Posted by 👇 A real conversation that stayed with me
A few weeks ago, a Chinese professional who had just moved to Belgium reached out to me. He had 15 years of experience in a highly specialised field and had accepted a job offer and moved here. His salary range? €4,000–€5,000 bruto.
He asked me:
“Does this seem fair for Belgium?”
And I had to give him the most honest answer:
“I don’t know your industry well enough to judge the market rate. But I do know this: the minimum salary required for a work permit in Brussels is €3,704 per month. And you probably didn’t factor in Belgium’s tax and social security deductions when you accepted the offer.”
He paused. Because that’s the reality for many expats: you negotiate in the dark.
You don’t know the local salary benchmarks. You don’t know what your Belgian colleagues earn. You don’t know whether your offer is competitive — or simply “high enough to get the visa approved.”
But here’s the good news: This is about to change — dramatically — in 2026.
🇪🇺 Belgium’s Salary Transparency Reform (June 2026)
Belgium must implement the EU Pay Transparency Directive by 7 June 2026, and it will reshape how salaries are communicated, negotiated, and justified.
Here’s what it means.
🧊 1. Salary ranges must appear in job ads
Every job posting must include a minimum and maximum salary range.
🚫 2. Employers can no longer ask about your salary history
In Belgium, it used to be perfectly normal for recruiters to bluntly ask about your current salary before making an offer. Once they had that number, the offer typically hovered just slightly above it — or came with a small boost in benefits.
With the new reform, your previous salary — whether earned in China, the UK, or anywhere else — is no longer relevant. Employers must base their offer on the role’s value, not your past pay.
📊 3. Employees can request pay information
You’ll be able to ask for:
- your own pay components
- the average salary of colleagues in similar roles
- the criteria used to determine pay
👫 4. Companies must report gender pay gaps
Large companies (≥250 employees) report annually from 2027. Medium companies follow every 3 years.
If the gap exceeds 5% (Belgium plans 3%), employers must fix it.
It’s worth noting that Belgium is already a top performer. According to PwC’s Women in Work Index, Belgium has the 3rd lowest gender pay gap in the entire OECD, at 4.5%, compared to an OECD average of 13.5%.
🛡️ 5. You’re protected when discussing pay
Talking about salary will no longer be taboo — it will be protected by law.
🎯 Why this matters for expats
If you’re new to Belgium, you often negotiate with:
- limited market knowledge
- no local network
- no idea what “normal” looks like
This reform levels the playing field.
It means:
- You’ll know the salary range before applying
- You’ll understand whether your offer is competitive
- You’ll be able to benchmark your pay internally
- You’ll avoid accepting a salary that barely clears the work‑permit threshold
For the professional who contacted me, this reform would have made his decision much easier — and much more informed.
⚠️ But transparency isn’t a magic solution
Like every reform, this one comes with side effects — and you should be aware of them.
🧊 1. Salary ranges may become artificially wide
To stay flexible, companies may publish ranges like €3,500–€6,500, which technically comply but tell you very little.
🧮 2. Salary ceilings may tighten and employee motivation might reduce
When salaries become visible, employers often:
- reduce outliers
- compress ranges
- avoid paying significantly above market
This can unintentionally cap salaries, especially for niche experts to comply, and this might negatively impact the employee motivation.
🧑💼 3. Internal tensions may rise
Transparency can create:
- resentment between colleagues
- pressure on managers
- slower promotions or raises
Expats hired at lower salaries may feel stuck in the lower band until the next review cycle.
🏢 4. More bureaucracy for employers – which reduces corporation efficiency
The directive requires:
- gender pay gap reporting
- documentation of pay criteria
- audits when gaps exceed 5% (Belgium plans 3%)
Some companies may:
- freeze hiring
- become more cautious about sponsoring non‑EU workers
- outsource more roles
💬 5. Transparency ≠ fairness
Companies still control:
- how roles are classified
- how “comparable work” is defined
- how differences are justified
A job can be placed in a lower band simply by tweaking the job description.
📝 My takeaway
Belgium is moving toward a more transparent, fairer job market. For expats, this is not just a policy change — it’s empowerment.
But transparency is not a guarantee. It’s a tool. And like any tool, you need to know how to use it.
Overall this is great news, as information is leverage. Transparency is protection. And knowing your worth is the first step to earning it.
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