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Destination guide · Western Europe

Moving to Belgium from the U.S.

How the retiree visa, the regional work permits, the Blue Card and the professional card work in 2026, where Americans apply, and what tax, health insurance, rent, buying and paperwork involve in Flanders, Brussels and Wallonia, with figures taken from official sources and dated.

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Rules and figures checked: September 2026Official sources: 118
LanguagesDutch, French, GermanThe three national languages; citizenship needs one of them at A21
CurrencyEuro (€)€1 = $1.1367 (ECB, Sep 24, 2026)2
EU / SchengenYes / YesIn the EU and the Schengen area; visits of up to 90 days in any 180 without a visa34
Retiree visaNo set figureNeeds the Immigration Office’s approval5; the embassy checklist names no income amount and asks for ties to Belgium6
Blue Card salarySet by regionFlanders €63,586 a year; Brussels €4,748 a month; Wallonia €68,815 a year789
Citizenship5 yearsBy declaration, with A2 in a national language, integration and 468 working days1
What changed recently

Belgium in 2026: New Work Rules, a Capital-Gains Tax, Cheaper Home Purchases

Since 2024 Belgium has changed its family-reunification law, nationality fee, taxes on investment gains and home purchases, rent rules and work-permit rules. Newest first.

  • January 1, 2028 (future, already legislated): Wallonia cuts inheritance tax for deaths from that date; the top direct-line rate falls from 30% to 15%10.
  • October 1, 2026 (coming): your identity card will be needed at the dentist, as it already is at the hospital11.
  • September 1, 2026: Flanders charges a €180 fee on each single-permit application12; new doctors’ tariffs put the main family-doctor consultation fee (code 101076) at €33.7413.
  • July 1, 2026: the handling fee for a long-stay (D) visa at the Belgian posts in the United States became $3005.
  • May 20, 2026: the EU regulation on short-term rental data began to apply14.
  • April 2026: new EU pet-travel rules from April 2215; the EU’s Entry/Exit System replaced passport stamps on April 1016; on April 2 the Chamber adopted a 10% tax on capital gains on financial assets, effective from January 1, 202617.
  • February 2026: new Brussels transit fares from February 118, and indexed rail fares19; on February 26 the Constitutional Court suspended parts of the 2025 family-reunification law only as they apply to family members of people with subsidiary protection20.
  • January 1, 2026: new Flemish rules for foreign workers, under which only highly qualified jobs count in the highly skilled category21; stricter conditions for Flanders’ reduced purchase duty on sale agreements from this date22; Brussels reference rents indexed23.
  • December 11, 2025: the Chamber adopted a more generous inbound-taxpayer regime, 35% tax-free expenses and a salary threshold of more than €70,000, for pay from January 1, 202524.
  • 2025, by the law of July 18, 2025: family reunification tightened to 110% of the guaranteed minimum monthly income plus 10% per extra dependent, with a partner age of 212526; and, under the program law of the same date, the fee to register Belgian nationality rose from €150 to €1,00027.
  • May 1, 2025: Brussels landlords may not propose an abusive rent, presumed when it is more than 20% above the official reference rent2328.
  • 2025: Brussels leases must be registered on the regional Irisrent platform from January 1, and, after a Constitutional Court ruling of April 3, on the federal MyRent platform as well29.
  • January 1, 2025: purchase duty on an only home fell to 2% in Flanders and 3% in Wallonia2230; Flemish municipal mergers took effect, among them Antwerp and Borsbeek31.
  • November 1, 2024: Brussels capped rental deposits at two months’ rent for new and renewed leases32.
  • May 1, 2024: Flanders set its Blue Card salary at 130% of the Belgian average gross annual salary for hires after that date7.
On this page
  1. Who Belgium suits
  2. Residence routes
  3. Step by step, in the right order
  4. Cost of living
  5. Health insurance
  6. Taxes for Americans
  7. Renting and buying
  8. Where to live
  9. Registration, banks, driving, pets
  10. EES and ETIAS
  11. A 12-month timeline
  12. Questions
  13. Sources
Is Belgium for you?

Who Belgium Suits, and Who It Frustrates

Belgium suits professionals with a Belgian job offer, founders who can show a business plan to a regional authority, and retirees who already have real ties to the country. It frustrates retirees with no Belgian connections, since the retiree visa checklist asks for them, anyone hoping to work remotely for a U.S. company on a dedicated visa, since the consulates list no such visa, and anyone who wants one national rulebook: work permits, rents, purchase taxes and inheritance tax differ between Flanders, Brussels and Wallonia.

In its favor

  • Citizenship by declaration after five years of legal residence, with language at A21.
  • Under the tax treaty, U.S. Social Security paid to a Belgian resident, or to a U.S. citizen, is taxable only in the United States, and this rule is one of the exceptions to the treaty’s saving clause33.
  • Purchase duty on an only home is 2% in Flanders and 3% in Wallonia, and Brussels charges nothing on the first €200,000 of an only home costing up to €600,000223034.
  • A family doctor consultation costs you €4 after reimbursement if the doctor holds your Global Medical File13.
  • Newcomers get a step-up for the new capital-gains tax: gains are measured from an asset’s value on the day you become resident35.
  • Main-residence leases run nine years by default, and in Brussels and Wallonia deposits are capped at two months’ rent36373832.

Against it

  • The retiree visa needs the Immigration Office’s approval5, sets no published figure, and asks for a cover letter on your ties to Belgium and reference letters from Belgian citizens or residents6.
  • No digital-nomad or investor category appears on the consulates’ list of long-stay visas5.
  • Income tax reaches 50% above €51,070 of taxable income in 2026, before the municipal surcharge, usually 7% of the tax39.
  • Salary floors for work permits differ by region: a Blue Card needs 130% of the Belgian average gross salary in Flanders, €63,586 a year, and €68,815 a year in Wallonia79.
  • Employees pay 13.07% of gross pay in social contributions, by our sum of the branch rates40.
  • People insured as National Register residents who pay no social contributions pay €931.12 a quarter in 2026, less on a low income41.
Residence routes

Which Visa Fits You, and What It Takes in 2026

Every American who wants to stay in Belgium for more than 90 days needs a long-stay (D) visa. It is not a Schengen visa, but it lets you travel in the Schengen area while you live in Belgium5. Work permits and the self-employed professional card are handled by the region where you will work, Flanders, the Brussels-Capital Region or Wallonia, and the visa by the consulate424389.

Where Americans apply

Visas are issued by the Embassy of Belgium in Washington, DC and the Consulates General in Atlanta, Los Angeles and New York44. You apply to the post that covers the state of your primary residence, after creating an account and starting the application on VisaOnWeb5. How you hand it in depends on the post:

  • Atlanta: by mail, or dropped off in person during opening hours, paid by money order or certified check if you drop it off; no appointments5.
  • New York and Washington, DC: by appointment or by mail5.
  • Los Angeles: by mail only, except professional card applicants, who email to make an appointment5.
  • If you mail or drop off your file, your signature must be notarized. There is no expedited service5.

The consulates list approximate processing times by category, from three weeks to six to nine months:

Long-stay (D) visa categories for applicants in the United States, with the processing times the Belgian posts state. Checked September 25, 2026.
CategoryForStated processing time
Retirement (annuitant application)People who will live on their own means3 months5
Single permit holdersPrivate employees, researchers, Fulbright recipients, seasonal workers, missionaries3 weeks5
Professional card applicantsSelf-employed workers3 months5
Higher education students, accredited institutionsUniversity students3 weeks5
Family of a private employee or self-employed workerSpouses, partners and children joining a worker3 weeks5
Spouse or minor child of a Belgian citizenFamilies of Belgians3 weeks to 6 months5
Spouse of a Belgian residentFamilies of residents3 to 6 months5

Source: the Belgian posts’ D-visa page5.

What the visa costs

Since July 1, 2026, the handling fee for a long-stay visa application at the U.S. posts is $3005; a professional card application costs $16845. Retirement, professional card and family applications also need proof that you paid the Immigration Office’s administrative fee by international wire transfer to the Immigration Office in Belgium64647. The checklist sends you to the Immigration Office’s site for the amounts; that site was closed to us by a security check, so ask the consulate for the current figure.

Retiring to Belgium: the annuitant visa

Belgium does have a route for Americans who will not work: the D visa for retirement, which the U.S. posts also call the annuitant application65. It needs the approval of the Immigration Office in Belgium5, and the embassy checklist sets no income or savings amount. It asks for6:

  • Proof of sufficient funds or income, which may include Social Security benefits, bank statements covering at least the past six months and income from real estate6.
  • A cover letter explaining why you wish to live in Belgium, with an overview of your significant ties to Belgium, for example frequent visits, friends or relatives, property or assets there6.
  • Reference letters from Belgian citizens or residents confirming your close ties to Belgium, with their full name, address and contact details6.
  • A nationwide FBI criminal history record, sealed and no older than six months, and a medical certificate on the official model, also no older than six months6.
  • The visa fee and proof that you paid the Immigration Office’s administrative fee6.

