Hire Workers in Belgium: Single Permit, Three Regions
In Belgium the region decides, not the country. We place workers from India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan on the single permit — and we check your role against the shortage list of the region your worksite is actually in.
- Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels are three answers
The same job can be listed in one Belgian region and refused in another.
What You Need to Hire Workers in Belgium
Belgium issues a single permit — one document covering both residence and work — for employment lasting more than ninety days. The application goes in through the employer, and the residence half is federal. The employment half is not. Authorisation to work is decided by the region where the work will physically be done, and the three regions run different rules.
Each region publishes its own shortage occupation list, and a listed role is exempt from the labour market test that otherwise applies. Flanders uses the VDAB knelpuntberoepen list, Wallonia uses Le Forem’s métiers en pénurie, and Brussels uses the Actiris list of critical functions, which was reissued in July 2026. The lists do not match each other, and they are revised on their own schedules.
Flanders in particular tightened sharply on 1 January 2026, cutting its list by more than a third and removing everyday roles including truck and bus drivers, bakers and butchers, while adding narrower specialist trades. An employer who read a Flemish list from 2025 and budgeted on it is working from a document that no longer holds.
The practical consequence is that a Belgian requirement cannot be quoted from the job title alone. We need to know which region the worksite sits in, and we check the current list for that region before telling you what the file looks like.
Who We Are
Hire Across Euro is an independent international recruitment consultancy with an active sourcing network across India, Nepal and Bangladesh. The founder runs every engagement personally, so a Belgian employer gets an answer tied to their region rather than a national average that fits none of the three.
What We Handle for Belgian Employers
Sourcing and Vetting
We shortlist workers whose training documents and work history stand up to consular scrutiny. Every file is checked for document completeness and practical competence before it reaches you.
- Document verification
- Trade competence check
Regional Check and Single Permit
We identify the competent region, check your occupation against its current shortage list, and assemble the single permit application including the labour market evidence where no exemption applies.
- Regional shortage list check
- Single permit file assembly
Contract and Terms Review
We check the offered contract against the applicable joint committee scale, because a Belgian permit is assessed on the terms as well as the role.
Arrival and Onboarding
Workers are briefed on Belgian working-time rules, site safety expectations and commune registration before they travel.
Sectors Where We Hire Workers in Belgium
Four areas of persistent Belgian demand. Which of them is listed depends on your region.
Construction and Finishing
Bricklayers, formwork carpenters, roofers and finishing trades for contractors across all three regions.
Technical and Installation
Electricians, pipefitters, HVAC and industrial installation trades with documented training.
Logistics and Warehousing
Warehouse operatives and distribution staff around Antwerp, Liège and the Brussels corridor.
Food and Manufacturing
Production operatives and machine minders for food processing and light industrial plants.
The Belgian Route at a Glance
One country, three answers. This is the part employers most often get wrong.
| Permit | Single permit covering residence and work, for employment longer than 90 days |
|---|---|
| Who decides work | The region where the work is physically done, not the federal government |
| Flanders | VDAB knelpuntberoepen list — cut by more than a third from 1 January 2026 |
| Wallonia | Le Forem métiers en pénurie list |
| Brussels | Actiris list of critical functions, reissued July 2026 |
| Labour market test | Waived where the occupation is on the shortage list for that specific region |
How to Hire Workers in Belgium: Getting the Region Right
Employers researching how to hire workers in Belgium from outside the EU usually find national guidance, and national guidance is the one thing that will not help them. Belgium’s single permit is federal in name and regional in substance: the residence side is handled centrally, but whether you may employ the person at all is decided by Flanders, Wallonia or Brussels according to where the work happens.
That regionalisation is not a technicality. Each region maintains its own shortage occupation list, and being on it is what exempts a role from the labour market test. The Flemish list comes from VDAB, the Walloon list from Le Forem, the Brussels list from Actiris, and they diverge substantially. A logistics role that is exempt in one region can require full labour market evidence a few kilometres away.
