2026: Essential federal reforms for more jobs, more security and more prosperity

This note summarises the main federal reforms planned for 2026 in a clear, structured way that local representatives can defend. It focuses on the concrete effects for citizens, municipalities and local stakeholders of the major reforms carried out by the Federal Government and MR ministers, as well as on the key talking points.

1. Taxation and purchasing power

This tax reform pursues a dual objective: greater tax fairness and more purchasing power for earned income, while ensuring medium-term budgetary sustainability. It is based on a rebalancing between capital, labour and consumption, without penalising the middle class.

1.1 Purchasing power

• Gradual increase of the tax-exempt income threshold to €15,300.
• Estimated average gain: ± €1,100 net per year, or around €90 net per month.
• Reduction and individualisation of the special social security contribution, removing the penalising effects for single people.
• Modernisation of supplements for dependent children: greater fairness for small and medium-sized families.
• Removal of the tax advantage on unemployment benefits, offset by targeted measures for vulnerable groups.

Impact for municipalities:
➡ More net income for citizens without shifting costs onto municipalities.
➡ Future possibility of technical adjustment of municipal surcharges, with no impact for taxpayers.

1.2 Tax on capital gains from securities

• Introduction of a 10% tax on capital gains realised from 1 January 2026 on the sale of financial assets (shares, ETFs, bonds, funds, crypto-assets, precious metals, derivatives).
• Annual exemption of €10,000 per taxpayer, indexed, with the possibility of partial carry-over up to €15,000.
• Losses from the same year are deductible, protecting investors against market fluctuations.
• Specific regime for substantial holdings (≥ 20%) to take entrepreneurial situations into account.
• Pension products and group insurance schemes remain outside the scope.

Key points:
➡ The reform does not target ordinary people's savings or small investors.
➡ It makes high financial incomes contribute more, without penalising productive investment.

1.3 VAT reform

• Increase from 6% to 12% for hotel and campsite stays, certain sports, leisure and entertainment activities.
• Retention of a reduced rate for culture in the strict sense (theatre, opera, classical music, circus).
• 12% VAT on non-alcoholic beverages.
• VAT raised from 12% to 21% on pesticides.

2. Employment & labour market

Labour market reform is a central pillar of government action. It rests on a simple and politically clear idea: work must always be more attractive than inactivity, while protecting those who are genuinely unable to work.

2.1 Reform of unemployment insurance

• Strengthening the gradual activation of job seekers.
• Individualised monitoring of pathways, with enhanced data-driven oversight.
• Simplification of rules and harmonisation of availability obligations.
• Increased cooperation between the federal level, the Regions and public employment services.

To defend locally:
➡ This is not about stigmatisation, but about restoring real employment prospects.
➡ Vulnerable people remain supported.
➡ The reform aims to durably reduce long-term unemployment.

2.2 Valuing work and growth

• Increase of the minimum wage by €35 gross in April 2026.
• Compensation planned for employers to preserve employment.
• Introduction of a universal mobility budget, simpler and clearer.
• Targeted support for the social economy.

Message:
➡ Supporting purchasing power without weakening employment or SMEs.

2.3 Return to work: long-term illness

• Rollout of the 2026 burnout projects.
• Personalised reintegration pathways.
• Coordinated accountability of employers, doctors, health insurance funds and public services.

➡ The goal is not to force a return to work, but to prevent permanent exclusion from it.

2.4 21st-century labour market

• Extension of voluntary overtime.
• Regulated generalisation of flexi-jobs.
• Adapted reintroduction of the probationary period.
• Modernisation of night work and notice periods.

Message:
➡ More flexibility without precariousness.

3. Pensions

Pension reform aims to guarantee the sustainability of the system in a context of accelerated ageing, while restoring greater fairness between schemes.

3.1 Reform of statutory pensions

• Introduction of a bonus/malus system from 2027.
• Greater recognition of complete and genuinely worked careers.
• Gradual harmonisation between the public and private sectors.
• Gradual abolition of special schemes.

Key message:
➡ Acquired rights are respected.
➡ The effort is shared fairly.

3.2 Limiting assimilated periods

• Progressive cap on assimilated periods (40% → 20%).
• Exclusion of sick leave and thematic leave periods.

To explain:
➡ The system must first reward actual work performed.

