Researcher under a hosting agreement
Residency route facts
Identity
| Official name (local) | Onderzoeker met gastovereenkomst / Chercheur avec convention d'accueil as of 2026-06-24[1][6] |
|---|---|
| Official name (English) | Researcher under a hosting agreement as of 2026-08-13[2] The Immigration Office's own wording on the fee schedule: 'a foreigner who wishes to conduct a research project, as a researcher, under a hosting agreement signed with an accredited research institute'. |
| Legal basis | Loi du 15 decembre 1980, art. 61/10 to 61/13/31 (Titre II, Chapitre VI – Chercheurs); regional employment rules: Besluit van de Vlaamse Regering van 7 december 2018 as applied since 1 March 2023 as of 2026-06-24[1][6] Chapter VI carries both the research permit itself and, at art. 61/13/12, the post-research permit to look for work or start a business, which is recorded separately as be-search-year-researcher. |
| Instrument type | residence permit as of 2026-08-13[2] |
Who can apply
| Nationals not served by this route | EU, EEA, EFTA as of 2026-08-13[6] |
|---|---|
| Criminal-record condition | Not established from a qualifying source |
Permit terms
| Initial duration | Not established from a qualifying source[6] |
|---|---|
| How the initial term is set | matches the assignment |
| Renewable | Not established from a qualifying source |
| Work rights | own activity only as of 2026-08-13[6] Research under the hosting agreement, plus teaching: the Flemish administration states that the authorisation lets the researcher carry out teaching activities at universities and university colleges alongside the research, with no separate work authorisation needed for that. |
Permanent residence and citizenship
| Counts toward permanent residence | Yes as of 2026-06-24[1] Aliens Act art. 15bis, para 1, al. 2 excludes stays for study or vocational training but not research under a hosting agreement, and para 2 halves only the study periods. Same exclusion-list reading as the other work routes. |
|---|
Requirements
| Job offer required | Yes as of 2026-08-13[6] A hosting agreement (gastovereenkomst / convention d'accueil) concluded between an accredited research institution and the researcher; the institution applies for the combined permit on the basis of that agreement. |
|---|---|
| Labour-market test | No as of 2026-08-13[6] No labour-market test is stated for this category. |
| Qualification requirement | degree as of 2026-08-13[6] |
| Employer sponsorship | Yes as of 2026-08-13[6] The accredited research institution is the applicant. |
Process
| Where to apply from | either as of 2026-08-13[4] As for the single permit generally: the accredited research institution files, and a researcher abroad then collects a type D visa. |
|---|---|
| Statutory processing time | 60 days as of 2026-08-13[6] Flemish Region: 'De beslissing wordt genomen binnen een termijn van 60 dagen vanaf de dag dat de aanvraag door het Vlaamse Gewest ontvankelijk werd verklaard' – 60 days from the day the Flemish Region declares the application admissible. This is the Flemish clock for the combined decision; Brussels and Wallonia were not read on this point. |
| Fees |
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| Quota |
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Physical presence
| none stated | to keep the permit as of 2026-08-13[6] Neither the Aliens Act nor the administering authority imposes a minimum physical presence or an absence ceiling on this permit itself. Research of less than 90 days is exempt from work authorisation in Flanders altogether; the permit recorded here is the one for research exceeding 90 days, which since 1 March 2023 does require an authorisation where the old exemption previously applied. The country-level right-of-return rule of Aliens Act art. 19 applies to every residence title and is recorded at country level. |
|---|
Family inclusion
| Family members may be included | Yes as of 2026-08-13[1][5] Family reunification runs off the general regime of Aliens Act art. 10bis, para 2, not off this instrument: the holder of a limited-duration residence title is a sponsor within that provision. The conditions – stable, regular and sufficient means at 110% of the guaranteed average minimum monthly income plus 10% per additional dependant, sufficient housing meeting the legal safety and health criteria, and health insurance covering all risks in Belgium for the sponsor and the family – are recorded on be-family-reunification-limited-stay-sponsor. |
|---|---|
| Eligible relations | spouse, registered partner, minor child, adult dependent child as of 2026-08-13[1][5] Aliens Act art. 10bis, para 2 admits the family members listed in art. 10, para 1, al. 1, 6, a) to e): the spouse and the registered partner, both at least 21, their common minor children, the minor children of either where parental authority and custody are held, and an unmarried disabled child over 18 who produces a certificate from a doctor approved by the Belgian diplomatic post. adult_dependent_child carries that last limb; the vocabulary has no narrower value for it. |
| Family may apply at the same time | Not established from a qualifying source |
| Family members' work rights | Not established from a qualifying source |
Your next step
Read the requirements above considering your own situation: the income multiple, the absence limits, who you can bring. Check the country record for the reference figure those amounts are calculated from, and for anything that has changed recently.
The next step is your own case. That assessment is legal work. Create profile for our assistance in this.
Profile benefits
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Verification
| Sources cited | 6 |
|---|---|
| of which official (tier 1) | 6 |
| Oldest as-of date | 2026-06-24 |
| Newest as-of date | 2026-08-13 |
| Reviewed on | 2026-08-17 |
| Schema version | 1.1 |
Sources
- [1] Loi du 15 décembre 1980 sur l'accès au territoire, le séjour, l'établissement et l'éloignement des étrangers — consolidated text (Justel), updated to 24 June 2026
Service public fédéral Justice (Moniteur belge / Justel) · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2026-06-24 · Accessed 2026-08-13 - [2] Contribution fee
Immigration Office (Office des Etrangers / Dienst Vreemdelingenzaken), FPS Home Affairs · fee schedule · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-13 - [3] Contribution fee indexation
Immigration Office (Office des Etrangers / Dienst Vreemdelingenzaken), FPS Home Affairs · official guidance · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-13 - [4] Single permit
Immigration Office (Office des Etrangers / Dienst Vreemdelingenzaken), FPS Home Affairs · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-13 - [5] Work – third-country nationals
Immigration Office (Office des Etrangers / Dienst Vreemdelingenzaken), FPS Home Affairs · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-13 - [6] Een buitenlander in Vlaanderen tewerkstellen: onderzoeker met gastovereenkomst
Government of Flanders (Vlaamse overheid), Department of Work and Social Economy · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-13