Country guide
Pay transparency in Belgium
What the EU Pay Transparency Directive means for employers in Belgium, based on its national transposition — status, thresholds, the joint-assessment trigger, and where to file.
Partial transposition only: a Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles decree (12 September 2024) has applied to French-Community public-sector employers since 1 January 2025. Federal-level transposition has stalled; the existing Gender Pay Gap Act (Wet van 22 april 2012) remains in force.
Belgium has partially brought the directive into force. Some obligations already apply while others are still being enacted, so check the national text for what is live today.
Employers with 50+ employees come into scope from 2012. A mean pay gap of 5% or more in a role category triggers a joint pay assessment with worker representatives.
The pay-gap figures must be published, not just filed with the authority. Either way, the underlying work is the same: establish work of equal value through gender-neutral job evaluation, produce the statutory pay-gap report in the national format, and run a joint assessment where the gap is too wide.
Obligations at a glance
| Reporting threshold | 50+ employees (from 2012) |
|---|---|
| Joint pay assessment | 5% gap |
| Reporting frequency | Every two years |
| Public publication | Required |
| Competent authority | Institut pour l'égalité des femmes et des hommes (IEFH) |
Frequently asked
Is the EU Pay Transparency Directive in force in Belgium?
Belgium has partially brought the directive into force. Some obligations already apply while others are still being enacted, so check the national text for what is live today.
Which employers have to report in Belgium?
Employers with 50+ employees come into scope from 2012.
What triggers a joint pay assessment in Belgium?
A mean pay gap of 5% or more in a role category triggers a joint pay assessment with worker representatives.
This guide summarises publicly available information for orientation only. It is not legal advice — confirm every figure against Belgium's own transposition text before relying on it.