Employing a foreigner in Flanders: volunteer

Non-EU nationals can come to work as volunteers in Flanders for a maximum of 12 months under certain conditions.

Not every foreigner needs a work permit

Foreigners coming to work in Flanders, the employer must obtain a work permit beforehand. For certain groups of foreigners, this requirement does not apply and you are exempt.

This applies,among others, to:

Employment for up to 90 days, so-called short-term mobility, in particular short-term employment with a Limosa declaration.
Persons participating in a restricted meeting in Belgium, with a maximum of 60 days per calendar year in our country, and no more than 20 consecutive calendar days per meeting.
The foreign employee receiving training at the Belgian headquarters of a group of companies. That training is part of a training agreement between the headquarters of that group. The training, and therefore also their stay, shall not exceed three months (with a Limosa declaration).

The full list of exemptions can be found here.

Therefore, if the foreigner does not belong to one of these groups, a work permit is required. The employer can only employ the foreigner if they meet the conditions which apply to the type of work which the foreigner is to perform.

Conditions

Foreign nationals can perform volunteer work in Flanders for a maximum of 12 months if they meet the following conditions:

the volunteer organisation employing the volunteer must have an approved volunteer programme within the framework of European Voluntary Service(opens in new window). The ESC (European Solidarity Corps (in Dutch)(opens in new window)) maintains supervision.
The placement of the young person with a volunteer organisation is monitored, for Flanders, by the National Agency for the European Solidarity Corps, JINT VZW (in Dutch)(opens in new window).

A work permit for a volunteer is issued for a maximum of 12 months and can’t be extended. When volunteering ends, the volunteer must leave the Belgian territory. Volunteers can only work via a single permit, never via a work permit.

Procedure for obtaining a work permit – Fixed duration, more than 90 days

The volunteer organisation applies for a single permit of fixed duration (single permit) for their future foreign volunteer who is coming to Belgium for more than 90 days. The single permit includes both the work permit and the residence permit. If the application is approved, the volunteer can work for the organisation which requested the permit.
The documents do not have to be originals, a copy is sufficient.

Stap 1
Employee identity document
Employee is not in Belgium at the time of application:
Personal data in an international passport.
Employee is in Belgium at the time of application:
Personal data in an international passport
And a Belgian residence permit.
Proof(opens in new window) that the requested administrative costs (fees) have been paid
Extract from the criminal register(opens in new window), if the applicant is over 18 years of age. Legalised(opens in new window) and translated (Dutch, French or English)
The standard medical certificate(opens in new window) showing that the employee is not suffering from a disease which is a threat to public health, as referred to in the annex to the law of 15 December 1980
Proof that the employee has health insurance(opens in new window) or a declaration of commitment (in Dutch)(PDF file opens in new window)
These documents must be no more than 6 months old at the time of submitting your application.
Stap 2
A volunteer agreement, dated and signed by both parties, drawn up in the language of the region in which the volunteer organisation concerned is located.
A description of the volunteer programme (of the organisation).
The duration of the volunteer work
The number of hours the volunteer will devote to the volunteer work
The conditions for the placement and supervision of the volunteer work
The funds available to cover the volunteer’s living expenses and accommodation
a minimum amount of pocket money for the duration of the stay
possibly the training which the volunteer will receive to help them perform their volunteer work
a declaration that the volunteer will not hold any other (employed) position in Belgium while they are doing their volunteer work.
Confirming the placement of the volunteer within the framework of an approved volunteer programme of European volunteer work at the host organisation.
Stap 3
Health insurance is required.
If this is regulated at European level via the EVS/ESC (in Dutch)(opens in new window), proof of this is sufficient.
To gain entry to the territory, the foreigner will have to demonstrate sufficient means of subsistence. The means of subsistence must at least cover the costs of the stay and the return journey. The host organisation can guarantee this and optionally prove it with an Annex 32 (in Dutch)(PDF file opens in new window).
Mandatory document in the context of financial liability to be completed by the host institution. The Commitment to Financial Liability (in Dutch)(PDF file opens in new window).

Sufficient means of subsistence means at least the living wage of a single person – since 1 January 2023, this has been EUR 1,214.13.
Is only required if the volunteer stays with the host organisation itself for their entire stay.
Stap 4
Only submit a complete application. It is not possible to email documents afterwards to add them to a file which has already been submitted.
If the file has been processed, but you want to cancel/stop the application, you can do so via the ‘stop’ button. The Economic Migration Department will then process the cancellation/stop request.
If the employment contract with the employee has been terminated early, you must press the ‘stop early’ button in the employee’s file.
After you have submitted the complete application via the one-stop shop(opens in new window), it is automatically forwarded digitally to the competent region. The competent regions, besides Flanders, are:
Brussels-Capital Region
Brussel Economie en Werkgelegenheid
Directie Economische Migratie
Sint-Lazarusplein 2
1035 Brussels
02 204 13 99 (from 9 to 12)
Website of the competent service in Brussels(opens in new window)
Walloon Region
Direction générale de l’Economie, de l’Emploi et de la Recherche 
Direction de l’Emploi et des Permis de travail
Place de la Wallonie 1
5100 Jambes
081 33 43 62
permisdetravail@spw.wallonie.be(opens in your email application)
Website of the competent service in Wallonia(opens in new window)
German-speaking Community
Ministerium der Deutschsprachigen Gemeinschaft
Abteilung Beschäftigung, Gesundheit und Soziales,
Gospertstrasse, 1
4700 Eupen
087 59 64 86
Website of the competent service for the German-speaking Community(opens in new window)
Stap 5
The competent region will examine the “employment” section of your file.
After you have submitted the complete application, you can follow up the status of your application in the one-stop shop(opens in new window). For each change of status of your file, you will receive a notification and a digital letter via your eBox (in Dutch)(opens in new window).
These statuses are possible:
The file has been submitted
Additional information requested by the region
Admissibility
Inadmissibility
Positive decision concerning work or negative position concerning work
After a ‘positive decision concerning work’, the file is automatically forwarded to the Immigration Department of the federal government, which will examine the “residence” section of your application. The following stages are possible:
Being processed by the Immigration Department
Additional information requested by the Immigration Department
Positive decision concerning residence (Annex 46/47) or negative decision concerning residence (Annex 48).
In case of a positive decision on both work and residence (single permit), the Immigration Department will communicate this decision to the employee, the employer and the municipal council or the Belgian diplomatic and consular post specified in the application.
If the employee is in Belgium, the Immigration Department will issue an electronic single permit via the municipality. This permit contains both the work permit and the residence permit.
If the employee is abroad, the employee, who has provided a foreign address in their application for a work permit, must apply for a visa D (national long-stay visa) at the Belgian diplomatic or consular post competent for their place of residence.
That post will issue the visa, upon presentation of a valid passport and the decision to grant a single permit (Annex 46 or 47), provided that the decision presented by the employee is fully consistent with the decision communicated to the post by the Immigration Department.
The national entry B34 made on the visa D means that the employee has received a single permit. The entry B29 means that the employee is a highly qualified employee (EU Blue Card).
If the employee has arrived in Belgium
Then, within 8 working days, the employee must register in the aliens’ register (in Dutch)(opens in new window) of the place of residence and apply for the issue of a single permit.