What about voluntary overtime as of 1 April 2026?
It is no longer a mystery that the federal government is actively implementing the measures set out in its 2025 government agreement.
In our newsletter of 19 January 2026, we already provided an initial overview of the measures planned for 2026, including the introduction of a single system of voluntary overtime, scheduled to enter into force on 1 April 2026. However, the applicable legislation is still pending. It is now expected to be approved only at the end of April, but with retroactive effect as of 1 April 2026.
A unified system
As a reminder, this new system will merge the “classic” voluntary overtime hours and the “relance” overtime hours into one single framework.
For further details, we refer to our dedicated newsletter of 19 January 2026.
What you can do as of 1 April 2026
Pending the adoption of the new legislation, the following rules in principle apply as of 1 April 2026:
- maximum of 120 ordinary voluntary overtime hours per calendar year;
- these hours must be paid out with an overtime supplement, and they are subject to social security contributions and taxes;
- they require a written agreement to be concluded in advance, which is valid for a maximum of six months
Unlike ordinary voluntary overtime hours, relance overtime hours were a temporary measure that has already been extended several times. The regulation governing relance overtime was extended for the last time until 31 March 2026. As a result, the current rules on relance overtime hours can no longer be applied as of 1 April 2026.
Pending the official publication of the law introducing the new unified system, employers may already choose to conclude a new agreement based on the new system after 1 April 2026. As long as the law has not yet been formally adopted, this does involve a legal risk, although that risk appears limited since the legislation is almost certain to apply retroactively from 1 April.
We will of course keep you informed as soon as the law is approved and published in the Belgian Official Gazette.
Other planned legislative changes
Below you can find an overview of the other planned legislative changes, currently scheduled for 1 June 2026:
- Simplification of the rules regarding the inclusion of all full-time working schedules in the working regulations
- Reform of the minimum weekly working time for part‑time employees: from 1/3rd to 1/10th
- Abolition of the prohibition on night work
- Limitation of the maximum notice period to 52 weeks
- CLA 90 bonus: mandatory electronic filing
- Limitation of the indexation (the “centimes-index”)
In addition, the flexi‑job system would also be expanded to all sectors as of 1 April 2026. This measure has also been postponed. The exact date of entry into force is not yet certain, although 1 July 2026 is currently considered the most likely date.