The stated processing time is three months5. We could not read the Immigration Office’s own guidance on this visa, so before you file, ask the consulate or a Belgian immigration lawyer two questions: what level of income the Immigration Office currently looks for, and what health insurance you must show.

Working for a Belgian employer: the single permit

Your Belgian employer files the work-permit application on your behalf with the region. Once the single permit is approved, you apply for the D visa at the U.S. post, which takes about three weeks425. Each region sets its own salary floors, below. In Flanders, since January 1, 2026, only highly qualified jobs count in the highly skilled category, low-skilled jobs (Flemish qualification levels 1 and 2) are no longer accepted for economic migration, and the shortage list has changed21. From September 1, 2026, Flanders charges a €180 fee on each single-permit application, first applications and renewals alike, on top of the federal fee; it is paid within 15 days and indexed every January 11221.

Minimum pay for the main skilled-worker permits, by region, for 2026 applications. Checked September 25, 2026.
RegionHighly skilled or highly qualifiedEU Blue CardWhat counts
Flanders€48,912 a year (about $55,598); under 30, or a nurse or teacher, on a Belgian contract: €39,129.6048€63,586 a year (about $72,278)7Gross pay a year487
Brussels-Capital Region€3,703.44 a month (about $4,210)8€4,748 a month (about $5,397)8Basic pay a month; for a worker posted from abroad, gross monthly pay, which may include a monthly posting allowance8
Wallonia€53,220 a year (about $60,495); under 30: €42,5769€68,815 a year (about $78,222); under three years’ experience: €55,0529Gross pay a year9

Flanders is still using the 2025 Belgian average (€48,912) for applications filed in 2026, until Statbel publishes new wage statistics; its monthly equivalent is €3,513.79 on a Belgian contract with a 13th month (the annual figure divided by 13.92), or €4,076 for a posted worker (divided by 12)48. The 80% rule for under-30s does not apply to posted workers48. Brussels sets its floors as a share of the Brussels average gross monthly wage, €4,748 since January 1, 2025, and kept the same amounts for 20268. EU law sets the Blue Card floor between 1.0 and 1.6 times a country’s average gross annual salary49. Dollar amounts are our arithmetic at the ECB rate2.

Salary floor calculator

Does a Belgian Job Offer Meet the 2026 Salary Floor?

Choose the region and the permit, then enter the gross salary in the offer, in euros: a year for Flanders and Wallonia, and basic pay a month for Brussels (gross monthly pay for a worker posted from abroad), which is how each region states its floor. We compare it with the floor to the cent and apply each region’s own wording, all of which accept a salary equal to the floor: Flanders says “at least”, Brussels “at least equal to”, and Wallonia lists “minimum amounts” of “required gross annual salary”48789. Dollar figures use the ECB rate of September 24, 2026 (€1 = $1.1367)2.

A salary check only, and each floor applies only to its own region and permit. The permits also need a qualifying job and other conditions, such as a higher-education degree for the Blue Card. Meeting a floor does not by itself mean a permit will be granted.

The EU Blue Card, region by region

  • Flanders: gross annual pay of at least 130% of the Belgian average, €63,586, for hires after May 1, 20247. After 12 months the card is valid for any employer, and after 24 months, on renewal, a three-year card is issued50.
  • Brussels: at least €4,748 a month; a higher-education degree of at least three years, or three of the last seven years in IT; a contract of at least six months. The work authorization lasts as long as the contract, up to three years, and can be renewed851.
  • Highly skilled permits in Flanders can be requested for three years at once48.

Working for yourself: the professional card

Americans who want to be self-employed in Belgium, including as a company director (mandataire), paid or unpaid, need a professional card52. From the United States it takes two steps: you apply for the card through the embassy or consulate, and after the region approves it you apply for the D visa. The consulates recommend applying at least four months before you plan to leave46, and the stated processing time for the visa category is three months5. The region where you will work decides:

The professional card, explained

What Each Region Asks of a Self-Employed American

  • Flanders. A diploma at least at secondary level (qualification level 4); a business plan with a SWOT analysis; and stable, sufficient and regular means of subsistence, which must be at least 110% of the guaranteed average minimum monthly income, net: €2,456.96 a month from July 202653. For a project that brings economic added value, you must hold at least €22,838 (indexed from January 1, 2026) in an account in your name, about $25,960, and show either that jobs will be created and investments made, or that the activity benefits the existing economic structure43. The application fee is €140. Flanders decides within 120 days of accepting the file, a period it can extend for a complex file; with no decision by the end of that period, the card is deemed approved. On arrival you pay €90 for each year of validity, and the card runs for one to three years43.
  • Brussels-Capital Region. You need a right of residence, compliance with the rules for your activity, and a project of interest to the region’s prosperity, for example an offer not already plentiful in the region or an innovation, with a business plan of no more than 20 pages. The fee is €140 when you apply and €90 when the card is issued52.
  • Wallonia. The project must be of economic, cultural, social, artistic or sporting interest to Wallonia. A decision takes about three months on average, the card is granted for a limited period, and a card granted to someone abroad stays on hold until the D visa is issued54.

Explanation only: the regions judge each business plan on its merits, and the consulate’s $168 application charge is listed separately from the regional fees45. Self-employed people pay their own social contributions; see taxes.

Moving as a family

The law of July 18, 2025 changed the income test for joining a family member who is a non-EU (third-country) national living in Belgium, and for joining a Belgian. The sponsor must now show net stable income of at least 110% of the guaranteed average minimum monthly income (the national minimum wage under collective agreement no. 43), plus 10% for each additional dependent; before, the test was 120% of the social integration income. Social integration income and family allowances do not count, nor do unemployment benefits unless the sponsor is actively looking for work25. The minimum age for a partner is now 212526. The old rules still apply to applications filed within two years of the law taking effect by family members of a sponsor who had already been admitted for more than three months before then, and to renewals of permits issued under the old law25. The Constitutional Court suspended parts of the law in February 2026 only as they apply to family members of people with subsidiary protection, and rejected the other requests20.

The law sets the test as a percentage, and the minimum income it is based on is indexed, so ask the consulate or an immigration lawyer for the euro amount that applies on the day you file. Families of a work-permit holder get a D visa in about three weeks if they apply within six months of the worker’s permit; after that the file goes to the Immigration Office and can take up to nine months. Without proof of health insurance, the family member’s visa is limited to four months47.

No digital-nomad visa, no golden visa

The consulates’ list of D-visa categories covers studies, employment (the single permit, work permits and the professional card), retirement and family reunification. It has no digital-nomad or remote-work category and no investor category5. If you plan to keep working for a U.S. employer from Belgium, take the question to a Belgian immigration lawyer before you apply.

After you arrive

Once in Belgium, you register at the town hall of the municipality where you live and apply for your residence permit there. The consulates tell D-visa holders to register within eight days of arrival5; the National Register rule is eight working days after you actually move into your home55. The permit lets you back into Belgium as long as it is valid, provided you do not stay abroad for more than three months without telling the town hall5.

Long-term residence and citizenship

  • EU long-term residence. EU law requires member states to grant long-term resident status after five years of legal and continuous residence, to people with stable and regular resources and health insurance56.
  • Belgian nationality by declaration after five years. The Nationality Code, as amended in 2012, lets an adult with five years’ legal residence declare Belgian nationality if they show knowledge of one of the three national languages at A2, social integration (for example a diploma, 400 hours of training, an integration course or five years of uninterrupted work) and economic participation: 468 working days in the last five years, or six quarters of self-employed contributions1.
  • Pension age. People who have reached pension age, or who cannot work because of a disability, need five years’ legal residence; the 2012 text sets no language, integration or work test for them1.
  • Counting the years. You must hold unlimited residence on the day you file. Absences of up to six months, adding up to no more than a fifth of the required period, do not break the residence1.
  • The fee. The program law of July 18, 2025 raised the registration fee from €150 to €1,000, indexed every January 12726; ask your municipality for the current amount.
  • Other routes. There are variants for spouses and parents of Belgians and a ten-year route1; naturalization by the Chamber is reserved for exceptional merit or stateless people and takes at least two years57.

These are the rules as set by the 2012 law amending the Nationality Code, the latest text we could read; we could not confirm from an official Belgian page whether you would have to give up U.S. citizenship. Check both points with your municipality or a lawyer before you apply.

General information, not advice. Quantum Jetset does not give legal, tax, immigration, financial or investment advice. Belgian authorities apply these rules case by case, and the retiree visa needs the Immigration Office’s approval; check the official source for your route and, if your case is not simple, speak to a Belgian immigration lawyer.

Step by step

The Order of Operations, Step by Step

The sequence for an American applying from the United States. For a job, your employer files the work permit first and you apply for the visa after it is approved; for self-employment, the professional card comes first4246.

