Nearly 20,000 More Belgians Get Pensions Abroad

The number of Belgians having their state pension paid outside the country has risen sharply over the past six years, climbing from 62,952 in 2019 to 81,565 in 2025 — an increase of some 18,600 people, according to figures obtained by Het Laatste Nieuws from the Federal Pension Service (Federale Pensioendienst). The trend, driven largely by retirees seeking a warmer climate and a lower cost of living, is raising practical questions about the obligations that come with drawing a Belgian pension from abroad.

A Right to Payment Almost Anywhere

The story frames the phenomenon in broadly positive terms: many Belgians, HLN notes, are “making a holiday of their pension.” But the mechanics of getting paid across borders are more complicated than they might appear.

“For non-Belgians, restrictions apply — you can find them on our website,” Vik Beullens, spokesperson for the Federal Pension Service, told HLN. “But as a Belgian, you in principle retain the right to have your pension paid anywhere in the world.”

According to the Federal Pension Service, Belgians, nationals of the European Economic Area (EEA), the United Kingdom and Switzerland, stateless persons, UN refugees and nationals of countries with bilateral agreements can receive an employee or self-employed pension anywhere in the world. Civil servants’ pensions are payable worldwide regardless of nationality.

Yet even an entitlement is not always a guarantee of a smooth payment. Beullens noted that banks sometimes hesitate, wary of the consequences of European sanctions, and that a growing number of Belgians moving outside the EEA report that their Belgian bank account is being closed.

“Everyone has the right to payment regardless of where they live,” he said. “But we do see banks sometimes being difficult… So contacting your bank in advance is wise.”

The Paperwork Recipients Must Clear

Moving a pension across a border requires careful administration. According to the Federal Pension Service, retirees must notify the agency in writing at least two months before moving abroad, stating their departure date, new address, consular registration status and preferred payment method. A phone call or ordinary email is not sufficient for security reasons.

A second recurring obligation is the annual life certificate (levensbewijs), required only for countries without automatic electronic data exchange. France and Spain, for example, have such an exchange, so retirees there need not submit one. Where a certificate is required, it must be returned within 30 days and validated by a competent local authority — a town hall, police station, consulate or embassy.

Beullens stressed that a late or defective certificate does not cost a retiree their pension outright. “You don’t lose your pension if we don’t receive your answer within 30 days or if your life certificate doesn’t meet the conditions,” he said. “But then we do suspend payment until we receive a valid life certificate.”

Where Taxes and Contributions Change

Beyond the paperwork, several financial treatments shift once a pensioner settles abroad. Residents of the EEA, the UK or Switzerland are exempted from the solidarity contribution, applied automatically by the agency. The 3.55% sickness and invalidity (ZIV) contribution may also be waived if the pensioner is insured in their country of residence.

Withholding tax (bedrijfsvoorheffing) depends on double-taxation treaties. For employee and self-employed pensions, the exemption is applied automatically once the agency is informed of the new foreign address. Civil servants’ pensions are different: according to the Pension Service, an exemption is possible only under specific conditions and is not applied automatically — the pensioner must apply to the FOD Financiën.

One benefit is lost entirely by moving abroad. Recipients of the Income Guarantee for the Elderly (IGO) forfeit it if they leave Belgium, since it is a supplement to the pension to which recipients did not themselves contribute.

A Trend With Deeper Roots

The rise is not a sudden one. Reporting by VRT NWS in 2023, based on Pension Service figures for 1 January 2022, found 61,556 retired Belgians living abroad. France was the clear leader, with the number of pensioners there up 67% over a decade, followed by Spain, the Netherlands, Germany and Luxembourg. Portugal was the biggest riser, quadrupling in ten years, while Turkey (+252%), Morocco (+122%) and Thailand (+153%) also grew strongly.

The fiscal dimension helps explain those choices. Tax lawyer Typhanie Afschrift told Sudinfo, as cited by VRT, that most of the top-ten destinations offer favourable regimes for incoming retirees. Portugal, for instance, taxed new residents on only 10% of their pension for the first decade, and exempted such pensions entirely before 2020; Israel has exempted new residents for ten years. Afschrift cautioned that France is “certainly no tax haven” — but average incomes there are taxed less than in Belgium.

She added a caveat: the favourable treatment applies to those who worked in the private sector. Retired civil servants living abroad still pay their taxes in Belgium.

What to Watch

The headline figure — nearly 20,000 more Belgians drawing a pension abroad in six years — is the visible tip of a broader question about how Belgium’s retirement system serves an increasingly mobile older population. For would-be emigrants, the Pension Service’s message is procedural rather than prohibitive: the entitlement generally remains, but the obligations around notification, life certificates and tax treatment must be managed deliberately. With cost-of-living pressures and climate cited as recurring motivations, the cross-border pension trend shows little sign of reversing.