Are Belgium’s newly expanded flexi-jobs worth considering?

The federal social-security portal says that, as a rule, an employee must have worked at least 80% of a full-time schedule for one or more other employers during the reference quarter, which is three quarters before the flexi-job quarter. Pensioners can also qualify under separate rules. A person who deliberately moves from full-time work to 80% employment may face a waiting period, designed to prevent an ordinary job from simply being converted into a tax-favoured side job.

The employer normally checks eligibility through official pre-contractual data. The prospective worker receives an access request and can approve or refuse it at toegangtotmijndata.fgov.be. This is more reliable than assuming that a current four-fifths contract is sufficient, because the test looks back to the legally defined reference quarter.

Several restrictions remain. You generally cannot perform an ordinary job and a flexi-job for the same employer in the same quarter. Since 1 July 2026, a fully employed worker may in specified circumstances flexi-work for a connected company, but the rules differ for somebody working between 80% and full time. The federal portal also sets particular conditions for temporary-agency workers and people entering retirement.

First, identify the employer’s joint committee, or commission paritaire/paritair comité, and the function named in the contract. Outside horeca, the federal portal says the basic flexi-wage must be at least the applicable sector scale or the guaranteed average minimum monthly income converted into an hourly rate. The basic rate is generally capped at 150% of the relevant minimum, although collectively agreed supplements such as night, Sunday or holiday premiums sit outside that particular cap.

Second, ask whether the work is a regulated profession. Private security is not simply casual event stewarding: recognised security activities are governed by legal access, training and identification requirements. The July expansion did not abolish those professional safeguards. An employer should state clearly whether a vacancy concerns licensed guarding, access control, logistics or another support function; a candidate should not accept a regulated assignment without the required recognition.

Third, keep a running total of earnings across every flexi-job employer. FPS Finance states that the tax-exempt ceiling for a non-pensioner’s qualifying flexi-job income is €18,440 for income year 2026, assessment year 2027. Income above that ceiling becomes taxable as ordinary salary. The ceiling covers the combined qualifying income from all employers, and it is proportionally reduced if someone is taxable in Belgium for only part of the year—for example, after arriving in or leaving the country mid-year. That last point is especially relevant to internationally mobile residents.

Pensioners are not subject to that specific flexi-job tax ceiling, according to FPS Finance, but early retirees and people without a 45-year career may still face separate limits on permitted professional income. The Federal Pension Service should therefore be consulted before relying on the headline tax treatment.

Official guidance is available in Dutch and French—and some federal information also appears in German. Search for “flexi-job” on socialsecurity.be or “flexi-jobs” on fin.belgium.be; in French, use “travailleur flexi-job” and “revenus flexi-job.” The municipality or commune does not determine eligibility, so a gemeentehuis or maison communale is not the primary contact. Questions belong with the employer’s payroll service, the National Social Security Office (RSZ/ONSS), FPS Finance or, for pensioners, the Federal Pension Service.

Flexi-jobs began in horeca in 2015 and were repeatedly extended to retail, care, sport, culture, events and other industries. The National Social Security Office’s historical series shows steady growth apart from the pandemic interruption. From 1 July 2026, the model changed more fundamentally: instead of relying on a limited positive list, flexi-work became possible in principle across the private and public sectors, subject to protected-profession rules and sectoral exclusions.

Employers and supporters of the reform see a way to cover seasonal peaks, weekends and persistent vacancies while offering workers a relatively attractive net return. Trade unions and labour-market sceptics raise a different concern: businesses may use subsidised side work in place of stable hours or regular recruitment, while access is largely reserved for people who already have substantial employment or a pension. Finance Minister Jan Jambon has also left room for examining whether flexi-jobs cannibalise ordinary employment, as VRT NWS reported.

July’s security figures illustrate both arguments. Festivals genuinely need short bursts of qualified labour, making flexible contracts an intuitive fit. Yet an average near 60 hours in one month is substantial for somebody who already has a main job, raising practical questions about fatigue, working-time safeguards and whether recurring demand should eventually become regular employment.

The next useful evidence will come after the summer peak and from official RSZ/ONSS statistics, which cover the labour market more comprehensively than one payroll provider. Watch whether security hours fall in autumn, whether care and public employers begin using the scheme more widely, and which joint committees request exclusions. For anyone considering an offer now, the safest sequence is to verify eligibility, identify the precise function and joint committee, confirm all required qualifications, obtain the wage and premiums in writing, and monitor total annual earnings through official records.