3.3 Supplementary pensions

• Extending supplementary pensions to civil servants.
• Strengthening the second pillar to secure future incomes.

4. Social integration & CPAS

These reforms directly affect municipalities and CPAS. They aim to strengthen the coherence of the social system and avoid long-term dependency effects.

4.1 Integration income and PIIS

• Generalisation of the PIIS.
• Mandatory inclusion of addiction issues where necessary.
• Strengthened budget guidance.

Political logic:
➡ Solidarity yes, but active and responsibility-based.

4.2 Residence requirement and integration efforts

• 5-year residence requirement for social assistance.
• Modulation of assistance based on integration efforts.

➡ Ensuring citizens' support for the solidarity system.

4.3 Register of social benefits

• Overall view of benefits to prevent excessive accumulation.
• Making work more attractive than assistance.

5. People with disabilities

This reform aims to remove structural barriers to employment for people with disabilities, without undermining their financial security or social rights.

5.1 Reform of the allowance scheme

• Review of the rules for combining professional income and income replacement allowance.
• Decoupling of the integration allowance from household income.
• Automation of entitlement granting where administrative data allow it.

➡ Work must always be financially advantageous.
➡ The reform aims at autonomy, not punishment.
➡ Municipalities and CPAS remain central players in support.

6. Health

Health policy is based on a deliberate balance between quality of care, accessibility and budgetary sustainability.

6.1 2026 health budget

• Effort shared between the pharmaceutical, medical and hospital sectors.
• No undermining of access to care.
• Systematic pursuit of efficiency.

➡ Preserving our solidarity-based system while controlling spending.

6.2 Reform of the hospital landscape

• Structuring of the landscape into four levels of institutions.
• Clarification of the missions of each type of hospital.
• Better use of human and financial resources.

➡ This is not about closing hospitals, but about better organising the provision of care.

6.3 Fee supplements and return to work

• Progressive regulation of fee supplements.
• Accountability of stakeholders in cases of long-term illness.
• Objective: reducing the number of people permanently away from work by 100,000.

7. Self-employed

The self-employed are a pillar of the local economy. The reform aims to offer them better social protection without unnecessarily increasing their burden.

7.1 Social status of the self-employed

• Reform of the student self-employed status, with greater legal clarity.
• Removal of unnecessary certificates.
• Better legal certainty for atypical career paths.

7.2 Social rights and parenthood

• Maternity leave extended to 15 weeks.
• Gradual introduction of parental leave.
• Specific assessment of the situation of self-employed women.

➡ Self-employed workers are entitled to modern social protection.

7.3 Administrative simplification

• Automation of incapacity-for-work declarations.
• Integration of business counters into social insurance funds.
• Reduction of administrative costs.

8. SMEs

SMEs are at the heart of the local economic fabric and of local employment.

8.1 Administrative and financial relief

• Abolition of filing fees for annual accounts for small businesses and associations.
• Further simplification and digitalisation of administrative procedures.
• Reduction of costs linked to mandatory formalities.

➡ Less paperwork, more time for economic activity.

8.2 Fighting fraud and fair competition

• Introduction of an administrative procedure to more quickly strike off clearly inactive or fictitious companies.
• Reform of the verification procedure for the withholding tax obligation for foreign workers.

➡ Protecting honest SMEs from unfair competition.

8.3 Protection of shopkeepers

• Automated system of flat-rate compensation for administrative costs linked to shoplifting.

➡ A concrete response to the economic security problems faced by local shops.

8.4 Right to a second chance

• Possibility for an honest entrepreneur to restart an activity with a new business number.
• Delisting of non-fraudulent bankruptcies from registers.
• Strengthening protection against administrative stigmatisation.

➡ Entrepreneurial failure must not lead to permanent exclusion.

8.5 SMEs and industrial strategy

• Integration of Belgian SMEs into the Defence, Industry and Research Strategy (DIRS).
• Strengthening the strategic autonomy of Belgium and the EU.
• Guaranteeing an economic and social return for Belgium.
• Supporting local employment and innovation.

➡ SMEs are not on the margins of major industrial strategies: they are a pillar of them.

9. Justice

This chapter is a major focus of the 2026 reforms. It aims to restore the efficiency of the criminal justice chain, crack down harder on organised crime and adapt the whole of criminal law to the new Criminal Code coming into force on 8 April 2026.

