r/BESalary

Has anyone here been through long-term sick leave for major depression or burnout in Belgium, especially if you're a foreigner with permanent residency?

I've been living and working in Belgium for 7 years and have a B card (permanent residency). I've always worked and paid my taxes, but earlier this year I was diagnosed with major depression and burnout.

Looking back, I think I ignored the warning signs for a long time. I used to work 16-hour days. I know that isn't normal, but I was constantly terrified of losing my job because, in my mind, losing my job meant losing my right to stay in Belgium. Whether that fear was rational or not, it completely took over my life.

It got to the point where work controlled everything. If I wasn't working, I felt guilty and anxious. If I went for a walk, I couldn't enjoy it because I was convinced everything at work would fall apart while I was away. Even on holiday I couldn't switch off. I was constantly thinking about work instead of relaxing.

Eventually I reached a point where I just couldn't function anymore. I couldn't focus, couldn't think clearly, couldn't make decisions, and even simple tasks became overwhelming.

I've now been on sick leave for almost 4 months. I recently tried returning to work part-time, but I still don't feel like I'm recovering.

Has anyone else experienced something similar? How long did it take before you started feeling like yourself again? Did you eventually recover and return to work?

And if you're also a foreigner with permanent residency, did you have any issues with your residency or employment while you were on long-term sick leave?

I'd really appreciate hearing your experiences because right now it's difficult to imagine that life will ever feel normal again.

Good day,

I am an international student arriving in Bruges this September for Bachelors. I have a professional working history in Website and Application Development as well as managing servers and DevOps. I've been working with international clients, mainly on a freelance term, for 5+ years and have built several projects to prove such worth.

That said, I was wondering about if I could find a student job that pays well for these skills mentioned (more than €25/hr at least). I would be starting by bachelors and would be working 20 hour weeks but I want to know if this could be possible and am looking for any guidance to help fund my studies and living. Thank you

Lately I’ve been struggling a lot with anxiety while trying to keep working full-time. Some days I manage, other days it feels like I’m only surviving the workday.

Do people openly talk about anxiety, burnout or depression at work, or do most people keep it to themselves because they’re afraid of being judged or seen as less capable? I work in a very small company (less than 10 people)

I’m also curious how employers generally react if someone needs psychological help, takes medication for anxiety, or needs a short period of sick leave because of mental health.

Has anyone here gone through something similar while working?

• Did you tell your employer or colleagues?
• How did they react?
• Did you continue working, take sick leave, or make other adjustments?
• Looking back, what helped you the most?

I’m interested in hearing real experiences, both positive and negative.

Hi, I see here many people switch jobs often. May I ask if you feel overwhelmed in the 1st few days at work as I feel so overwhelmed and nervous that I couldn’t catch up with my colleagues. Some of them are also new but I feel they are much proactive and productive than me with my skills that I am lack of. I am currently pregnant and just only have 4 months to work in the new company before taking maternity leave so I am quite stressed right now. I’m also currently pregnant, and I’ll only be working at this new company for about four months before going on maternity leave. That adds another layer of stress because I worry I won’t have enough time to prove myself before I’m away.
At my previous company, some women were dismissed during or shortly after their maternity leave, and they didn’t even get the opportunity to return to work. That experience has made me quite anxious about starting over in a new workplace.
Has anyone else been in a similar situation? How did you cope with the pressure and self-doubt? I’d really appreciate hearing your experiences or any advice.

Hi! Quick context: I've studied both social sciences + AI in my bach & grad school, have about ~2 years of experience (3 if you count internships & similar jobs) and I've recently quit my job. But I'm officially going to be done September end, but can exit before if I find something nice. I'm looking at AI enablement roles/ program roles/ project or product management/ graduate programs (because I graduated last year in Sep); mostly entry level, but also open to high-potential convertible internships.

I've made multiple iterations to my current resume, but I wanted an outsider fresh eyes perspective! I would really appreciate if anyone could spare about 5 mins skimming through it and giving me some feedback. In return, I can help you with automating whatever your biggest hurdle is, if any haha. Or other small tasks, if you've them! Pls text me :-)

Thank you so much, merciii beaucoup!

Heeft iemand hetzelfde eens meegemaakt dat ze plots geen wagen meer konden kiezen omdat ze midden in het jaar een mobiliteitsbudget krijgen?

