Changing employers with a single permit

The law is stated as at 17 October 2026

A single permit opens the door to a job in Belgium for workers from outside the European Union. After a while, a better offer often comes along, with higher pay, a permanent contract or a job closer to home. That is when the permit suddenly proves less flexible than expected. The new employer sees the words ‘Arbeidsmarkt: beperkt’ (labour market: limited) on the worker’s residence card. Can you start tomorrow? And what if the move falls through and the worker is left without a job? A new European directive promises a right to change employer, but full Belgian transposition has not yet been confirmed. In what follows, we outline the key points of changing employers with a single permit and offer a few practical tips.

Your permit is tied to one employer

The single permit, officially the gecombineerde vergunning in Dutch and the permis unique in French, combines two authorisations: a work authorisation and a residence authorisation. If you work in Flanders, the Flemish authorities assess the employment side, while the Immigration Office decides on residence (cooperation agreement of 2 February 2018).

In Flanders, a fixed-term work authorisation is limited to employment with one employer. According to the Flemish authorities, it is tied to one employer, one employee, one place of employment and one job. The words ‘Arbeidsmarkt: beperkt’ on the card point to the same thing. In addition, if your new place of employment is in another region, such as Brussels, the new authorisation must be applied for in that region.

Separate rules apply to the EU Blue Card, seasonal work and intra-corporate transfers.

When can you start working for the new employer?

The new employer applies for a work authorisation for the new job. The employee cannot do this themselves. The Flemish rules treat this application as a renewal, ‘whether or not with the same employer’ (our translation). This has a practical advantage: according to the Flemish authorities, proof of payment of the fee, a medical certificate and a criminal record extract are not required.

Under the current Flemish procedure, you may start only once two conditions are met. The new work authorisation must have been granted, and you must still have a valid right of residence, shown by a valid electronic residence card or an Annex 49. Submitting an application or signing a contract is not enough. So you cannot simply start tomorrow. Your new employer must first obtain the authorisation itself.

If you are still in your current job, you may keep working there while the application is pending and during your notice period, as long as your existing authorisation covers that work. Resigning before the new authorisation has been granted therefore risks leaving you without work for a while.

Allow some time for this. The national rules provide, in principle, for four months from the date on which the application is declared complete, subject to more favourable EU law. The new directive provides, in principle, for 90 days.

New employer, new assessment

The new application is assessed against the criteria currently in force. If you obtained your authorisation in the ‘other’ category because your employer showed that it could not find anyone else on the labour market, the new employer must show this again, under the new conditions. The job must appear on the VDAB list of shortage occupations and require a level 3 or 4 qualification. In addition, the vacancy must have been advertised continuously on the VDAB and EURES platforms for at least nine weeks in the four months before the application. Otherwise, the application is inadmissible. The transitional rules protecting earlier authorisations apply only to a renewal by the same employer for the same job. Anyone who changes employer falls outside them, even for the same work.

What if you lose your job?

Losing your job does not mean you have to leave Belgium straight away. Under Article 61/25-2, § 5 of the Aliens Act, if you are no longer allowed to work, your residence ends automatically 90 days after your work authorisation ends. The Immigration Office may, however, end your residence earlier in certain cases.

The starting point matters. According to the Flemish authorities, this period runs only from the end of the employment, not from the date of the dismissal letter. If you are given notice on 31 March but your authorised employment and Dimona registration continue until 30 September, the clock starts only on 30 September. The period is not a licence to work elsewhere in the meantime. Nor does a new application automatically extend it.

What does the new directive change?

A recast Single Permit Directive was adopted on 24 April 2024. Member States had to transpose it by 21 May 2026. On changing employer, Article 11 is the key provision: ‘Member States shall allow a single permit holder to change employer.’

A Member State may, however, attach conditions to that right. It may require notification, impose a labour market test if it also applies one to single permit applications, and require a minimum period with the first employer. That minimum period may never exceed six months. If the employer seriously breaches the terms and conditions of employment, an earlier move must be possible. After notification, the Member State may suspend the right to change employer for up to 45 days and oppose the change during that period. In exceptional cases, a further 15 days may be added.

The directive also protects those who lose their job. Unemployment is not in itself a ground for withdrawing the permit, provided that, within the validity period of the permit, it lasts no more than three months in total, or six months for someone who has held the permit for more than two years, and that the authorities are notified. For unemployment lasting more than three months, sufficient means of subsistence may be required. If you find a new employer within that period, you may stay until the authorities have checked the conditions, even if the period has run out in the meantime. The authorities must also decide on a complete application within 90 days, which may exceptionally be extended by 30 days.

Can you already rely on it?

As at 15 July 2026, Belgium had not notified full transposition. On 15 July 2026, the European Commission sent Belgium and sixteen other Member States a letter of formal notice for failing to notify full transposition. As at 17 October 2026, EUR-Lex still listed no Belgian transposition measures. At the end of 2025, the Flemish Minister for Work announced that transposition would follow at a later stage, partly through an amendment to the cooperation agreement with the federal government. The Flemish procedure remains the practical starting point, subject to rights that may be invoked under EU law.

Even so, a directive that has not been transposed on time is not without effect. Under settled case law of the Court of Justice, an individual may rely on an unconditional and sufficiently precise provision of a directive against public authorities. Whether you can rely on a specific provision of Article 11 must be assessed separately. National choices on notification, a labour market test and a waiting period do not automatically rule this out.

What about an indefinite work authorisation?

An indefinite work authorisation is a different matter. It applies to all occupations in paid employment, and no work permit is then required for the employer. Do not confuse it with a permanent employment contract. And even with an unlimited authorisation, the Immigration Office will still decide separately on your residence.

Practical tips

1. Do not resign until the new authorisation has been granted. You may keep working for your current employer while the application is pending. Make your start date with the new employer conditional on the decision and time your notice accordingly.
2. Have the category of the new job checked first. The same work for a different employer does not guarantee a new authorisation. If the job falls into the ‘other’ category, the vacancy must first have been advertised for nine weeks.
3. Keep an eye on your residence card. Without a valid card or an Annex 49, you may not start, even with a new authorisation. If your current authorisation expires soon, a renewal application must in principle be submitted no later than two months before the expiry date.

How can we help?

Changing employers may look like a formality, but it touches on three things at once: your employment contract, your work authorisation and your residence. DECKER LAW can assist you in several ways. We analyse your current decisions and residence documents and determine which category the new job falls into. We then prepare the application together with the new employer and align your notice period with your start date. If the decision is slow in coming, we examine whether the new directive strengthens your position. If your application is nevertheless refused, we work with specialist lawyers to defend your interests on appeal. You can read more under Global mobility and in our explainer on the Belgian single permit (in Dutch). Would you like us to review your move? Make an appointment.