Working Hours and Overtime in Belgium

What Are The Standard Working Hours In Belgium?

An employee whose age is 18 or younger has a maximum of 8 hours per day and 38 hours per week. An employee whose age is 18 or older is allowed to work 38 hours per week. A minimum meal interval of 15 minutes must be observed by employees who work more than 6 hours in a day. In typical working hours, Monday through Friday, the hours are 8:00 to 17:00.

Maximum Working Hours In Belgium

In Belgium, the general legal limit is 8 hours per day and 38 hours per week, although some sectors operate with a 40-hour schedule combined with compensatory rest. You must ensure that any temporary increase in daily hours, such as up to 9 or 10 hours, is permitted only under specific legal derogations or collective agreements. Employers are required to monitor working time closely and keep accurate records to demonstrate compliance during inspections.

Collective labour agreements (CLAs) can introduce reference periods, often up to 3 months and in some cases up to 12 months, over which the average weekly hours must not exceed 38. Within these reference periods, short-term peaks are allowed, but you must ensure that compensatory rest or time off in lieu is granted so that the average remains within the statutory limit. Failure to respect these averaging rules can result in unpaid overtime claims and administrative or criminal sanctions.

Industry-Specific Exceptions

Companies hiring in sectors like healthcare, transportation, manufacturing, or hospitality may be subject to special scheduling rules. In healthcare and residential care, shifts of up to 12 hours can be authorised, provided that extended rest periods and strict staffing rules are respected. In hospitality and retail, evening and weekend work is more common, but you must still comply with maximum daily and weekly limits and provide appropriate rest.

• Healthcare professionals may work 12-hour shifts with extended rest periods.
• Transport workers must comply with EU-aligned rest and driving limits.
• Manufacturing and security staff often rotate through night or weekend shifts.

Even in these sectors, you must ensure the average weekly limit is respected over a reference period. You should review the applicable joint committee CLAs, which may set specific caps, reference periods, and premium rules for your industry.

Managerial And Exempt Employees

Certain senior managerial staff and employees in positions of trust can be exempt from some working-time rules in Belgium, particularly regarding overtime limits and recording. However, this exemption is interpreted narrowly, and job titles alone are not sufficient to qualify an employee as managerial. You must assess the actual autonomy, decision-making power, and remuneration level before treating someone as exempt.

Even where exemptions apply, you remain responsible for safeguarding health and safety, including avoiding excessive working hours that could be considered abusive. Employment contracts for managerial or autonomous employees should clearly describe their status, expected working patterns, and any flat-rate overtime arrangements, ensuring these are reasonable and compliant with Belgian case law.

Statutory Full-Time Working Hours In Belgium

Statutory full-time work in Belgium is generally based on an average of 38 hours per week, although some sectors apply 36, 37, or 40 hours with compensatory rest. Full-time schedules are usually spread over 5 days, but 6-day patterns can exist if daily limits and rest rules are respected. Any deviation from the standard schedule must be documented in work rules and, where required, agreed through a CLA.

Part-time work is common and must be at least one-third of a comparable full-time schedule, with fixed or variable timetables set out in writing. Variable schedules require prior posting and strict notice rules, typically at least 5 working days in advance unless a sectoral CLA allows a shorter period. You must ensure that part-time employees are not used to circumvent overtime rules and that their hours are tracked as carefully as those of full-time staff.

Overtime Regulations In Belgium

In Belgium, overtime is tightly regulated, and employers must justify it based on specific legal grounds such as exceptional workload, urgent work, or shift work arrangements. You are required to keep detailed time records for each employee, including start and end times, overtime hours, and any compensatory rest granted. Non-compliance with overtime rules can lead to back pay claims, administrative fines, and, in serious cases, criminal penalties.

What Counts As Overtime In Belgium?

Overtime in Belgium generally means hours worked beyond the normal daily limit of 8 hours or the weekly limit of 38 hours, unless a different full-time schedule is set by CLA. Work performed on a Sunday or public holiday is also treated as overtime when it falls outside the employee’s normal schedule and triggers both premium pay and compensatory rest. You must obtain prior authorisation where required and ensure that overtime is exceptional rather than structural.

In flexible working-time systems with reference periods, overtime is usually assessed against the average weekly hours over that period, but certain “internal overtime” thresholds still apply. Hours worked beyond these internal thresholds, such as more than 9 hours per day or 45 hours per week in many schemes, are treated as overtime and must be compensated. You should clearly explain in your work rules when overtime starts and how it will be paid or compensated with time off.

