Belgium applies an accrual year and holiday year system. Employees build up their holiday entitlement during one calendar year, known as the accrual year, and use those holiday rights in the following year, known as the holiday year.

For example, holiday entitlement available in 2026 is generally based on employment and earnings during 2025.

For international employers, this is often one of the most significant differences compared to other countries, where vacation entitlement is typically earned and used within the same year.

Key principle: holiday entitlement in Belgium is generally based on work performed during the previous calendar year.

Belgian holiday pay consists of two main components:

• Single holiday pay
• Double holiday pay

For white-collar employees, single holiday pay corresponds to the normal salary paid while the employee is on annual leave.

Double holiday pay is an additional annual allowance intended to support employees during their vacation period. It is usually paid by the employer between May and July.

For international employers, this often appears as an additional annual payroll cost that may not exist in the same form in other jurisdictions.

Belgium applies different holiday pay rules to blue-collar workers and white-collar employees.

For blue-collar workers, holiday pay is generally not paid directly by the employer when the employee takes vacation. Instead, it is paid through the Belgian holiday fund system.

Employers finance this system through social security contributions, which are collected and transferred to the competent holiday funds. These funds then pay the worker’s holiday pay directly.

For international companies establishing operations in Belgium, understanding this distinction is important because it affects both payroll administration and budgeting.

Holiday entitlement in Belgium is not based exclusively on days effectively worked.

Certain periods of absence may also count towards the build-up of holiday rights, including:

• statutory annual leave;
• certain periods of sickness or incapacity for work;
• maternity leave;
• other legally protected absences.

This may differ from the approach taken in other countries, where periods of absence do not always contribute to vacation accrual.

Holiday pay is not limited to an employee’s fixed salary.

Employees may also be entitled to holiday pay on variable remuneration, such as:

• bonuses;
• commissions;
• sales incentives;
• premiums;
• other variable payments subject to Belgian social security contributions.

This holiday pay consists of:

• single variable holiday pay, which relates to the holiday entitlement earned on variable remuneration; and
• double variable holiday pay, which represents the additional holiday allowance on those variable earnings.

Both elements are generally calculated and paid together with the annual double holiday pay.

For international employers, this is an important consideration because bonus schemes and commission plans may create additional holiday pay obligations in Belgium.

When a white-collar employee leaves the company, Belgian law requires a holiday pay settlement.

The employer must account for:

• holiday rights not yet taken during the current holiday year;
• holiday rights already built up for the following holiday year.

For international employers, this may go beyond what is common in other jurisdictions, where only accrued but unused leave is paid upon termination.

The Belgian system also takes into account future holiday rights already earned by the employee.

For blue-collar workers, holiday pay continues to be handled largely through the Belgian holiday fund system.

When hiring an employee who has previously worked in Belgium, employers should verify the employee’s existing holiday rights.

This is done through a holiday certificate.

The holiday certificate provides information regarding:

• holiday entitlement already built up;
• holiday pay already paid;

The employee provides this document to the new employer when joining the company.

For white-collar employees, holiday pay already paid by the previous employer must be taken into account. Depending on the circumstances, deductions or adjustments may be required.

If the employee receives a higher salary with the new employer, additional calculations may also be necessary.

For international employers, reviewing the holiday certificate is an important step in ensuring correct payroll processing.

Employees who are new to Belgium or who have not worked sufficiently during the previous year may have limited statutory holiday rights.

Youth Vacation

Youth vacation may apply to employees under the age of 25 who recently completed their studies and have not yet built up a full holiday entitlement. Subject to certain conditions, eligible employees may obtain additional leave days.

European Vacation

European vacation may apply when an employee starts or resumes employment in Belgium without sufficient accrued holiday rights.

This system allows employees to take leave before they have built up a full entitlement. However, European vacation is not an additional benefit. Payments received under this scheme are generally treated as an advance on future holiday pay.

For international employers, European vacation can therefore have an impact on future payroll calculations and employment costs in Belgium.