What is changing for employers from 1 July 2025?

From 1 July, there will be further changes in the socio-legal field. These changes may affect you as an employer as well as your employees. This article provides a run-down of the main changes to expect to enable you to prepare in good time and apply the rules correctly.

End of PC (JIC joint industry committee) Private Plan

Employers can help pay towards the costs incurred by employees for purchasing computer equipment, such as personal laptops, peripherals, internet connections and online accounts. 

The way things stand, this financial compensation is exempt from social security (NSSO) contributions and tax subject to certain conditions. Starting on 1 July 2025, this NSSO and tax exemption ends. 

Please note that this legislation is yet to be officially published. 

Changed indexation timing of welfare benefits and civil servants' salaries

From 1 July 2025, the time when welfare benefits and civil servants' salaries are adjusted in line with the trigger index is changing. Instead of one month (for welfare benefits) or two months (for civil servants’ salaries) after the exceedance, from now on the adjustment will be implemented three months later. 

Specifically, if the trigger index is exceeded again in February 2026 - as currently expected - welfare benefits and civil servants’ salaries will be going up only in May 2026.

Please note that this legislation is yet to be officially published. 

Voluntary overtime

In principle, employers should not allow their employees to work overtime unless they have a particular reason to do so. However, since February 2017, exceptions have been allowed under the ’voluntary overtime’ scheme. In April 2020, so-called ‘relance (relaunch) overtime’ was added. This allows employees to work extra hours on a voluntary basis, without you as an employer having to state specific reasons or having to seek permission from an internal or external body first. 

Under the current scheme, employees are allowed to work a maximum of 220 voluntary overtime hours per year, of which a maximum of 100 hours is regular voluntary overtime, supplemented by 120 additional voluntary relaunch overtime hours (or a higher number of hours determined by the industry). This scheme ceases to exist from 1 July 2025. The government coalition agreement provides for an extension from 1 July 2025: employees are to be allowed to work up to 360 voluntary overtime hours per year, 240 of which would be 100% net paid (i.e. no social contributions or tax). In the hospitality industry, this figure goes up to as much as 450 hours, 360 of which are without mandatory overtime pay. Please note that this extension is yet to transposed into law. Also bear in mind that - even with voluntary overtime - the absolute limits of a maximum of 11 hours per working day and 50 hours per working week continue to apply.

Changes to SWT

Furthermore, entry into the special SWT (‘stelsel werkloosheid met bedrijfstoeslag’ or ‘unemployment benefit scheme topped up with a company-paid supplement’) schemes will no longer be possible from 1 July 2025. Specifically, this concerns the long service record schemes on the one hand and the arduous (heavy) jobs, night work and the construction industry on the other. However, entry into the scheme on medical grounds as well as for businesses in difficulty or undergoing reorganisation will remain possible, provided the recognition period started no later than 31 January 2025.

The general SWT scheme (CBA No 17) is subject to a transitional arrangement: employees who were laid off before 1 April 2025 and meet the age and career requirements (i.e. being 62 years of age and having a 40-year service record) no later than on 30 June 2025 will still be allowed to enter this scheme. Employees who were or will be laid off before 1 July 2025 will remain exempt from the adjusted availability up to and including 31 December 2026.

Please note that this legislation is yet to be officially published. 

Service travel kilometre allowance: indexation of quarterly and annual amount 

In principle, when an employee uses his own car for service travel, the employer must reimburse the costs incurred. For motorised vehicles, this is usually paid by way of a flat-rate kilometre allowance, which is accepted by the NSSO as well as the tax authorities - albeit with a ceiling amount. 

For several years now, there have been two ceiling amounts: one is index-corrected each year on 1 July, the other is index-corrected each quarter (on 1 January, 1 April, 1 July and 1 October):

• For service travel over the time period from 1 July 2025 to 30 September 2025 (kilometre allowance based on the Royal Decree of 13 July 2017), the ceiling amount is set to change (previous amount: 0.4320 euros) We will update this information as soon as it has been published.
• The other maximum kilometre allowance is index-corrected just once a year, on 1 July (kilometre allowance based on the Royal Decree of 18 January 1965). For service travel over the time period from 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026, this ceiling amount is set to change (previous amount: 0.4415 euros) We will update this information as soon as it has been published.

