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Types of Leaves in Belgium

Prenatal Leave

  • Duration: 6 weeks, with 5 optional and 1 mandatory week (the 7 days before the expected delivery date). For multiple births, prenatal leave is 8 weeks (7 optional, 1 mandatory). Employees can extend postnatal leave with unused prenatal leave days up to a maximum of 5 additional weeks.
  • Payment: During prenatal leave, private sector employees receive 82% of their average daily wage, paid by the National Health Insurance Fund.

Postnatal Leave

  • Duration: A minimum of 9 weeks, with a maximum of 14 weeks when transferring prenatal leave.
  • Payment: Employees receive 75% of their average daily wage, paid by the National Health Insurance Fund.

If a newborn requires extended hospitalization, the mother can request an extension of postnatal leave, up to a total of 24 weeks, based on the child's hospital stay.

Paternity and Co-Parental Leave

  • Fathers and co-mothers are entitled to 20 days of leave.
  • The employer pays the full salary for the first 3 days, and the health insurance fund covers 82% of the capped gross salary for the remaining days.

Adoption Leave

  • Employees are entitled to adoption leave of up to 6 weeks for children under 3 and 4 weeks for children aged 3-8.
  • The leave can be extended by 3 weeks from 2023 and 4 weeks from 2025, with additional credit for children with disabilities. Adoption benefits are provided by the National Health Insurance Fund, covering 82% of the adoptive parent's daily wage.

Thematic Leaves

Parental Leave

  • Employees can take up to 4 months of parental leave within 12 years of a child's birth or adoption.
  • Parental leave options include full-time, half-time, 1/5, and 1/10 work reductions, with benefits from the NEO.

Palliative Care Leave

  • Employees can take up to 3 months of leave to care for a terminally ill family member, with the option to extend.
  • A physician's certificate is required, and employees can issue up to 3 certificates for the same person.

Medical Assistance Leave

  • Employees can take a full or partial career break of up to 3 months to care for a seriously ill family member.
  • Single workers with dependent children may have extended leave, up to 24 months for a full break and 48 months for a partial break.

Political Leave

  • Private sector employees can take political leave to exercise a political mandate, retaining their normal salary.
  • The duration and formalities depend on the political office or mandate.

Foster Leave

Foster Parent Leave:

  • Foster parents can take up to 8 weeks of leave, with a 6-week individual credit that can be doubled for children with disabilities.
  • The credit can be extended by 2 weeks for the simultaneous reception of multiple children, with benefits from the National Employment Office.

Foster Care Leave:

  • Each employee can take up to 6 days of foster care leave per calendar year. This leave allows them to care for a child they're fostering.

Informal Care Leave

  • Informal caregivers can suspend their contract or reduce work hours for up to 3 months per person requiring care.
  • Full-time employees can reduce work hours by 1/5 or half for 6 months, combining suspension and reduced hours.

Senior Vacation

  • Employees over 50 who are returning from unemployment or disability may take senior vacation days, paid at 65% of the capped salary by Social Security.
  • Senior vacation can be taken after regular paid leave, during employment, and is limited to 4 weeks.

Leave for Compelling Reasons

  • Employees can take up to 10 days of unpaid leave for compelling reasons, including illness, accidents, court appearances, and other mutually agreed-upon events.
  • Up to 5 days can be used for care leave, requiring a medical certificate.

Care Leave

The employee has the right to be absent from work for a maximum of five days, whether or not consecutive, per calendar year, with a view to providing significant personal care or support to a family member or a specific relative who needs it for a serious medical reason.

Minor delays or Circumstantial leave

Bereavement Leave

  • Employees receive paid leave for specific family events, with durations varying based on the relationship to the deceased.
  • The policy is amended to include 10 days for a spouse, natural child, adopted child, or child in long-term placement; 4 days for parents, in-laws, and children-in-law; and 1 day for a foster parent or child in short-term placement.

Wedding Leave

Employees receive 2 days of leave for their wedding and 1 day for the wedding of specific family members.

Time Credit

  • Time credit is a negotiated benefit, offering 6 forms of leave for care reasons, training, and providing care to a third party.
  • Eligibility requires 24 months' seniority and specific age/career criteria for half-time or 1/5 time credit.

Compensatory Rest or Extra Pay

  • Employees can choose between compensatory rest and an additional 20% of their salary for overtime.
  • Compensatory rest days are allocated based on weekly work hours and must be taken within 12 months.

Individual Training Rights and Federal Learning Account

  • Companies must provide individual training days, with specific requirements based on employee count.
  • For companies with 20 or more employees, a training plan detailing programs, target groups, and training types is required.
  • The Federal Learning Account is an online platform for managing training rights, with employer responsibilities for data entry and employee information verification.