  1. Choose the route and the region: a pension or savings points to the retirement visa, a Belgian job offer to the single permit or the Blue Card of the region where you will work, a business to the professional card54889.
  2. For a job: your employer files the permit with the region; in Flanders it pays the €180 fee within 15 days4212. For a business: file the professional card at the consulate at least four months before you plan to leave46.
  3. Order your FBI record and book the medical exam on the official model, timed so both are no older than six months when you file6.
  4. Assemble the file in the checklist’s order, with proof of means, and for the retiree visa your cover letter and reference letters6.
  5. File the D visa with the post that covers your state, through VisaOnWeb, with proof of the Immigration Office fee where your category needs it; pay the $300 fee56.
  6. Wait for the decision: about three weeks for single-permit holders, three months for retirees and professional card applicants; there is no expedited service5.
  7. Register at the town hall within eight working days of moving in, and apply for your residence permit555.
  8. Join a health insurance fund, a mutualité or the public CAAMI5859.
  9. Open a bank account; anyone legally resident in the EU has the right to a basic account60.
  10. Exchange your U.S. license in time: ask your town hall for its deadline; in the City of Brussels it is 185 days from registration61.
  11. Settle your tax position with a cross-border adviser; if you were recruited from abroad, your employer has three months from your start to apply for the inbound-taxpayer regime6263.
Cost of living

What Things Cost, From Official Figures

Inflation in August 2026 was above its 2025 average. On the EU-harmonized measure (HICP), Belgian inflation was 4.2% in August 2026, up from 3.3% in June and 3.6% in July; the 2025 average was 3.0%6465. Statbel’s national consumer price index, rebased to 2025 = 100 this year, stood at 104.01 in August 2026 against 100.04 a year earlier, which is 3.97% by our arithmetic66. Energy rose fastest: by our arithmetic from the same indices, the energy component rose about 16.5% in a year66, and on the HICP, gas was 24.6% and electricity 7.8% more expensive in August 2026 than a year earlier65. The health index, which is used to index rents, rose 3.44% by our arithmetic (103.49 against 100.05)66.

Rents paid by tenants rose more slowly: 3.1% over the year to August 2026 on the HICP’s measure of actual rents65. We found no official rent level per square meter for towns; see renting for the Brussels reference rents.

Average household energy bills across market offers, September 2026, a year, all charges included. Electricity for 3,500 kWh a year; gas for 17,000 kWh. Checked September 25, 2026.
RegionElectricityGas
Belgium€1,415.82 (about $1,609)€1,883.07 (about $2,140)
Flanders€1,358.04€1,806.10
Brussels€1,498.35€1,969.99
Wallonia€1,474.73€2,047.58

Source: CREG, the federal energy regulator, monthly dashboard for September 202667. These are averages of suppliers’ commercial offers, not regulated prices; your contract will differ. The national electricity average was €1,342.24 in July 2026 and gas €1,564.21. The protected social tariff was €960.95 a year for electricity and €978.36 for gas67.

Public transit

  • Brussels (STIB), from February 1, 2026: a single trip costs €2.40 and a day €9.00; a month costs €56 and 12 months €560 (about $637). Brussels residents aged 65 and over, and aged 18 to 24, pay €12 for 12 months; children under 12 travel free; the MOBIB card costs €618.
  • Brupass, which covers STIB, De Lijn, TEC and the railways inside the Brussels region: €2.70 a trip, €68 a month or €680 for 12 months. Brupass XL, Brussels and its surroundings: €94 a month or €940 for 12 months1868.
  • Flanders (De Lijn): the Omnipas for all De Lijn buses and trams, ages 25 to 64, costs €62 a month, €186 for three months or €499 a year, plus €10 for the MOBIB card69. The City Pass for De Lijn and rail travel within Ghent or Antwerp costs €73 a month or €599 a year from age 2570.
  • Rail (SNCB): fares were indexed on February 1, 2026, by 2.14% for tickets and 2.6% for season tickets, and the longest distance charged for a season ticket fell from 150 km to 120 km, cutting the top season-ticket price by 16%19. Season tickets are priced by distance; check yours with the operator. We could not read Wallonia’s TEC fares.

Pay, for context

The latest regional pay figures on Statbel’s open-data portal are for 2022: full-time employees earned an average of €4,076 gross a month nationally, €4,748 in Brussels, €4,028 in Flanders and €3,794 in Wallonia71.

Dollar amounts are converted at the ECB reference rate of September 24, 2026 (€1 = $1.1367)2. Build your own full budget, line by line and in both currencies, in the Relocation Planner workbook.

Health insurance

Public Coverage Through a Fund, and the Medicare Question

Joining a health insurance fund

To be covered for health care, and for sickness and maternity benefits, you join a health insurance fund (mutualité or ziekenfonds). There are five national unions of funds, and a public alternative, CAAMI-HZIV, which carries out the same tasks58. Funds charge a membership fee; CAAMI charges none, but offers no complementary coverage5859. Your dependents, such as children under 25 and your spouse, are covered through your membership58.

If you do not work in Belgium

People registered in the National Register who pay no social contributions can be insured by paying a personal contribution. For 2026 the normal amount is €931.12 a quarter (about $1,058), up from €912.91 in 2025; it falls to €465.55 or €78.93 a quarter, or to nothing, below set income levels41. Ask the fund you choose whether you fall in this category and whether any waiting period applies before you are covered, and have private coverage in place until then.

What a doctor visit costs

A family doctor consultation at the practice billed under code 101076, from September 1, 2026, for a patient without preferential status. Other GP consultation codes have lower fees, but the same €4 and €6 co-payments. Checked September 25, 2026.
ItemAmount
Official fee€33.7413
Your co-payment, doctor holds your Global Medical File€4.00 (the fund reimburses €29.74)13
Your co-payment, without a Global Medical File€6.00 (the fund reimburses €27.74)13
With preferential reimbursement and a Global Medical File€1.001372

The Global Medical File (DMG) fee. The fee for the file itself is settled directly between your doctor and your fund, so you do not pay it. INAMI’s page on the file gives its cost as €32 (since January 1, 2021); the September 2026 tariff lists the file-management fee at €38.82, fully reimbursed. We follow the tariff, the more recent document7213.

  • Co-payments are not the only charge. Doctors and other providers who have not signed up to the national agreement may charge supplements on top of the official fee, and those are paid entirely by you73.
  • An annual cap. The maximum billing system (MaF) caps what a household spends on its personal shares of health costs each year, with refunds made automatically74. We could not confirm the 2026 thresholds.
  • Your identity card. It is needed at the hospital, and from October 1, 2026 at the dentist too11.
  • Family doctors. 14,742 family doctors practiced in Belgium in 2025, up from 12,719 in 201675. We found no official data on waiting times.

Emergency numbers

Emergency numbers in Belgium. Source: 112.be (FPS Interior), checked September 25, 2026.
NumberService
112Ambulance and fire department76
101Urgent police help76
1733Out-of-hours family doctor76
1722Storm damage, instead of 11276

Medicare does not follow you

Medicare generally does not pay for care outside the United States, and Medicare drug plans do not cover prescriptions bought abroad77. Most Medigap plans include foreign travel emergency coverage, but it pays 80% after a $250 deductible, up to $50,000 in a lifetime, and only for emergencies that start in the first 60 days of a trip78. That is travel coverage, not residence coverage.

Whether to keep paying the Part B premium ($202.90 a month in 2026) is a real decision: if you drop Part B and re-enroll later, the premium rises by 10% for each full 12-month period you could have been enrolled but were not, usually for life79. Decide with your whole plan in view.

Taxes for Americans

Two Tax Systems, One Household

Moving to Belgium adds a second tax system; it does not remove the first while you remain a U.S. citizen. The United States taxes its citizens on worldwide income wherever they live63, and the U.S.–Belgium treaty’s saving clause keeps that right: except where the treaty lists an exception, it does not affect how each country taxes its own residents and citizens33. What follows is the map; the route is a job for a cross-border tax adviser.

When you become tax resident in Belgium

Belgium taxes as residents the people whose domicile or seat of wealth is in Belgium. Anyone listed in the National Register is presumed to be resident unless they prove otherwise80, and the municipality enters foreign residents in the Register81. Tax is calculated on all taxable professional income, even if some of it was received abroad, and each year’s income is taxed the following year: tax on 2026 income is paid in 202739.

Income tax for 2026

The income tax scale for income earned in 2026 has four bands, from 25% to 50%. Everyone has a tax-free allowance of €11,180, which is counted in the lowest band and can be higher in some situations, for example with dependent children. On top of the income tax, your municipality charges a surcharge, a percentage of the tax, usually 7%, collected with it39. We could not read the Finance Ministry’s list of rates by municipality, so check yours.

Belgian income tax scale for income earned in 2026 (tax year 2027). Each rate applies only to the part of income inside its band. Source: hub.brussels, checked September 25, 2026.
Taxable income bandRate on this bandTax at the top of the band, before the allowance
Up to €16,72025%€4,180.00
€16,720 to €29,51040%€9,296.00
€29,510 to €51,07045%€18,998.00
Above €51,07050%—

The last column is our arithmetic from the scale39. Counted in the 25% band, the €11,180 allowance removes €2,795 of tax.

