Details of how Vakantiegeld or Holdiay Pay is calculated in Belgium

2. Vakantiegeld
Vakantiegeld
•What is it?
 What is it?
•  Who it?
Who gets gets it?
•How is it calculated?
 How is it calculated?
•Further information
 Examples
 Further information
Vakantiegeld Slide 2

3. What is it?
Vakantiegeld is a payment of money paid annually to private
sector workers (difference between “Labourers” and “Employees”
Civil Servants (workers in the public sector) are excluded from
receiving it
The payment of Vakantiegeld is in ADDITION to holiday pay that
you may receive off your employer
The money is paid out from the social security contributions that
you made in the preceding year
Vakantiegeld Slide 3

4. What is it?
7 types of payments come out from the Social Security
fund
Pensions
Childrens Allowance
Disability Allowance
Vacation Allowance
Social Security
Sick Pay Contributions
Occupational Allowance
Unemployment Allowance
Vakantiegeld Slide 4

5. What is it?
Vacation Allowance/ Holiday Money/ Holiday Premium
etc. (in Dutch “Vakantiegeld”)
Pensions
Childrens Allowance
Disability Allowance
Vacation Allowance
Sick Pay
Occupational Allowance
Unemployment Allowance
Your employer can pay your holiday money or you can request it to
be paid into a bank account either in Belgium or abroad
Vakantiegeld Slide 5

6. Who gets it?
People who are subject to and employed by a binding employment contract
Contract is defined as someone who undertakes tasks for a wage below the
supervision or custody of another person
Workers and Labourers get a different amount (blue collar V white collar)
Family status also plays a role since you may get additional tax breaks
Special Cases
•Military workers
Check with the website
•Border workers
www.rjv.be
•Retired people
(Rijksdienst voor
•People employed for a period abroad
jaarlijkse vakantie)
•Artists
•People who move from public to private
sector and vice versa
Vakantiegeld Slide 6

7. How is it calculated?
There is a calculation to determine the number of “Active” days in the preceding
year (i.e. How many days you were working and paying social security
contributions)
The number of holidays
worth of money you’re
entitled to depends on the
calculation of “Active”
working days during the
previous year
See
http://www.rjv.be/nl/page_2
_2.htm# for more info on
FAQ’s
Vakantiegeld Slide 7

8. How is it calculated?
Assuming a worker has worked a full year in 2012 – this is
how much he would expect to get in May/June 2013
92% of his normal monthly wage is paid as Holiday Money
for “Employees”
15.38% of a “Labourers” monthly wages is paid as Holiday
Money
Both are subject to taxation charges
Vakantiegeld Slide 8

9. Examples
Labourers Employees
Examples taken from http://www.jobat.be/nl/artikels/bereken-je-vakantiegeld//
Vakantiegeld Slide 9

10. Further Information
De Standaard website – list of handy links to
calculators/tools
http://www.standaard.be/extra/economie/biztools.aspx
Jobat link so that you can calculate your own holiday
payment
http://www.jobat.be/nl/artikels/bereken-je-vakantiegeld//
Link to the official site of rijksdienst voor jaarlijkse
vakantie: www.rjv.be
Link to their FAQ’s http://www.rjv.be/nl/page_2_2.htm#
Tip: If you open a page in Google Chromes internet browser, it will
ask if you want to translate the page into your own language
Vakantiegeld Slide 10

11. What I covered
 What is it?
 Who gets it?
 How is it calculated?
 Examples
 Further information
Vakantiegeld Slide 11