Work in Belgium

Belgium is situated in Western Europe and has job opportunities in service and high-tech industries. If you are thinking of working in Belgium, you must apply for a Belgium work permit. Let us look at the different work permits applicable to Belgium.

Belgium work permits

If you are from a non-EU country, then you must apply for a Belgium work permit visa. You must submit your application for a Belgium work visa well in advance. Here are the different types of work permits available:

Work permit A: With this work permit, you can work in any job for any employer for an unlimited period.  However, it is not easy to get this permit. It is available only for a certain category of foreign workers, who have already worked in Belgium for several years with a Work Permit B.

Work permit B: This is a standard work permit given to most foreigners. However, with this permit you can only work for a single employer. The validity of this visa is 12 months which can be renewed. An employee cannot enter the country without this visa. You can get this permit only if your Belgian employer gets the employment permit in advance.

Work permit C: Only certain categories of foreign workers are eligible for this permit. It allows them to stay in the country for reasons other than employment, for instance study, asylum etc. The validity of this permit is 12 months which can be renewed if required.

European Blue Card: This work cum residence permits employees who are highly skilled to work here for a period of three months.

Professional card: If you wish to stay in Belgium as a self-employed professional, then you must get a professional card. This allows a person from outside Belgium to be involved in specific activity as a self-employed person in the country for a duration of1 to 5 years.