Examples: simplified 2026 tax on taxable income for a single person with only the basic allowance and a 7% municipal surcharge. Our arithmetic; other allowances and reductions are not included.
Taxable incomeIncome taxSurcharge at 7%TotalShare of income
€25,000€4,697.00€328.79€5,025.7920.1%
€40,000€11,221.50€785.51€12,007.0130.0%
€60,000€20,668.00€1,446.76€22,114.7636.9%
€100,000€40,668.00€2,846.76€43,514.7643.5%
Income tax estimator

Estimate Belgium’s 2026 Income Tax, Simplified

Enter your taxable income for 2026 in euros and your municipality’s surcharge. The estimator applies the four bands, takes off the basic allowance of €11,180 in the first band and adds the surcharge as a percentage of the income tax, to the cent39. Dollar figures use the ECB rate of September 24, 2026 (€1 = $1.1367)2.

A simplification. It leaves out higher allowances for dependents, tax reductions (for example on pensions and replacement income), income taxed at separate rates, the inbound-taxpayer regime, social contributions, the effect of treaty-exempt income and U.S. tax. Your adviser works out the taxable income the scale applies to.

The inbound-taxpayer regime: 35% tax-free since 2025

Belgium has had a special regime since 2022 for employees and company directors recruited directly from abroad by a Belgian company or group, and for researchers62. For pay from January 1, 2025, the employer can reimburse recurring costs tax-free up to 35% of pay (it was 30%), the former €90,000 annual cap is gone, and the salary threshold fell from €75,000 to more than €70,000 a year; researchers have no salary threshold2462. The conditions62:

  • In the 60 months before you start, you were not a Belgian resident, did not live within 150 km of the Belgian border, and were not taxed as a non-resident on Belgian professional income.
  • Your employer applies electronically within three months of your start, and the administration decides within three months.
  • The regime lasts up to five years, extendable by three if the extension is requested within three months after the first five.

People who started between January 1, 2025 and shortly after the 2025 law was published, and missed only the old €75,000 threshold, had a three-month catch-up window24. The inbound regime applies only to employees, company directors and researchers recruited from abroad62.

The new 10% tax on capital gains

From January 1, 2026, gains realized on financial assets outside a professional activity, such as shares, bonds, funds, crypto-assets and some insurance products, are taxed at 10% after an annual exemption of €10,000 (the indexed amount for tax year 2027). Up to €1,000 of an unused exemption can be carried forward each year, to at most €15,000; unrealized gains are not taxed3517. For newcomers there is a step-up: the purchase price of an asset is its value on the day you become a Belgian resident, so gains from before you became resident are left out of the calculation35. From June 1, 2026, Belgian banks and brokers withhold the 10% unless you opt out, in which case you declare the gains yourself17. Keep a record of your portfolio’s value on your arrival date.

The securities-account tax

An annual tax of 0.15% applies to each securities account whose average value exceeds €1,000,000; it is capped at 10% of the amount above €1 million82. The program law of July 18, 2025 extended its anti-abuse rules to conversions and transfers of accounts27.

Social Security, pensions and retirement accounts

  • U.S. Social Security paid to a resident of Belgium, or to a U.S. citizen, is taxable only in the United States under Article 17(2) of the treaty. That paragraph is on the saving clause’s list of exceptions in Article 1(5)(a), so the rule protects U.S. citizens living in Belgium too33.
  • Private pensions are taxable only in the country where you live under Article 17(1)(a), so Belgium taxes them (government pensions follow Article 18); the Treasury’s technical explanation lists qualified plans under section 401(a) and individual retirement plans among the U.S. plans covered3383. Article 17(1)(a) is not on the saving clause’s list of exceptions, so the United States can still tax its citizens on the same payments.
  • Roth IRA. Under Article 17(1)(b), which is on the exception list, a distribution that would be tax-free in the United States is also exempt in Belgium, to the same extent3383.
  • Relief from double tax. For a U.S. citizen living in Belgium, Article 22(4) has Belgium give relief on U.S.-source income only for the U.S. tax a non-citizen would pay; the United States then allows a credit for the Belgian tax against its remaining tax33. The treaty was signed on November 27, 200633.

How Belgium taxes a lump-sum 401(k) or IRA withdrawal in practice is a question for your adviser before you move.

Social contributions and the totalization agreement

Employees pay contributions for pensions (7.50%), health care (3.55%), sickness and disability benefits (1.15%) and unemployment (0.87%), 13.07% of gross pay by our sum, and employers pay more40. The self-employed in a main occupation pay 20.50% of professional income up to €75,024.54 and 14.16% on the part up to €110,562.42, with nothing above; there is a minimum contribution, calculated on €17,374.0884.

The U.S.–Belgium Social Security agreement, signed on February 19, 1982, has been in force since July 1, 198485. An employee sent by a U.S. employer, or a self-employed person, stays in the home system if the work in the other country is expected to last five years or less85. Self-employed people who work in both countries and live in Belgium are covered in Belgium86. To claim a Belgian pension from the United States, you start with form SSA-2490-BK from the Social Security Administration87.

Property and inheritance taxes

  • Annual property tax. In Flanders, 3.97% of the indexed cadastral income, plus provincial and municipal surcharges; the indexation coefficient for 2026 is 2.300088. In Brussels, a regional rate of 1.25%, an agglomeration rate of 12.3625% and a municipal rate, applied to the indexed cadastral income; Anderlecht’s municipal rate, for example, is 48.125%89. Purchase taxes are under buying.
  • Inheritance tax in Flanders, in the direct line and between partners: 3% up to €50,000, 9% up to €250,000 and 27% above, per heir, with movable and immovable property taxed separately; brothers and sisters pay 25%, 30% and 55%, and other heirs 25%, 45% and 55%90.
  • Wallonia, from 2028. For deaths and gifts from January 1, 2028, Wallonia’s top inheritance rates fall from 30% to 15% in the direct line and between spouses and legal cohabitants, from 65% to 33% between siblings, and from 80% to 40% for others; the top direct-line rate on gifts of real estate falls from 27% to 14%. This is legislated but not yet in force10.

We could not confirm the Brussels inheritance rates from an official page, so ask a notary if your estate will be settled there.

What you still file in the United States

U.S. filings for citizens living abroad, tax year 2026. Sources: IRS and FinCEN, checked September 25, 2026.
WhatThe rule
Form 1040Due April 15; citizens living abroad get an automatic extension to June 15 (interest still runs from April 15)63.
Foreign Earned Income ExclusionUp to $132,900 of earned income for 2026. It does not cover pensions, Social Security or investment income9192.
Foreign Tax CreditClaim Belgian tax paid on Form 1116; no credit on income you excluded93.
FBARRequired when your foreign accounts together exceed $10,000 at any time in the year94.
Form 8938 (FATCA)For taxpayers living abroad: over $200,000 at year end or $300,000 at any time (single); $400,000 and $600,000 (joint)95.

For U.S. tax preparation and planning, our sister brand eTaxNexus works with Americans abroad.

Questions to take to your tax adviser
  • On which date will I become Belgian tax resident, and does my former U.S. state still treat me as resident?
  • How will Belgium tax withdrawals from my 401(k) and IRA, and should I take anything out before I move?
  • How should I document my portfolio’s value on my arrival date for the capital-gains step-up?
  • If an employer recruits me from abroad, will it apply for the inbound-taxpayer regime within three months?
  • What is my municipality’s surcharge, and in what order do the Belgian and U.S. credits apply to my pensions and investment income?
Renting and buying

Three Regions, Three Lease Laws, Three Purchase Taxes

Lease law is regional: Brussels has its Housing Code, Flanders its Housing Rental Decree of 2018 and Wallonia its decree of 2018 on residential leases363738. The rules below are for a lease of a home that is your main residence; for any other kind of rental, check which law covers it before you sign.

Main-residence leases by region: term, leaving early, deposit and registration. Checked September 25, 2026.
RuleBrusselsFlandersWallonia
Standard term9 years, then extended by 3-year periods369 years379 years38
Short leaseUp to 3 years in total36Up to 3 years in total37Up to 3 years38
Tenant leaves a 9-year lease early3 months’ notice at any time; in years 1, 2 and 3 a penalty of 3, 2 or 1 months’ rent36The same: 3 months’ notice; 3, 2 or 1 months’ rent in years 1 to 337The same: 3 months’ notice; 3, 2 or 1 months’ rent in years 1 to 338
Tenant leaves a short lease early3 months’ notice plus 1 month’s rent, on leases of 6 months or more363 months’ notice plus 1.5, 1 or 0.5 months’ rent in years 1 to 3373 months’ notice plus 1 month’s rent38
Deposit cap2 months’ rent for leases signed or renewed from November 1, 2024323 months’ rent372 months’ rent38
RegistrationBy the landlord within 2 months, free, on Irisrent and MyRent29Within 2 months37—

Registration protects you. In Brussels, registration is a condition for indexing the rent and for the notice periods of the Housing Code to apply29. In Flanders, while a lease is unregistered after the two months, the tenant’s notice period and penalty do not apply37. We could not read the Walloon registration rules. In Brussels the deposit is returned within two months of your departure32.