9.1 Adaptation to the new Criminal Code

• Harmonisation of all special criminal legislation with the new Criminal Code.
• Adaptation of IT systems and judicial procedures.
• Formal invitation to federated entities to adapt their rules where necessary.

Timeline:
➡ All harmonisation texts must be ready for the entry into force of the new Criminal Code (8 April 2026).

9.2 Organised crime: tougher sentences

• Tougher sentences for participation in a criminal organisation, drug and arms trafficking, money laundering, and recruitment of minors.
• Simultaneous entry into force with the new Criminal Code.

Political message:
➡ Zero tolerance for organised crime.

9.3 Criminal procedure

• Modernisation and acceleration of criminal proceedings.
• Limitation of the language change to once per person to prevent delaying tactics.
• Adaptation of the judge recusal procedure, without affecting defence rights.
• Reflection on pre-trial detention: role of the council chamber, frequency of reviews, alternatives.

Status:
➡ Consultations with magistrates and the public prosecutor's office are ongoing throughout 2026.

9.4 Sentence execution

• Revision of parole thresholds once prison overcrowding has decreased.
• Strengthening the residence permit requirement for access to sentence execution arrangements.
• Stricter monitoring of community service sentences and tougher sanctions for non-completion.

9.5 "Follow the money": confiscation of criminal assets

• Proactive confiscation of criminal assets.
• Transposition of European Directive 2024/1260: confiscation without conviction in the event of death, confiscation of unexplained assets linked to criminal activity.
• Creation of a strengthened financial prosecutor's office (10 magistrates).
• Strengthened cooperation between police, justice and finance authorities.

To defend locally:
➡ Crime must never pay again.

10. Home affairs

The 'Home Affairs' reforms aim to adapt the administrative and police toolkit to new threats, while strictly respecting the rule of law.

10.1 Police zones: Brussels

Key measure: adoption of a law merging the Brussels police zones.
Timeline:
➡ First quarter 2026.

10.2 Temporary administrative bans on activities

• Clear distinction between administrative measures (preventive, temporary, reversible) and judicial measures (final).
• Ban limited to precisely defined activities based on concrete and current facts: violent propaganda, indoctrination, organisation of violent events, financing or logistics.

Fundamental guarantee:
➡ No ban may be based on an opinion or ideological affiliation.

10.3 Miscellaneous provisions: Internal security

• Adjustments concerning the Directorate-General for Security & Prevention, the NCCN, Civil Security and citizen identity.
• Modernisation of existing legal bases.

11. Asylum and migration

Asylum and migration policy aims to fight more vigorously against illegal migration and to guarantee effective protection for those entitled to it.

11.1 Reception and procedures

• Acceleration and simplification of asylum procedures to reduce waiting times.
• Gradual reduction of the most costly reception facilities, in favour of more efficient solutions.
• Better flow management with anticipation of arrival peaks.

Why this reform?
➡ Overly long procedures fuel uncertainty, public costs and local tensions.

To defend:
➡ Faster decisions mean less pressure on municipalities.

11.2 Integration and social assistance

• Obligation for recognised refugees to demonstrate integration efforts (language, training, insertion).
• Reduction of social assistance in case of persistent refusal to make integration efforts.
• Possibility of a bonus for beneficiaries of subsidiary or temporary protection who actively engage in an integration pathway.

Status:
➡ Implementation through cooperation agreements with the Regions.

Message:
➡ Solidarity goes hand in hand with duties.

11.3 Returns and credibility of the system

• Strengthening of voluntary and forced returns for persons in illegal residence.
• Strengthened cooperation with countries of origin and transit.
• Clearer link between a negative decision and the effective enforcement of return.

To defend locally:
➡ A credible system protects the right to asylum.

12. Economy, digital and competition

This chapter brings together essential cross-cutting reforms for the competitiveness of the Belgian economy, consumer protection and the adaptation of public action to technological change.

12.1 Artificial intelligence: regulatory sandboxes

• Creation of regulatory sandboxes to test artificial intelligence applications within a secure legal framework.
• Alignment with the European AI Act, while avoiding national over-regulation.

Why this reform?
➡ Supporting innovation without sacrificing citizen protection.

To defend locally:
• Opportunities for SMEs and regional research centres.
• Enhanced economic attractiveness.

