Belgian notice period 2026 in weeks, its start and end dates, and pay in lieu of notice
Estimates only, not financial advice. What you type stays on your device. Checked against sources on 20 Oct 2026.In Belgium the notice period for a contract that began from 2014 is set in weeks by seniority, the same for blue- and white-collar workers. An employer dismissing someone after 7 years gives 24 weeks; a worker who resigns gives at most 13 weeks. Contracts begun from 1 June 2026 are capped at 52 weeks.
2026 · Rates and rules read from the sources listed on this page (the earliest on 20 Oct 2026); they may have changed since.
Choose who ends the contract: the employer (dismissal) or you (resignation).
Enter the first day of the contract and the day the notice was notified.
Type the gross monthly pay to see the pay in lieu of notice.
Read the weeks of notice, the Monday it starts, its last day and the pay in lieu.
This calculator works out the statutory notice period (délai de préavis, opzegtermijn) for an open-ended Belgian employment contract that began on or after 1 January 2014, from the tables of the SPF Emploi, Travail et Concertation sociale, the federal labour ministry, read on 20 October 2026. The rules may have changed since.
Seniority. Seniority counts from the first day of work to the day before the notice starts, "de date à veille de date". The notice starts on the Monday after the week in which it was notified. An employer must notify by registered letter, which takes effect on the third working day after it was sent, or by bailiff.
Dismissal by the employer. One week under 3 months, then 3, 4 and 5 weeks, 6 weeks from 6 months, 12 weeks at 2 years, 18 weeks at 5 years, 33 weeks at 10 years, and 3 more weeks for each year up to 60 weeks at 19 years. Two changes in 2026: contracts begun from 1 June 2026 are capped at 52 weeks from 17 years, and contracts begun from 1 August 2026 get 1 week for the whole first six months.
Resignation. From 1 week to 13 weeks at 8 years or more.
A worked example. Hired on 1 March 2019 and dismissed by a letter that takes effect on Wednesday 14 October 2026: the notice runs from Monday 19 October 2026 for 24 weeks, to Sunday 4 April 2027.
Pay in lieu of notice. An employer who ends the contract at once owes the current pay for the notice. A monthly pay becomes a weekly one as monthly × 3/13, so €3,500 a month is €807.69 a week and 24 weeks are €19,384.62.
Also shown. The paid days off to look for work (a day a week in the last 26 weeks, half a day before them) and the €1,840 employability budget for a dismissed worker owed at least 30 weeks.
Not included. Contracts begun before 2014, which add a frozen part, notice suspended by illness or holidays, sector rules, serious cause, and tax.
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For a contract that began from 2014, an employer who dismisses a worker with 5 to 6 years of seniority gives 18 weeks of notice, and 21 weeks from 6 years. A worker who resigns after 5 years gives 9 weeks. Blue- and white-collar workers have had the same notice since the single status of 2014.
A worker who resigns never gives more than 13 weeks of notice, reached after 8 years of seniority. Under 3 months the notice is 1 week, then 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 weeks as seniority grows. For contracts begun from 1 August 2026, the first six months carry 1 week.
The notice starts on the Monday after the week in which it was notified. A registered letter takes effect on the third working day after it was posted, so a letter sent on Monday 13 January counts from Thursday 16 January and the notice starts on Monday 20 January.
Pay in lieu of notice equals the current pay for the notice period, including benefits the contract grants. The SPF Emploi turns a monthly pay into a weekly one as monthly × 3/13: €2,500 a month is €576.92 a week, so 12 weeks of notice are worth €6,923.08.
Only for contracts that began on or after 1 June 2026: their dismissal notice stops at 52 weeks from 17 years of seniority. Contracts begun before then keep the full table, which the SPF Emploi shows up to 65 weeks at 23 years. Someone hired in 2014 and dismissed in 2032 gets 57 weeks.
Notice given by the employer is suspended during illness, annual holidays, maternity leave, temporary unemployment and several other absences, so it ends later than the dates shown here. Notice given by the worker is never suspended. This calculator shows the dates when nothing suspends the notice.
Rates and rules change; check the source before you rely on a figure.
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Same job, other tools: Vakantiegeld berekenen België 2026 – Vakantiegeld berekenen in België: dubbel vakantiegeld, vertrekvakantiegeld en arbeiders · Last Working Day Calculator – The exact date your notice ends, counted in calendar days · Notice Period Buyout Calculator – What an employer recovers for the notice days you do not serve.
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