Maximum Overtime In Belgium

As a rule, employees may not work more than 11 hours per day and 50 hours per week, even when overtime is authorised. In many common derogations, internal overtime is capped at 78 hours per reference period, after which additional hours must be compensated with time off or higher pay. Without special authorisation, structural overtime is limited, and you must ensure that peaks remain temporary and within these numerical boundaries.

Under specific legal regimes, such as voluntary overtime, employees can perform up to 120 voluntary overtime hours per calendar year, which can be increased to 360 hours per year by sectoral CLA. These voluntary overtime hours are paid with the normal statutory overtime premiums but do not require compensatory rest. You must obtain written consent from the employee in advance and keep a record to ensure the annual cap is not exceeded.

Overtime Payout Rates In Belgium

In Belgium, statutory overtime pay is generally 150% (1.5x) of the normal hourly wage for overtime worked on regular weekdays and Saturdays. For overtime worked on Sundays and public holidays, the statutory premium is 200% (2.0x) of the normal hourly wage. These premiums apply once the legal overtime thresholds are exceeded and are in addition to any compensatory rest that may be due.

For night work that also qualifies as overtime, the overtime premium of 150% or 200% applies on top of any sectoral night premium, unless the CLA provides an integrated rate. Some CLAs grant higher percentages, such as 125% for evening hours and 150% for night hours, even when they are not overtime in the strict legal sense. You must check the applicable joint committee rules and reflect the correct numerical rates in your payroll system.

Rest Periods And Breaks In Belgium

In Belgium, employees typically work up to 8 hours per day and 38 hours per week, and rest periods are designed to protect their health within these limits. Daily and weekly rest rules ensure that employees have sufficient time away from work between shifts and across the week. Meal and short rest breaks must be integrated into work schedules whenever daily working time exceeds specific thresholds.

• Meal Break: When an employee works more than 6 hours in a day, you must provide at least a 15-minute meal or rest break, and many CLAs extend this to 30 minutes or more. The break may be unpaid unless a CLA or company policy states otherwise, but it must effectively allow the employee to rest and eat.
• Daily Rest: Employees are entitled to a minimum uninterrupted daily rest period of 11 consecutive hours between two working days. In certain sectors, this can be reduced to 9 hours with compensatory rest, but such derogations must be explicitly authorised.
• Weekly Rest: Employees must receive at least 24 consecutive hours of weekly rest, usually on Sunday, combined with the 11-hour daily rest to total 35 hours. If work on Sunday is allowed, you must grant a substitute rest day within the prescribed period.
• Minors: Workers under 18 benefit from stricter rules, including longer rest periods and more frequent breaks during the day. They are generally prohibited from night work and from working on Sundays and public holidays, except in narrowly defined circumstances.
• Employer Duty: You are responsible for organising work so that statutory breaks and rest periods are actually taken and not merely theoretical. Time records, work rules, and scheduling tools should clearly show compliance with daily and weekly rest requirements.

Night Shifts And Weekend Regulations In Belgium

Night and weekend work are legal in Belgium but subject to additional employer responsibilities and employee protections. You must justify such work based on the nature of the activity, comply with specific authorisation rules, and consult with employee representatives where required. Scheduling, health protection, and premium pay must all be managed carefully to remain compliant.

Night work in Belgium is generally defined as work performed between 20:00 and 6:00, with some CLAs narrowing the core night period to 22:00 to 5:00. Regular night work is restricted in principle and only allowed in sectors or functions explicitly authorised by law or collective agreement. You must verify that your activities fall within an allowed category before introducing structural night shifts.

• Premium Pay: There is no single statutory night work premium in Belgium, but many CLAs grant numerical supplements such as 125% (1.25x) of the normal wage for night hours or fixed euro amounts per hour. Where night work also qualifies as overtime, the statutory overtime premiums of 150% or 200% apply in addition to, or integrated with, the sectoral night supplement.
• Health Monitoring: Regular night workers are entitled to occupational health assessments, typically before assignment and at periodic intervals, to check fitness for night work. You must cooperate with the external prevention and protection service and adapt work where medical advice indicates heightened risk.
• Workplace Restrictions: Minors are generally prohibited from night work and from most Sunday work, with only narrow exceptions in sectors like hospitality or cultural activities. Pregnant and breastfeeding workers benefit from reinforced protection and may be reassigned away from night work or granted leave if no suitable alternative is available.

Weekend work, particularly on Sundays, is prohibited in principle but allowed in specific sectors such as retail, hospitality, healthcare, and continuous-process industries. When employees work on Sunday or a statutory weekly rest day, you must grant substitute rest, usually within 6 days, and apply the appropriate premium pay, which is often at least 200% (2.0x) for public holidays and may be higher under CLAs for Sunday work.