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Work authorisation

Would you like to hire a non-European employee (from outside the EEA + Switzerland) to work in Belgium for a maximum period of 90 days, to work in Belgium as a cross-border worker, or to work outside Belgium as a teleworker?

Apply for a work authorisation from the competent region, or from the German-speaking Community if applicable, using the One Stop Counter. Once the work authorisation has been granted, you may hire the employee. This work authorisation does not entitle the employee to reside in Belgium.

The work authorisation is issued to the employer by the region where the employee is employed. For German-speaking Belgium, the German-speaking Community is responsible.

The authorisation can be issued for an employee:

  • who will work and reside in Belgium for a maximum of 90 days
  • who will work in Belgium as a cross-border worker
  • who will work outside Belgium as a teleworker

The usual obligations of the employer continue to apply.

The regulations for the employment of foreign employees apply. You can find more information on the website of each competent region:

The application for a work authorisation must be submitted by the employer based in Belgium or the employer's representative in Belgium. This may be the employer themselves, or a natural person with a Belgian national registration number acting on behalf of and for the account of the employer. If the employer is based outside Belgium, only that natural person is authorised to act.

Please note: if the employer is acting through a representative, that representative requires a mandate. If your company does not yet have a Belgian representative, you must first register with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (CBE) (New window) and then draw up a mandate with a Belgian representative. This mandate is set out in a standard document called a 'procuration'.

The employer grants this mandate via the Mahis online service (in French) (New window).

The competent region or the German-speaking Community will automatically receive your file after you submit your application via the One-Stop Counter online service on this page.

More information about the conditions, procedures and documents to be submitted can be found on the website of the competent region:

As an employer, you must provide the Belgian social security identification number (SSIN) of the employee(s) for whom you are submitting an application. If you do not know this number, or if your employee does not yet have an SSIN, you can request one using the online service belgianIDpro (in French) (New window).

Is your employee still abroad? Then you must submit the application before their arrival on Belgian territory.

If your employee already has a temporary residence permit in Belgium, submit the application well before that residence permit expires.

It is possible to extend the work authorisation. If the employee's total length of stay in Belgium exceeds 90 days, the employer must apply for an extension via the procedure for the fixed-term single permit.

More information about the conditions, procedures and documents to be presented can be found on the website of the competent region or the German-speaking community:

The employee can start working as soon as they have received their work authorisation and, in certain cases, a visa from the Belgian embassy.

Once the employee is residing in Belgium, they must report their presence in Belgium to the local municipality where they have chosen to live.

The employer, their representative or mandate holder gets access to the One-Stop Counter

Granting a mandate to a Belgian representative

Only an employer established in Belgium or their Belgian representative (mandate holder) can apply for a work authorisation. If you as a Belgian employer work with a Belgian representative, you must grant them a mandate. This mandate is laid down in a standard document called ‘procuration’.

Please find more information in the Guidelines for service providers (PDF, 253 KB, in French) (New window).

Is your representative already known to the NSSO?

Your representative must be known in the NSSO service provider database. If this is not the case, they must first contact the Identification Department of the NSSO via idnl@rsz.fgov.be.

Download our flyer on granting a mandate to a Belgian service provider as a Belgian employer (PDF, 43 KB) (New window)

Your representative gets access to the One-Stop Counter online service

Granting a mandate to a Belgian representative

If you as a foreign employer wish to put an employee to work in Belgium, only your Belgian representative (mandate holder) may apply for a work authorisation. If your company does not yet have a Belgian representative, you must first register with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (CBE) (New window) and then grant a mandate to a Belgian representative. This mandate is recorded in a standard document called ‘procuration’.

More information can be found in the Guidelines for service providers (PDF, 253 KB, in French) (New window).

Is your representative already known to the NSSO?

Your representative must be known in the NSSO service provider database. If this is not the case, they must first contact the Identification Department of the NSSO via idnl@rsz.fgov.be

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Download our flyer on granting a mandate to a Belgian service provider as a foreign employer (PDF, 37 KB) (New window)

Questions about access or rights?

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For help or clarification about mandates

Support for BelgianIDpro

If you have any other questions about submitting or following up on your application, please contact the region or language community that is processing your application: