In application of article 131 of the law of 3 July 1978 on employment contracts and article 9 of the Royal Decree of 9 June 1999 enforcing the law of 30 April 1999 on the employment of foreign employees, salary levels taken into account for issuing work permits for highly qualified foreign employees or executives who have a management position in Belgium, are linked to the indexation of salaries. These levels are reviewed each year.
From 1 January 2009, authorisations to employ foreigners and work permits for foreign nationals are issued for:
- highly qualified foreign employees from outside the EEA, whose employment in Belgium is, in principle, limited to four years (but can be extended for another 4 years), even if suitable labour can be found in Belgium to fill a vacancy, as long as their gross salary exceeds EUR 35,638 per year;
- foreign executives from outside the EEA who hold a management position in Belgium, as long as their gross salary exceeds EUR 59,460 per year.
