Pregnant employees receive 15 weeks of paid maternity leave. Leave may begin six weeks before the expected delivery date, with a mandatory minimum of nine weeks following childbirth.

Compensation structure:

• First 30 days: 82% of average salary
• From day 31 until leave conclusion: 75% of average salary

Maternity leave cannot be extended. However, employees who have completed at least one year of service with their current employer may transition to parental leave.

Employees are entitled to 10 days of paid paternity leave, which must be utilized within four months of the child's birth.

Compensation arrangement:

• First 3 days: Fully paid by employer at 100% salary
• Remaining 7 days: Paid by government at 82% of average salary (subject to capped daily maximum)

Working parents who have completed at least 12 months of service with the same employer over the previous 15 months are entitled to four months of parental leave. This entitlement applies to each individual parent.

Parents may take leave simultaneously or at different times. Leave must be utilized before the child reaches 12 years of age (or 21 years for children with disabilities).

Employees receive full salary paid by the employer for the initial 30 days of sick leave. Following this period, employees generally become eligible for government-provided sickness benefits.

All sick leave must be certified by a qualified medical professional.

Employment terminations must adhere to comprehensive regulations and consider applicable laws from the employee's home country. The employer coordinates all separation processes with key stakeholders, potentially involving administrative fees and specific procedural requirements for particular termination circumstances.

Employers may terminate employment agreements through two primary methods:

• Providing proper legal notice according to statutory requirements
• Paying termination indemnity in lieu of notice, resulting in immediate contract termination

Employees maintain the right to appeal to a court if they consider the dismissal unjustified. Courts may award additional compensation if they determine the dismissal was unfair.

Minimum notice duration is two weeks for employment lasting three months. Required notice periods increase proportionally with employment length.

Severance obligations generally apply only when proper notice has not been provided according to statutory requirements.

Employees working a standard 38-hour weekly schedule receive 20 working days of paid annual leave per year.

Part-time employees receive proportionally calculated leave entitlement based on their contracted working hours.

Belgium observes 10 national holidays annually. Additional regional holidays may apply depending on the employee's work location.

National public holidays include:

• New Year's Day (January 1)
• Easter Monday
• Labour Day (May 1)
• Ascension Day
• Whit Monday
• Belgium National Holiday (July 21)
• Assumption Day (August 15)
• All Saints' Day (November 1)
• Armistice Day 1918 (November 11)
• Christmas Day (December 25)

The employee onboarding process can be completed within three business days following Statement of Work signature, pending submission of all required employee information and documentation.

Employment contracts in Belgium must always be in writing and must clearly specify the type of employment arrangement, trial period provisions (if applicable), restrictive covenants, and notice requirements.

Specific regulations govern the language used for employment contracts due to Belgium's linguistic diversity across different regions.

Belgium does not permit probationary periods in employment contracts. Consequently, our employer of record service does not allow the implementation of probationary periods for Belgian employment arrangements.