Brussels: reference rents and the abusive-rent rule

The Brussels-Capital Region publishes an official reference rent for each home, based on 14,042 tenant surveys and indexed in January 2026, and it must be written into every Brussels residential lease beside the actual rent. Since May 1, 2025, a landlord may not propose an abusive rent, which is presumed when the rent is more than 20% above the reference rent; the tenant can ask for a review2328. Rent can be indexed once a year, on the lease anniversary, only if the lease is registered and you were given the energy certificate (PEB)96.

Sample Brussels reference rents a month, excluding charges, computed with the region’s official calculator using home details we assumed: built after 2000, double glazing, central heating, a thermostat, energy class C, no garage, no second bathroom, no terrace. In parentheses, the rent above which a rent is presumed abusive. Checked September 25, 2026.
Statistical sectorDeprivation index1-bedroom apartment, 55 m²2-bedroom apartment, 80 m²3-bedroom house, 140 m²
Least deprived statistical sector in the region (21008A34-)−1.19€969 (above €1,163)€1,206 (above €1,447)€1,679 (above €2,015)
Median sector, City of Brussels (21004B2WJ)0.54€895 (above €1,074)€1,097 (above €1,316)€1,489 (above €1,787)
Ixelles (21009A00-)1.36€859 (above €1,031)€1,046 (above €1,255)€1,399 (above €1,679)
Most deprived sector, City of Brussels (21004E8NJ)4.33€732 (above €878)€860 (above €1,032)€1,074 (above €1,289)

Source: loyers.brussels calculator97; the inputs are our assumptions, so a real home will differ. These are reference rents, not asking rents. The deprivation index is the region’s official index for each statistical sector, from −1.19 (least deprived) to 4.33 (most deprived)97. Wallonia also has an official, non-binding indicative rent grid, updated every year98; we did not sample it or Flanders’ tools, so we give no Flemish or Walloon rent levels.

Buying: can an American buy?

No official source we read limits purchases by foreigners, and the reduced purchase-tax rates in Flanders and Wallonia refer to buyers registered in the foreigners’ register as well as the population register2230. Purchase duty, called registration duty, is regional, and each region charges less on a buyer’s only home:

  • Flanders: 2% on your only own home for deeds from January 1, 2025, and 12% otherwise2299. You must not fully own another home or building lot, in Belgium or abroad, unless you undertake in the deed to sell it within two years of the deed and show that the sale is linked to the new purchase; if you pay 12% first, the reduced rate can also be claimed back by refund after such a sale22. You must register at the address within three years, and, for sale agreements from January 1, 2026, stay registered there for at least one uninterrupted year; the 2% rate is only for natural persons buying full ownership22.
  • Wallonia: 3% on your own and only home from January 1, 2025, and 12.5% otherwise3010. You must move in within three years and stay three full years. Fully owning another whole home, in Belgium or abroad, rules out the 3% rate, unless you undertake in the deed to resell it within three years of buying the new one; a home you own jointly with someone other than your co-buyer, or only in usufruct or bare ownership, does not count, and neither does owning land30.
  • Brussels: 12.5%, but with no duty on the first €200,000, a saving of up to €25,000, if the price including charges is no more than €600,00034. You must be a natural person buying full ownership, must not already fully own a home (if you do, you pay the full 12.5% at the deed and the abatement is refunded if you sell that home within two years of registering the new deed), must make it your main residence within three years and keep it there for five34. An extra €25,000 abatement applies for each energy class you improve, from two classes up34. The Brussels page does not say whether a home outside Belgium counts; ask your notary.
Purchase duty calculator

What Would the Registration Duty Be on Your Purchase?

Choose the region, say whether this will be your only home, whether you fully own another home anywhere and whether you will sell it in time, and enter the price in euros; for Brussels, include the charges. We apply only that region’s rule, to the cent22993034. Dollar figures use the ECB rate of September 24, 2026 (€1 = $1.1367)2.

Registration duty only, by our arithmetic. It leaves out notary fees, mortgage registration costs, VAT on new builds and the Brussels energy-class abatement, and the reduced rates depend on conditions you must keep after the purchase. What counts as owning another home differs by region: part-ownership, usufruct and building lots are treated differently in each. Your notary applies the rate.

Median sale prices, second quarter of 2026, from notarial deeds. Checked September 25, 2026.
PlaceApartmentsHouses, 2 or 3 facadesHouses, 4 or more facades
Belgium€257,500€285,000€400,000
Brussels-Capital Region€270,000€562,500€1,177,500
City of Brussels€270,000€415,000not published
Antwerp€255,000€377,500€809,750
Ghent€317,859€388,500€579,500
Bruges€255,000€360,000€500,500
Leuven€318,750€474,000€570,813
Mechelen€282,500€375,000€681,500
Hasselt€255,000€309,500€377,500
Flemish Region€269,000€328,000€445,000
Liège€165,000€190,500€320,000
Namur€213,500€259,000€350,000
Waterloo€340,000€426,500€700,000
Walloon Region€190,000€195,000€330,000

Source: Statbel, median sale prices by municipality, data changed September 22, 2026100101102. Quarterly medians move a lot in small markets: Waterloo’s apartment median was €400,000 in the first quarter of 2026 and €340,000 in the second100. The “City of Brussels” is one of the region’s 19 municipalities.

Renting out: short-term rentals

All three regions require you to register accommodation you rent to tourists, Brussels and Wallonia before the first rental, and the EU’s regulation on short-term rental data has applied since May 20, 202614.

  • Brussels: register with Brussels Economy and Employment before renting out for stays of one night to 90 consecutive days, including your own main residence; an urban-planning conformity certificate is required for every category; the tourist accommodation tax is declared to Brussels Fiscalité103.
  • Flanders: anyone who has tourists stay overnight for payment must register the accommodation with Toerisme Vlaanderen, even for occasional rentals through a platform104.
  • Wallonia: free registration with Tourisme Wallonie before renting out, with a fire-safety certificate and a criminal record extract under six months old; since 2023, some tourist accommodation also needs a planning permit from the municipality105.

We did not check city-level rules, so ask the municipality before you buy with rental income in mind.

Our position on property. We take no developer or property commissions. We may receive a referral fee from some professional partners. It never changes what you pay, and we tell you when it applies.

Where to live

Where to Look, by the Life You Want

Our suggestions start from official numbers: Statbel’s prices and population, the Royal Meteorological Institute’s climate normals for 1991–2020, the regional rules above and where U.S. consular services are100106107108. They are starting points for a scouting trip, not verdicts.

Close to U.S. Consular Services

The U.S. Embassy and its Consular Section are in Brussels108. Brussels has the rent protections described above: reference rents, the abusive-rent rule and a two-month deposit cap2332. Apartments in the City of Brussels sold at a median €270,000 in the second quarter of 2026, and the abatement removes duty on the first €200,000 of an only home up to €600,00010034.

Consider: City of Brussels · Ixelles

Lower Purchase Prices

Liège had the lowest apartment median in our table, €165,000 in the second quarter of 2026, and Namur €213,500, against €257,500 for Belgium; the Walloon region’s median for a 2- or 3-facade house was €195,000100101. Wallonia charges 3% duty on an only home30.

Consider: Liège · Namur

Flemish Cities at 2% Duty

Flanders charges 2% duty on an only home22. Among its cities in our table, apartment medians ran from €255,000 in Antwerp, Bruges and Hasselt to €318,750 in Leuven and €317,859 in Ghent in the second quarter of 2026100. Antwerp is the largest municipality in our table, with 565,615 residents on January 1, 2026, counted within its boundaries after the 2025 merger with Borsbeek10631.

Consider: Antwerp · Ghent · Leuven · Mechelen

Weather Differences

Bruges has the mildest January, 4.2°C (40°F), and the coolest July days, 22.5°C (73°F) on average at the high; Leuven and Hasselt have the warmest July days, 24.4°C (76°F). Leuven is the driest, at 781 mm (31 in) a year, and Waterloo the wettest, at 897 mm (35 in)107.

Consider: Bruges · Leuven · Hasselt

Population on January 1, 2026 and January 1, 2025, by municipality. Checked September 25, 2026.
MunicipalityRegionJanuary 1, 2026January 1, 2025Change
Brussels (City)Brussels-Capital198,674198,314+360 (+0.2%)
AntwerpFlanders565,615562,002+3,613 (+0.6%)
GhentFlanders274,042272,657+1,385 (+0.5%)
BrugesFlanders120,458120,283+175 (+0.1%)
LeuvenFlanders105,357104,906+451 (+0.4%)
MechelenFlanders90,35589,655+700 (+0.8%)
HasseltFlanders90,91490,249+665 (+0.7%)
LiègeWallonia198,102197,323+779 (+0.4%)
NamurWallonia115,457115,029+428 (+0.4%)
WaterlooWallonia30,38630,389−3 (0.0%)

Source: Statbel, population on January 1 by municipality106. Belgium had 11,867,634 residents on January 1, 2026, and the Brussels-Capital Region, with its 19 municipalities, 1,255,834106. Antwerp’s figures include Borsbeek, merged on January 1, 202531. The change column is our arithmetic.

