Belgium has committed to slashing the red-tape surrounding its ‘single-permit’—the combined work-and-residence authorisation required for most non-EU hires—by imposing a statutory 90-day processing deadline from early 2027. The change stems from the revised EU Single-Permit Directive, which Belgium must transpose by May 2027. Today the country’s three regional employment administrations aim for a 120-day turnaround **after** they declare a file admissible, but in practice applicants and sponsoring employers often wait six months or more. Under the new rules the stopwatch will start as soon as a *complete* dossier is lodged, forcing Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels to streamline internal checks and to coordinate more closely with the federal Immigration Office. For multinationals the shorter timeline should ease project planning and reduce the need for costly interim solutions such as commuter assignments or posted-worker permits. The directive will also allow single-permit holders to change employers after six months and to retain lawful stay for up to six months after redundancy, giving Belgium a more flexible talent pool during ongoing labour shortages—vacancy rates hit 4.1 % in June, the second-highest in the EU. Trade unions and business groups broadly support the reform but warn that staffing levels in regional administrations must rise to meet the new deadline. Failure to comply could expose Belgium to infringement proceedings and daily fines from the European Commission—the country was previously fined over €4 million for late transposition of earlier migration directives. Practically, employers should audit their current pipelines and adjust relocation timelines: files submitted after the transposition date should benefit from the 90-day clock, while legacy applications will remain under today’s looser regime. HR teams are advised to front-load document collection, as incomplete dossiers will be rejected and the clock will not start until resubmission. Regional authorities are expected to publish detailed guidance—including whether the 90-day limit will cover the time taken by municipal town halls to issue residence cards—later this year.
Source: The Brussels Times