New quarterly flat rate reimbursement of home charging costs

Subject to certain conditions, the reimbursement of the cost of home charging of a (partially) electric company car does not give rise to the charging of an (additional) taxable benefit. To assist employers with the calculation of the actual cost of such a recharge, a circular letter was published that specifies the calculation of the maximum cost per kilowatt-hour (kWh) per region on a flat-rate basis. This cost per kilowatt-hour is adjusted every quarter in consideration of changes in the CREG rates. 

In the meantime, the maximum amounts for the third quarter of 2025 can be calculated.

Change to parameters of structural reduction

The federal government changed the limits for low and very low wages, as part of the structural reduction, and did so with retrospective effect from 1 April 2025, in order to strengthen the competitiveness of businesses. On 1 July 2025, these limits are set to change again. Please note that this new legislation has not yet been officially published and is therefore not yet final. The NSSO has already published interim instructions, although it does specify that the new parameters remain to be published in the Belgian Official Gazette.

Exemption of employer-paid contribution over and above salary ceiling amount 

To improve the competitiveness of businesses, the federal government is capping the regular employer contributions for employees with a quarterly income over and above a certain threshold amount from 1 July 2025. This is to be implemented by way of a new contribution reduction (NBVArizona). 

Discontinuation of target group reduction for older sedentary workers and Gesco status in Flanders

From 1 July 2025, the target group reduction for older sedentary workers no longer applies. The Gesco status too is being scrapped from 1 July 2025, which means both the target group reduction and the salary grant cease to apply. Employees who live and work in Flanders and who until now came under the Gesco scheme, will need to be declared in the DmfA declaration as regular blue-collar or white-collar workers from 1 July 2025.

An employee who no longer benefits from the Gesco status may be eligible for individual customised support. In that case, the employer can apply for a salary grant, and possibly a job guidance grant from the Flemish government. Click here to find out more.

Discontinuation of Social Insertion Economy (Sine) scheme in Flanders

Furthermore the Sine benefits are also being scrapped in Flanders from 1 July 2025. From this date, the target group reduction and any additional financial support from the government towards employees’ net salaries cease to apply. Here too employees may be eligible for individual customised support, which entitles their employer to salary grants and possibly job guidance grants from the Flemish government.

The end of benefits from 55 for end-of-career jobs?

From 1 July 2025, workers aged 55 to 59 will likely no longer be entitled to NEO (RVA or National Employment Office) benefits for end-of-career jobs. Up until now, these early benefits were made possible for certain categories of workers (arduous jobs, long service record careers or companies in difficulty) in CBA No 170. However, this scheme expires on 30 June 2025 with no extension announced.
The end-of-career jobs as such remain in place, allowing workers to reduce their working hours to 4/5ths or 50% from age 55, or even from age 50 for the worker categories listed above. However, the compensatory NEO benefits will be available only from 60 years of age, regardless of the employee’s professional situation.

Sectoral supplementary pension PC 200 - white-collar employees working in garages, metal recovery, bodywork, precious metals and metal trading 

From July 1, employers under PC (JIC joint industry committee) 200 operating in the garage, metal recovery, bodywork, precious metals and metal trading sector will be enrolled in a sectoral supplementary pension scheme for their white-collar employees. The funding for the SAP PC 200 will be raised through an employer-paid contribution collected by the NSSO. The total annual gross contribution is equal to 1.1% of the gross annual salary. A supplementary collection fee of 8.86% is to be charged by the NSSO over the net contribution. Employers are not required to pay this contribution if they already offer their white-collar workers an equivalent supplementary pension at company level and they have applied for an exemption in timely fashion.

Transition period electronic eC3.2 control card ends 30 June 2025

Every employee who becomes temporarily unemployed must have a control card from the first effective unemployment day of the month which he/she is to complete correctly according to the applicable guidelines. Since 1 January 2025, the use of the electronic eC3.2 control card has been compulsory for the temporarily unemployed, virtually eliminating the paper version (C3.2A). In doing so, the NEO did plan a transition period until 30 June 2025, during which both employers and employees could still apply for an exception to enable them to temporarily continue to use the paper control card. However, this transitional phase is set to end soon. From 1 July 2025, the electronic control card will therefore be the only permitted form in most cases. 

Exceptions will be allowed for sheltered workshops, social economy, workshops and adapted work organisations which will continue to be allowed to choose between paper or electronic control cards.