Climate normals 1991–2020 by municipality: mean temperatures, the mean daily low in January and high in July, precipitation and the wettest month. Checked September 25, 2026.
TownJanuary meanJanuary daily lowJuly meanJuly daily highYear meanPrecipitation a yearWettest month
Brussels (City)3.8°C (39°F)1.1°C (34°F)18.8°C (66°F)23.8°C (75°F)10.9°C (52°F)804 mm (32 in)December
Antwerp4.0°C (39°F)1.3°C (34°F)18.9°C (66°F)23.6°C (74°F)11.1°C (52°F)853 mm (34 in)December
Ghent3.9°C (39°F)1.1°C (34°F)18.4°C (65°F)23.4°C (74°F)10.8°C (51°F)876 mm (34 in)December
Bruges4.2°C (40°F)1.6°C (35°F)18.1°C (65°F)22.5°C (73°F)10.9°C (52°F)869 mm (34 in)December
Leuven3.9°C (39°F)1.2°C (34°F)19.2°C (67°F)24.4°C (76°F)11.2°C (52°F)781 mm (31 in)December
Mechelen4.0°C (39°F)1.3°C (34°F)19.0°C (66°F)23.9°C (75°F)11.1°C (52°F)802 mm (32 in)December
Hasselt3.6°C (38°F)0.7°C (33°F)19.1°C (66°F)24.4°C (76°F)10.9°C (52°F)793 mm (31 in)August
Liège3.7°C (39°F)1.1°C (34°F)19.3°C (67°F)24.1°C (75°F)11.2°C (52°F)854 mm (34 in)December
Namur3.1°C (38°F)0.3°C (33°F)18.3°C (65°F)23.7°C (75°F)10.3°C (51°F)817 mm (32 in)December
Waterloo3.3°C (38°F)0.6°C (33°F)18.4°C (65°F)23.4°C (74°F)10.5°C (51°F)897 mm (35 in)December

Source: Royal Meteorological Institute, monthly normals 1991–2020 for each municipality107. The year mean is our average of the twelve monthly means, the yearly precipitation our sum of the monthly figures, and the Fahrenheit and inch conversions our arithmetic. Compare Belgium with other destinations.

Practical matters

Registration, Banking, Driving and Other Paperwork

Registering at the town hall

Anyone who settles their main residence in a Belgian municipality must declare it at the town hall within eight working days of actually moving into the new home55. The consulates tell D-visa holders to register within eight days of arrival and to apply for the residence permit there5. Your main residence is a question of fact: where you actually live for most of the year, which the municipality can check109. The municipality enters foreign residents admitted to stay in the National Register81.

A bank account

EU law gives every consumer legally resident in the EU the right to open and use a payment account with basic features with a bank in the country, and banks may not discriminate by nationality or place of residence60. We could not read the Belgian rules on fees for the basic account, so compare banks’ charges.

Driving

Visitors may drive in Belgium on a valid U.S. state license; an International Driving Permit is not required, though some rental companies ask for one, according to a U.S. Embassy page dated 2016110. Once you register as a resident, the City of Brussels says a valid license from a recognized non-European country can be used for 185 days from your registration; after that you must exchange it for a Belgian license61.

  • Conditions in the City of Brussels: the license must have been obtained before you registered in Belgium, and it needs a sworn translation unless it is in French, Dutch or English61.
  • Fees there: €38 to order the license and €5 for the authentication check, which takes about two months; other municipalities may charge differently61.
  • Your state: whether a license from your state can be exchanged, and on what conditions, is set in a federal file we could not read. Ask your town hall early, well before its deadline runs out.

Pets

New EU rules for bringing pets into the EU have applied since April 22, 2026, and the United States is on the list of countries whose pets need no rabies antibody (titer) test15. For a dog or cat flying from the United States:

  1. A microchip first; the rabies vaccination only counts if it is given after the chip111.
  2. A first rabies vaccination at least 21 days before travel111.
  3. An EU animal health certificate issued no more than 10 days before arrival111.
  4. Entry through a designated travelers’ point of entry111. We could not read Belgium’s list of entry points or its fees; check with your airline and the Belgian food safety agency before you book.

Shipping your household

EU rules let personal belongings in free of import duty if you have lived outside the EU for at least 12 consecutive months and bring them in within 12 months of settling112. We could not read the Belgian customs procedure and forms, so ask your mover which declaration Belgian customs wants and what it needs from you.

Schools

Education is compulsory from age 5 to 18 throughout Belgium: from September 1 of the year a child turns five until the 18th birthday or a secondary-school diploma. It is compulsory education, not compulsory school attendance, so home education is allowed if it is notified113. The Flemish government says children who live in Belgium are subject to it from the 60th day after registering in the municipality113. In Flanders, a child who has not attended enough Dutch-language nursery school takes a language test before primary school113. We could not read the French-speaking Community’s rules, so ask the school.

Your U.S. services from Belgium

  • The U.S. Embassy is at Regentlaan 27 Boulevard du Régent, 1000 Brussels, phone (32-2) 811-4000; the Consular Section is at Boulevard du Régent 25 Regentlaan108.
  • In an emergency involving a U.S. citizen in Belgium, call the Embassy at (+32)(0)2-811-4000; someone answers 24 hours a day. For life-or-death emergencies, dial 112 first108.
  • Routine American Citizen Services are requested through the Embassy’s online ACS Navigator108114.
Entry rules

Before the Visa: Visiting Under EES and ETIAS

Belgium is in both the EU and the Schengen area3. As an American you can visit without a visa for up to 90 days in any 180-day period across the Schengen area4. A stay of more than 90 days needs a long-stay (D) visa, which you apply for from the United States5. Since April 10, 2026, when it became fully operational, the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES) has recorded your entries and exits with fingerprints and a facial image instead of passport stamps, which lets border systems detect overstays automatically16. Once you hold a Belgian residence permit or long-stay visa, you are not registered in the EES; you show the permit with your passport115.

ETIAS, the EU travel authorization for visa-free visitors, is not yet running and no start date has been announced; the EU says it will give several months’ notice116. When it starts it will cost €20 (free under 18 and over 70) and last three years or until your passport expires117118. Residence permit and long-stay visa holders will not need it118. The Schengen, EES and ETIAS section of our FAQ explains the 90/180 count.

Timeline

A Twelve-Month Timeline

Built backwards from the rules above, for the retirement visa, whose stated processing time is three months. For a job, the single permit comes first and the visa then takes about three weeks; for a professional card in Flanders, allow at least 120 days for the regional decision before the visa step.

Months 12–9

Decide and test

Choose the route and the region. Visit, and build the ties to Belgium that your cover letter and reference letters will describe. Speak to a cross-border tax adviser about your pensions, 401(k) and IRA, and about the new capital-gains tax. Plan the budget and a scouting trip to two or three towns.

Months 9–7

Build the file

Collect six months of bank statements, Social Security and pension letters. Ask the consulate what income level and health insurance the Immigration Office expects, and get insurance quotes. Start pet vaccinations.

Months 6–3

File and wait

Order the FBI record and book the medical exam, so both are under six months old on filing day. Pay the Immigration Office fee by wire, file the D visa with your post and pay the $300 fee. The stated processing time for a retiree is three months, with no expedited service, so do not book flights or give notice on a lease until the decision is in.

Months 2–0

Prepare to travel

With the visa in hand, book the flight and the movers: household goods travel duty-free if you have lived outside the EU for 12 months and bring them within 12 months of settling. Have the pet’s health certificate issued no more than 10 days before arrival. Line up a home, since you register at its address.

Weeks 1–4 after

Register and insure

Register at the town hall within eight working days of moving in and apply for the residence permit. Join a mutualité or CAAMI, choose a family doctor for your Global Medical File, and open a bank account.

By month 6

License and taxes

Exchange your U.S. license before your town hall’s deadline (185 days from registration in the City of Brussels). Put the Belgian return, the U.S. return (June 15 for Americans abroad), the FBAR and your residence permit’s renewal date on the calendar.

Questions

What Americans Ask Us About Belgium

Does Belgium have a retirement visa?

Yes. The Belgian posts in the United States accept a D visa for retirement, also called the annuitant application. It needs the Immigration Office’s approval, and the checklist sets no income figure; and asks for proof of funds or income, a cover letter on your ties to Belgium, reference letters from Belgian citizens or residents, an FBI record and a medical certificate. The stated processing time is three months.

Can I work remotely for my U.S. employer from Belgium?

The consulates’ list of long-stay visa categories has no digital-nomad or remote-work category. Put the question to a Belgian immigration lawyer before you apply.