Flanders is the clearest current example of why this needs checking rather than assuming. From 1 January 2026 it cut its shortage list by more than a third, and the roles it removed were not obscure ones — truck and bus drivers, bakers and butchers came off, while narrower specialist trades were added. Any employer or agency quoting Flemish timelines from an older list is quoting from a document that has been superseded.
The rest is conventional and manageable: a written offer on the applicable joint committee terms, an employer-led application, and a consular stage once authorisation is granted. Give us the worksite region and the job title and we will tell you which of the three answers applies. Our live roles are on the vacancies board, our standards are in ethical recruitment compliant with EU labour law, and employers operating across the Benelux and northern France usually also read our page on hiring workers in France.
How the Process Works
Six steps from the first requirement call to workers on site in Belgium.
Requirement Call
We go through headcount, roles, worksite location, contract length and the start date you are working back from.
Shortlist
We present vetted workers from India, Nepal, Bangladesh or Pakistan with their training and work-history evidence attached.
Permit Filing
We file the single permit application with the competent region and manage the labour market stage where it applies.
Visa Application
We prepare the consular file and the employer-side documents your HR team is asked to produce, and track it to decision.
Arrival
We coordinate travel and the first days in Belgium, including commune registration and the practical basics.
Onboarding
We support induction at the worksite and stay reachable through the first weeks of the placement.
Quick Answers
What is the Belgian single permit?
It is one document covering both residence and the right to work, required for employment lasting more than ninety days. The employer applies. The residence half is federal, but the work half is decided regionally, which is why the worksite address matters more than anything else in the file.
Why does the region change the answer?
Because Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels each publish their own shortage occupation list, and being on it is what exempts a role from the labour market test. The lists diverge substantially, so a logistics role can be exempt in one region and require full evidence a few kilometres away.
How do I check whether my role qualifies in Belgium?
Identify the region of the worksite first, then check that region’s current list — VDAB for Flanders, Le Forem for Wallonia, Actiris for Brussels. Lists from 2025 should not be relied on, because Flanders removed everyday roles including truck and bus drivers, bakers and butchers on 1 January 2026.
Official Sources and Further Reading
Three regions means three sources. Check the one that governs your worksite, not a national summary.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does it matter which Belgian region our site is in?
It matters more than anything else in the file. Work authorisation is decided regionally, and Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels each maintain their own shortage occupation list. The same role can be exempt from the labour market test in one region and not in another.
What changed in Flanders in 2026?
From 1 January 2026 the Flemish shortage list was cut by more than a third. Everyday roles including truck and bus drivers, bakers and butchers were removed, and narrower specialist trades were added. Older Flemish lists should not be relied on.
What is the single permit and how long does it cover?
It is one document covering both residence and work, required for employment longer than ninety days. The employer applies, the region decides the work element and the federal authorities the residence element.
Do we still need to prove we could not hire locally?
Only where the role is not on the shortage list for your region. A listed occupation is exempt from that test, which is precisely why the regional check is the first thing we do.
Which terms do we have to offer?
Those set by the applicable joint committee for your sector. The permit is assessed on the terms as well as the role, so an offer below the sector scale weakens the application rather than saving money.
How long does a Belgian single permit take and what does it cost?
Timelines differ by region and by whether the shortage-list exemption applies, so we quote per region rather than nationally. On cost, the controllable lines are our fee and the regional charges; the uncontrollable one is the joint committee pay scale, which is a condition of the permit rather than a negotiating position.
Our role came off the Flemish shortage list in 2026. What now?
Two options, and they are genuinely different. You can run the full labour market test in Flanders, which is slower but open. Or, if the work can sit elsewhere, check whether Wallonia or Brussels still lists the occupation, because the three lists are independent of each other and frequently disagree.
Request Workers for Belgium
Tell us the roles, the worksite region and the headcount. A consultant replies within one business day with the regional position and what the file will take.
Talk to Us
If your sites in Belgium need workers from India, Nepal or Bangladesh, send us the requirement and a consultant replies within one business day with the regional route, the timeline and a quote.