Seasonal worker
Residency route facts
Identity
| Official name (local) | Seizoenarbeider / Travailleur saisonnier as of 2026-06-24[1][6] |
|---|---|
| Official name (English) | Seasonal worker as of 2026-08-13[3] The Immigration Office's own English wording on the contribution-fee schedule: 'residence permit of more than 90 days as a seasonal worker'. |
| Legal basis | Loi du 15 decembre 1980, art. 61/28 to 61/29-9 (Titre II, Chapitre VIIIbis); regional employment rules as for the single permit as of 2026-06-24[1][6] Chapter VIIIbis splits short stay (art. 61/29 and following) from the seasonal-worker permit proper; the contribution fee attaches to art. 61/29-4. |
| Instrument type | residence permit as of 2026-08-13[3] |
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 | up to 5 months as of 2026-08-13[6] Flemish Region: a maximum of five months in any period of twelve, and the twelve months do not have to be a calendar year. The employment contract must be for seasonal activities in horticulture or hospitality. Recorded with bound maximum: five months is a ceiling. |
|---|---|
| Renewable | No as of 2026-08-13[6] Flemish Region: a work authorisation of up to 90 days can no longer be extended or renewed at all; beyond 90 days the employer must apply for a single permit for seasonal work, which is itself capped at five months per twelve. The Flemish administration advises employers to apply directly for the longer permit, because it lets the seasonal worker change employer. |
| Maximum total duration | up to 5 months as of 2026-08-13[6] Five months per rolling twelve-month period. |
| Work rights | own activity only as of 2026-08-13[6] Seasonal employment in the sectors named in the authorisation. Flanders notes that the permit for more than 90 days, unlike the short work card, allows the worker to change employer. |
Permanent residence and citizenship
| Counts toward permanent residence | No as of 2026-06-24[1] |
|---|
Requirements
| Job offer required | Yes as of 2026-08-13[6] An employment contract with a Belgian employer for season-dependent activities in horticulture or hospitality; the Flemish administration publishes a model contract. |
|---|---|
| Salary threshold |
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| Labour-market test | Yes as of 2026-08-13[6] Flemish Region: the employer must demonstrate that no one else can be found on the local labour market – the Flemish category list states this condition for seasonal workers and for no other category recorded here. Established for the Flemish Region only. |
| Qualification requirement | none as of 2026-08-13[6] No qualification condition; the category is defined by the seasonal nature of the activity. |
| Employer sponsorship | Yes as of 2026-08-13[6] |
Process
| Where to apply from | either as of 2026-08-13[5][6] The employer applies for the single permit for seasonal work; the general single-permit filing rules apply. |
|---|---|
| Statutory processing time | Not established from a qualifying source |
| 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. The permit is itself time-limited to five months per twelve, which does the work a presence rule would otherwise do. 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 | Not established from a qualifying source[1] |
|---|---|
| Eligible relations | Not established from a qualifying source Depends on the answer above. |
| 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.
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Verification
| Sources cited | 7 |
|---|---|
| of which official (tier 1) | 7 |
| 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] Remuneration minimum – permis unique
Bruxelles Economie et Emploi / Brussel Economie en Werkgelegenheid, Service public regional de Bruxelles · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-19 - [3] Contribution fee
Immigration Office (Office des Etrangers / Dienst Vreemdelingenzaken), FPS Home Affairs · fee schedule · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-13 - [4] Contribution fee indexation
Immigration Office (Office des Etrangers / Dienst Vreemdelingenzaken), FPS Home Affairs · official guidance · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-13 - [5] Single permit
Immigration Office (Office des Etrangers / Dienst Vreemdelingenzaken), FPS Home Affairs · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-13 - [6] Een buitenlander in Vlaanderen tewerkstellen: seizoenarbeiders
Government of Flanders (Vlaamse overheid), Department of Work and Social Economy · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-13 - [7] Autorisations de travail et permis de travail B : seuils salariaux a respecter par les employeurs
Service public de Wallonie – Emploi et Formation professionnelle · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-08-10 · Accessed 2026-08-13