How much must I earn for a Belgian work permit or Blue Card?

It depends on the region. For 2026 applications: in Flanders, €48,912 a year for a highly skilled worker (€39,129.60 under 30 on a Belgian contract) and €63,586 for a Blue Card; in Brussels, €3,703.44 a month for a highly qualified worker and €4,748 a month for a Blue Card, counting basic pay (gross monthly pay for a posted worker); in Wallonia, €53,220 a year and €68,815 for a Blue Card.

Can I start a business in Belgium?

Yes, with a professional card, which you apply for through the consulate before the D visa. In Flanders you need a business plan, means of subsistence and, for a project with economic added value, at least €22,838 in an account in your name; the fee is €140 to apply and €90 per year of validity. Brussels charges €140 and €90; Wallonia takes about three months on average.

How long until I can become Belgian?

Five years of legal residence, then a declaration with a national language at A2, proof of social integration and 468 working days in the last five years, or six quarters of self-employed contributions. At pension age the 2012 text sets no language, integration or work test. The fee rose to €1,000 in 2025 and is indexed every January 1.

Will Belgium tax my Social Security?

Under the U.S.–Belgium tax treaty, U.S. Social Security paid to a Belgian resident, or to a U.S. citizen, is taxable only in the United States, and that rule is one of the exceptions to the saving clause. Under the treaty, private pensions, including 401(k) and traditional IRA payouts, are taxable in Belgium as your country of residence (a Roth IRA distribution that is tax-free in the U.S. is also exempt in Belgium), and the United States can still tax its citizens on them, with credits under Article 22.

What are Belgian income tax rates in 2026?

25% up to €16,720, 40% to €29,510, 45% to €51,070 and 50% above, with a tax-free allowance of €11,180 counted in the first band. Your municipality adds a surcharge, usually 7% of the tax. The tax on 2026 income is paid in 2027.

How does health insurance work for a newcomer?

You join a mutualité or the public CAAMI. Mutualités charge a membership fee; CAAMI charges none but offers no complementary coverage. If you pay no social contributions, the 2026 personal contribution is €931.12 a quarter, less on a low income. A family doctor consultation billed under code 101076 costs €33.74 (other GP consultation codes are lower); with a Global Medical File you pay €4.

Can an American buy a home in Belgium, and what is the purchase tax?

No official source we read restricts foreign buyers. Purchase duty is regional: 2% in Flanders on an only home (12% otherwise), 3% in Wallonia (12.5% otherwise), and 12.5% in Brussels, with no duty on the first €200,000 of an only home costing up to €600,000. In Flanders, fully owning another home, in Belgium or abroad, rules out the 2% rate unless you undertake in the deed to sell it within two years and show the sale is linked to the new purchase; in Wallonia the 3% rate applies if you undertake to sell the other home within three years.

How long is a Belgian lease, and can I leave early?

A lease for your main residence runs nine years by default in all three regions. You can leave at any time with three months’ notice, but in the first three years you owe a penalty of three, two or one months’ rent. Deposits are capped at two months’ rent in Brussels and Wallonia and three in Flanders.

Sources

Every Figure on This Page, and Where It Comes From

We use official sources only: the Belgian Embassy and Consulates General in the United States, the regional governments and administrations of Flanders, the Brussels-Capital Region and Wallonia, laws as adopted by the Chamber of Representatives or published in the Official Gazette, the Constitutional Court, federal institutions such as INAMI, the National Register, CREG and the social security offices, Statbel’s open-data portal, the Royal Meteorological Institute, the public transit operators for their own fares, the EU, the U.S. Embassy in Brussels and U.S. federal agencies. Dutch- and French-language titles are given in English. Several federal Belgian websites, among them the Immigration Office and the Finance Ministry, were closed to us by a security check, so facts found only there are left out or turned into questions. Each source was read on the date shown; our own arithmetic is labeled. If you spot something that has changed, email [email protected].