12.2 Intellectual property: geographical indications

• Creation of a federal legal framework for the recognition and protection of geographical indications for artisanal and industrial products.
• Close cooperation with the Regions on implementation.

Objectives: to enhance local know-how and protect producers against unfair competition.

12.3 Competition and medicine prices

• Strengthening of the Belgian Competition Authority's procedures against anti-competitive practices.
• Simplification and acceleration of medicine pricing procedures.
• Better coordination between the FPS Economy, FAMHP and NIHDI.

Message:
➡ Protecting patients' purchasing power while ensuring pharmaceutical innovation.

13. Institutional

Institutional reforms aim to simplify the federal architecture and strengthen democratic clarity.

13.1 Senate

• Amendment of Article 195 of the Constitution.
• Committee vote scheduled for early February.

13.2 Constitutional Court and Council of State

• Vote on the text concerning the Constitutional Court in the Chamber.
• Texts requiring a special majority at the Council of State, in line with the government agreement.

14. Energy and climate

Energy and climate policy is based on a pragmatic, realistic and socially sustainable approach.

14.1 Energy supply security

• Extension of several existing nuclear reactors to guarantee stable, decarbonised production.
• Development of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) as a future technology.
• Strengthening of federal steering capacity regarding energy security.

Why this reform?
➡ Without supply security, there is neither a credible climate transition nor protection of purchasing power.

To defend locally:
• Nuclear power protects households from price volatility.
• It guarantees low-carbon production and supports industrial employment.

14.2 Energy transition and economic competitiveness

• Accelerated development of offshore wind and strengthening of European interconnections.
• Targeted support for electricity-intensive companies exposed to international competition.
• Strengthened coordination between the federal level and the Regions to avoid inconsistencies.

Message:
➡ The transition must strengthen the economy, not weaken it.

14.3 Consumer protection and purchasing power

• Strengthening the transparency of energy bills.
• Improvement of protection mechanisms for vulnerable consumers.
• Increased oversight of energy markets to prevent abuse.

To defend locally:
➡ A credible climate policy is a socially fair policy.

15. Mobility

Mobility policy aims to guarantee safe, reliable and accessible travel, without ideologically pitting different modes of transport against each other.

15.1 Rail and public transport

• Modernisation of SNCB and Infrabel, with a focus on punctuality and reliability.
• Strengthening security in stations and public transport, in coordination with police zones.
• Better coordination between federal, regional and local transport.

Why this reform?
➡ Reliable public transport is essential for employment, education and territorial cohesion.

To defend locally:
• More safety for users.
• Better service to municipalities.

15.2 Road safety

• Strengthening of measures against repeat offending for serious traffic offences.
• Modernisation of legal and technological enforcement tools.
• Focus on driver accountability, without excessive penalisation.

Political message:
➡ Road safety saves lives and protects families.

15.3 Balanced mobility and purchasing power

• Taking the cost of mobility into account in purchasing power policies.
• Non-punitive approach for households dependent on cars, especially in rural areas.
• Complementarity between cars, public transport and active mobility.

To defend locally:
➡ Mobility must remain a right, not a luxury.

Conclusion: Reforms to act, protect and prepare the future

The reforms carried out in 2026 follow a logic of responsibility, balance and efficiency in public action, with a clear objective: to make the system fairer for those who work, more protective for those who truly need it, and more sustainable for public finances, at every level of government.

These reforms are neither ideological nor disconnected from reality on the ground. They reflect a deliberate will to restore coherence to public policy, to fight abuse without penalising different types of life paths, and to work resolutely towards employment incentives and our competitiveness. They also aim to simplify existing schemes and modernise state action in light of 21st-century realities.

For local representatives, these reforms constitute both a framework and a lever. A framework, because they progressively redefine the rules on taxation, employment, social security, integration, pensions, security, and mobility and energy. A lever, because they offer new room for action, better coordination between levels of government and, ultimately, more effective policies directly benefiting citizens and municipalities.

Our role as representatives on the ground is twofold: to explain these reforms with clarity, embracing their meaning and objectives, and to defend them consistently, recalling that they form part of a broader vision: that of a fairer, more modern, more demanding, but also more protective state where necessary.

These reforms are not an end in themselves. They represent a decisive step towards restoring trust, strengthening the credibility of public action, and sustainably preparing the future of our municipalities, our citizens and our social model.