid, replacement day if on a weekend
• ADV days: sector-dependent, often 6 to 12 days
• Short leave: paid, for specific family and civic events
• Sick leave: guaranteed salary for 30 days (white-collar workers)
• Parental leave: max. 4 months full-time per parent, NEO benefit
• Palliative leave: max. 3 months, NEO benefit
• Leave for medical assistance: max. 12 months full-time, NEO benefit
• Carer's leave: max. 6 months full-time, NEO benefit
• Time credit: 36-51 months depending on the motive, NEO benefit
• Flemish training leave: max. 125 hours per school year, capped salary
• Unpaid leave: no statutory right, by mutual agreement
• Leave for compelling reasons: max. 10 days a year, unpaid

The rules can differ by Joint Committee and sector. That makes it extra complex. After more than 15 years in Belgian payroll, we know at Recruit that a good system for tracking leave not only saves time, but also prevents errors in the payroll calculation.

Frequently asked questions

How many leave days does a full-time employee in Belgium have per year? A full-time employee is entitled to 20 statutory holiday days (on a five-day week) plus 10 public holidays. On top of that come any ADV days, sector leave days and extra-statutory holiday days. The exact total depends on your Joint Committee and any company agreements.

Can an employee carry holiday days over to the next year? No. Statutory holiday days must be taken before 31 December of the holiday year. Carrying them over is not allowed by law. Paying them out instead of taking them is not allowed either, except at the end of employment. As an employer, you must ensure all holiday days are taken in time.

What is the difference between time credit and thematic leave? Thematic leave (parental leave, palliative leave, medical assistance, carer's leave) stands apart from time credit. It is not deducted from the maximum duration of time credit. Time credit requires a specific motive and has a seniority requirement. Thematic leave has its own conditions but is often easier to access.

As an employer, do I have to grant unpaid leave? No, unpaid leave is not a statutory right (unless a sector CLA provides for it). It is an agreement between employer and employee. You are not obliged to approve it. Do make clear written arrangements if you allow it.

Is a part-time employee entitled to the same leave types? Yes, but the number of days or hours is calculated proportionally based on the work regime. A half-time employee is, for example, entitled to 10 holiday days instead of 20. For thematic leave, extra conditions sometimes apply to part-time work.

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How Recruit helps you with this

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• 24/7 personal support: always a dedicated contact who knows your company
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The information in this article is purely informative and does not replace professional legal or accounting advice. Labour legislation changes regularly. Always consult the current legislation or contact an HR expert for advice tailored to your situation. Note: the rules can differ by Joint Committee and sector. Amounts and percentages are indicative for 2026 and may change through indexation or legislative amendments.