  1. Law of December 4, 2012 amending the Belgian Nationality Code. Belgian Official Gazette, as published (copy on etaamb.openjustice.be). Official page. Checked .
  2. Euro foreign exchange reference rates (USD, September 24, 2026). European Central Bank. Official page. Checked .
  3. EU countries: membership, euro area and Schengen dates. European Union. Official page. Checked .
  4. Entry and exit requirements for non-EU nationals (90 days in any 180-day period). Your Europe, European Union. Official page. Checked .
  5. National visa (D visa): categories, processing times, where and how to apply. Embassy and Consulates General of Belgium in the United States (FPS Foreign Affairs). Official page. Checked .
  6. D visa checklist: Retirement (aka annuitant application). Embassy and Consulates General of Belgium in the United States (FPS Foreign Affairs). Official page. Checked .
  7. European Blue Card (Europese blauwe kaart). Government of Flanders (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  8. Single permit: minimum pay (minimale bezoldiging), amounts from January 1, 2026. Brussels Economy and Employment, Brussels-Capital Region. Official page. Checked .
  9. Work authorizations: salary thresholds employers must respect, 2026. Walloon Public Service, Employment and Training. Official page. Checked .
  10. Reduction of registration, inheritance and gift duties. Wallonia (wallonie.be). Official page. Checked .
  11. Insurability: how you are covered by health insurance. INAMI-RIZIV, National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance. Official page. Checked .
  12. Flemish fee for a single permit (retributie voor gecombineerde vergunning). Government of Flanders (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  13. Doctors’ fees and reimbursements from September 1, 2026 (circular OA 2026/187). INAMI-RIZIV, National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance. Official page. Checked .
  14. Regulation (EU) 2024/1028: short-term rental data. EUR-Lex. Official page. Checked .
  15. Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/636: pet movements, Annex II. EUR-Lex. Official page. Checked .
  16. Entry/Exit System (EES). European Commission, Migration and Home Affairs. Official page. Checked .
  17. Capital-gains tax on financial assets: text adopted, DOC 56 1244/008 (plenary text 1244/010, April 2, 2026). Belgian Chamber of Representatives. Official page. Checked .
  18. Brussels government decree of November 13, 2025 on public transport fares, from February 1, 2026 (Official Gazette, December 10, 2025). STIB-MIVB, Brussels public transport. Official page. Checked .
  19. SNCB fares in 2026 (press release). SNCB-NMBS, Belgian railways. Official page. Checked .
  20. Constitutional Court judgment no. 24/2026 of February 26, 2026 (suspension request). Constitutional Court of Belgium. Official page. Checked .
  21. New rules on economic migration since January 1, 2026. Government of Flanders, Department of Work and Social Economy. Official page. Checked .
  22. Reduced rate of sales duty for the purchase of your only own home. Flemish Tax Administration (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  23. About the reference rents. loyers.brussels, Brussels-Capital Region. Official page. Checked .
  24. Law adopted December 11, 2025: text adopted, DOC 56 0963/030 (inbound regime, articles 15 to 18). Belgian Chamber of Representatives. Official page. Checked .
  25. Law on family reunification: text adopted in plenary, DOC 56 0913/010 (identical to 0913/012). Belgian Chamber of Representatives. Official page. Checked .
  26. Changes to integration support and migration policy in Belgium (February 17, 2026). European Commission, Migration and Home Affairs. Official page. Checked .
  27. Program law of July 18, 2025: text adopted in plenary, DOC 56 0909/030 (nationality fee; securities-account tax). Belgian Chamber of Representatives. Official page. Checked .
  28. Reference rents. Brussels-Capital Region (be.brussels). Official page. Checked .
  29. Registering a residential lease. Brussels-Capital Region (be.brussels). Official page. Checked .
  30. Reform of registration duties: questions and answers on the 3% rate. Wallonia, Housing (logement.wallonie.be). Official page. Checked .
  31. Municipal mergers from 2025: Antwerp and Borsbeek. Government of Flanders, Local Government. Official page. Checked .
  32. Rental deposit (garantie locative). Brussels-Capital Region (be.brussels). Official page. Checked .
  33. Income tax convention between the United States and Belgium (2006). Internal Revenue Service. Official page. Checked .
  34. Registration duties: the abatement. Brussels-Capital Region (be.brussels). Official page. Checked .
  35. Bill introducing a capital-gains tax on financial assets: explanatory memorandum, DOC 56 1244/001. Belgian Chamber of Representatives. Official page. Checked .
  36. Leases in Brussels: legal brochure (January 2025). Brussels-Capital Region (be.brussels). Official page. Checked .
  37. Flemish Housing Rental Decree of November 9, 2018 (consolidated text). Codex Vlaanderen, Government of Flanders. Official page. Checked .
  38. Walloon decree of March 15, 2018 on residential leases (consolidated, June 1, 2023). Wallex, Walloon legislation. Official page. Checked .
  39. Personal income tax: rates for income 2026, tax-free allowance and municipal tax (last changed May 20, 2026). hub.brussels, the Brussels Agency for Business Support. Official page. Checked .
  40. Social security contributions: rates by branch (DmfA instructions). National Social Security Office (socialsecurity.be). Official page. Checked .
  41. Personal contribution to be insured if you pay no social contributions (2026 amounts). INAMI-RIZIV, National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance. Official page. Checked .
  42. D visa checklist 2.1: Single permit holders. Embassy and Consulates General of Belgium in the United States (FPS Foreign Affairs). Official page. Checked .
  43. Applying for your first professional card. Government of Flanders (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  44. Visa for Belgium: the posts that issue visas. Embassy and Consulates General of Belgium in the United States (FPS Foreign Affairs). Official page. Checked .
  45. Consular fees (schedule as of October 1, 2026). Embassy and Consulates General of Belgium in the United States (FPS Foreign Affairs). Official page. Checked .
  46. D visa checklist 2.3: Professional card applicants. Embassy and Consulates General of Belgium in the United States (FPS Foreign Affairs). Official page. Checked .
  47. D visa checklist 4.1: Family member of the holder of a work authorization. Embassy and Consulates General of Belgium in the United States (FPS Foreign Affairs). Official page. Checked .
  48. Highly skilled workers (hooggeschoolde): salary conditions. Government of Flanders (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  49. Directive (EU) 2021/1883 on the EU Blue Card, article 5. EUR-Lex. Official page. Checked .
  50. European Blue Card (English page). Government of Flanders (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  51. Work authorization for a European Blue Card. Brussels Economy and Employment, Brussels-Capital Region. Official page. Checked .
  52. Professional card (carte professionnelle). Brussels Economy and Employment, Brussels-Capital Region. Official page. Checked .
  53. Voor het eerst een beroepskaart aanvragen (applying for your first professional card, Dutch page). Government of Flanders (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  54. Obtaining a professional card as a self-employed foreign worker. Walloon Public Service, Employment and Training. Official page. Checked .
  55. Declaring a change of residence. National Register, FPS Interior. Official page. Checked .
  56. Council Directive 2003/109/EC on long-term residents, article 4. EUR-Lex. Official page. Checked .
  57. Becoming Belgian: questions on naturalization. Belgian Chamber of Representatives. Official page. Checked .
  58. Joining a health insurance fund (mutualité). INAMI-RIZIV, National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance. Official page. Checked .
  59. Becoming a member. CAAMI-HZIV, the public Auxiliary Fund for Sickness and Disability Insurance. Official page. Checked .
  60. Directive 2014/92/EU (Payment Accounts Directive), articles 15 and 16. EUR-Lex. Official page. Checked .
  61. Exchanging a non-European driver’s license. City of Brussels. Official page. Checked .
  62. Program law of December 27, 2021: the special regime for inbound taxpayers and researchers. Belgian Official Gazette, as published (copy on etaamb.openjustice.be). Official page. Checked .
  63. U.S. citizens and resident aliens abroad. Internal Revenue Service. Official page. Checked .
  64. Harmonized index of consumer prices. Statbel, the Belgian statistical office (be.STAT open data). Official page. Checked .
  65. HICP monthly data, Belgium (prc_hicp_minr), updated September 17, 2026. Eurostat. Official page. Checked .
  66. Consumer price index, base 2025 = 100. Statbel, the Belgian statistical office (be.STAT open data). Official page. Checked .
  67. Monthly dashboard of electricity and natural gas prices, September 2026. CREG, the federal energy regulator. Official page. Checked .
  68. Brupass and Brupass XL tickets and season tickets. STIB-MIVB, Brussels public transport. Official page. Checked .
  69. Omnipas season ticket. De Lijn, Flemish public transport. Official page. Checked .
  70. City Pass. De Lijn, Flemish public transport. Official page. Checked .
  71. Average gross monthly pay of full-time employees, by region. Statbel, the Belgian statistical office (be.STAT open data). Official page. Checked .
  72. Global Medical File (DMG). INAMI-RIZIV, National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance. Official page. Checked .
  73. Fees, prices and reimbursements: supplements. INAMI-RIZIV, National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance. Official page. Checked .
  74. Maximum billing (MaF). INAMI-RIZIV, National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance. Official page. Checked .
  75. Number of individual care providers in 2025 (published September 24, 2026). INAMI-RIZIV, National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance. Official page. Checked .
  76. Emergency numbers: 112, 101 and 1733. 112.be, FPS Interior. Official page. Checked .
  77. Travel outside the U.S. Medicare.gov. Official page. Checked .
  78. Medicare coverage outside the United States (Product 11037, April 2026). Medicare.gov. Official page. Checked .
  79. Avoid late enrollment penalties. Medicare.gov. Official page. Checked .
  80. Belgium: tax residency rules (CRS residency sheet supplied by Belgium, hosted by the OECD). OECD, Automatic Exchange Portal. Official page. Checked .
  81. The National Register. National Register, FPS Interior. Official page. Checked .
  82. Law of February 17, 2021 introducing an annual tax on securities accounts. Belgian Official Gazette, as published (copy on etaamb.openjustice.be). Official page. Checked .
  83. Technical explanation of the U.S.-Belgium income tax convention (2007). U.S. Treasury Department, published by the IRS. Official page. Checked .
  84. How much in social contributions must I pay? (2026). INASTI, National Institute for the Social Security of the Self-Employed. Official page. Checked .
  85. Agreement between the United States and Belgium on social security (text). Social Security Administration. Official page. Checked .
  86. U.S.-Belgium Social Security agreement (pamphlet). Social Security Administration. Official page. Checked .
  87. Belgian pension: applying from the United States. Embassy and Consulates General of Belgium in the United States (FPS Foreign Affairs). Official page. Checked .
  88. Property tax (onroerende voorheffing): how it is calculated. Government of Flanders (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  89. Property tax. Brussels-Capital Region (be.brussels). Official page. Checked .
  90. General rates of inheritance tax (erfbelasting). Government of Flanders (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  91. Figuring the foreign earned income exclusion. Internal Revenue Service. Official page. Checked .
  92. Foreign earned income exclusion: what is foreign earned income. Internal Revenue Service. Official page. Checked .
  93. Foreign tax credit. Internal Revenue Service. Official page. Checked .
  94. Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR). FinCEN, U.S. Treasury. Official page. Checked .
  95. Do I need to file Form 8938? Internal Revenue Service. Official page. Checked .
  96. Rent indexation. Brussels-Capital Region (be.brussels). Official page. Checked .
  97. Reference rent calculator. loyers.brussels, Brussels-Capital Region. Official page. Checked .
  98. Estimating a rent with the indicative rent grid. Wallonia (wallonie.be). Official page. Checked .
  99. Sales duty on real estate. Flemish Tax Administration (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  100. Median sale price of apartments by municipality, quarterly. Statbel, the Belgian statistical office (be.STAT open data). Official page. Checked .
  101. Median sale price of houses with 2 or 3 facades by municipality, quarterly. Statbel, the Belgian statistical office (be.STAT open data). Official page. Checked .
  102. Median sale price of houses with 4 or more facades by municipality, quarterly. Statbel, the Belgian statistical office (be.STAT open data). Official page. Checked .
  103. Tourist accommodation: rules and news (August 11, 2025). Brussels Economy and Employment, Brussels-Capital Region. Official page. Checked .
  104. Registering tourist accommodation (aanmelding). Toerisme Vlaanderen. Official page. Checked .
  105. Tourist accommodation: registration. Tourisme Wallonie (Walloon Commissariat General for Tourism). Official page. Checked .
  106. Population on January 1, 2016–2026, by municipality. Statbel, the Belgian statistical office (be.STAT open data). Official page. Checked .
  107. The climate in your municipality: monthly normals 1991–2020. Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium (RMI). Official page. Checked .
  108. Contact the U.S. Embassy in Brussels. U.S. Embassy in Belgium. Official page. Checked .
  109. Main residence. National Register, FPS Interior. Official page. Checked .
  110. Driver’s license (page dated August 9, 2016). U.S. Embassy in Belgium. Official page. Checked .
  111. Traveling with pets in the EU. Your Europe, European Union. Official page. Checked .
  112. Council Regulation (EC) 1186/2009: relief from customs duty (personal property). EUR-Lex. Official page. Checked .
  113. Compulsory education. Government of Flanders (vlaanderen.be). Official page. Checked .
  114. U.S. citizen services. U.S. Embassy in Belgium. Official page. Checked .
  115. Entry/Exit System fully operational from 10 April 2026: who is exempt. European Commission, Migration and Home Affairs. Official page. Checked .
  116. ETIAS, the EU travel authorization for visa-free visitors. European Commission, Migration and Home Affairs. Official page. Checked .
  117. Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/1411: ETIAS fee of €20. EUR-Lex. Official page. Checked .
  118. Regulation (EU) 2018/1240 establishing ETIAS. EUR-Lex. Official page. Checked .

General information, not advice. Quantum Jetset does not give legal, tax, immigration, financial or investment advice. Rules and costs change; check the official sources above and speak to a qualified professional before you act. Next scheduled review: December 2026.

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