Ik heb sinds 1 juli een mobiliteitsbudget van €910 per maand. Het resterende totaal budget van 2026 is pro rata berekend. Ik had het idee om in pijler 1 een 'kleinere' elektrische wagen te kiezen (want moet veel verplaatsingen doen voor het werk + thuiswerk is heel minimaal) en de overschot te gebruiken in pijler 2. Dat was helemaal geen probleem volgens HR. Vorige week lieten ze dan weten dat het opeens niet meer mogelijk zou zijn en pas vanaf 2027 als ik over het volledig jaarbudget beschik?

Blijkbaar zou een wagen berekend worden op 12 maanden en niet op de resterende maanden van het jaar. Dus als ik zou kiezen voor een wagen van €600/maand, wordt meteen €7200 'aangerekend' uit je mobiliteitsbudget en dat zit er nu niet in omdat ik in januari nog geen mobiliteitsbudget had. Ik moet betalen voor maanden wanneer ik zelfs nog geen mobiliteitsbudget had?

Heb een gesprek aangevraagd met HR om het hier over te hebben maar wilde weten of iemand een soortgelijke situatie heeft meegemaakt en/of tips heeft. Is dit iets wat normaal is? Tenzij je in januari of februari instapt, kan je eigenlijk nooit een wagen kiezen in pijler 1?

I am a non-EU citizen currently living in another EU country. I recently accepted a job offer in Belgium, and my employer is handling the single permit application for me.

My situation falls under the single permit - researcher track, which has a 60-day processing time. However, it has been around 70 days since the application was submitted, and the residence permit has still not been granted. My employer followed up with IBZ twice after the 60-day deadline passed, but it seems IBZ has not replied.

I have checked several posts and am still not sure if this kind of administrative delay is normal. I would really appreciate any insights into the single permit processing time. Additionally, would it be helpful for me to call IBZ directly (my employer has not shared the application number with me)?

My single permit (researcher track) timeline is below:

• 2026.04.22: Application submitted
• 2026.04.29: Work permit approved
• 2026.06.22: Employer followed up with IBZ because the 60-day deadline passed
• 2026.07.01: Employer followed up with IBZ again

I often read in the tread that for gross salaries above 7k/month it makes more sense to move from employment to a "managementvenootschap".

I just wonder how you arranged this with your employer or if this requires a complete career overhaul?

I would categorize as being in "general" management and don't really have hand on skills that i often associate with the managementvenootschap-track which i assosiate with IT experience or maybe consulting.

So basically want to understand how you transitioned into this track, would you recommend consulting or retraining?

Or how do you 'get started' in this more independent/freelance track?

Ps. I do understand risks and other implications of going freelance vs. employment

Hi everyone,

I recently moved to Brussels, and I'm still trying to understand the Belgian salary market. I'm a bit unsure about what salary expectations I should give when companies ask me.

Considering that many companies also provide a company car, what would you say are the typical gross monthly salaries for the following profiles?

-> SAP Business Analyst

• Junior ?
• Medior ?

-> SAP Functional Consultant

• Junior ?
• Medior ?

Also, just to make sure I understand correctly: when a company asks for your gross annual salary, should I simply multiply the monthly gross salary by 13.92 (to account for the Belgian salary system)?

Thanks in advance! 👍

HI everyone,

A few days I posted about how to approach negociations at work, as I was about to get a really big promotion (Key Account Manager for some of their most crucial accounts, when I was just a Sales Assistant). Since I arrived at the company, I have done lots of unpaid overtime, saved many critical projects and basically managed two jobs at the same time. I also recommended 3 people I know for my current position (saved managment lots of time and ressources, they are interviewing them next week but told me they are solid candidates). We don't get bonus for referals. Feel like I definetely proved my worth and my motivation. I was expecting at least 3,450€ bruto (this is what my colleagues were making when they started, adjusted for inflation), so I asked for 3,600€.

Well the offer finally came and it was complete shit. They offered 3k with 0 advange (only a phone, but that's only because they expect me to be reachable even after work hours, as most of our clients are abroad, and honnestly idgaf about this phone). In netto that was like 45€ extra compared to what I'm making as an assitant, with lots of extra stress and responsabilities. I have to wait 3 years before I can renegociate (otherwise it's "unfair to the other employees"). I talked with my colleagues and I can expect maybe a 150€ increase in three years (again, in bruto, so that would be like 30€ extra in netto). Mobility budgets are only for seniors (the initial rule was "you can get a car or a mobility budget after 5 years", but as soon as some employees got close to 5 years, they switched the rules to "only for seniors") so I have no hope to get one before at least 10 years. They said they cannot raise their offer because "this always has been what we offer to junior and we don't adjust salaries for inflation when hiring". There are no other advantage I can negociate (no meal vouchers, and I already have the maximum remote allowance). This honeslty felt insulting and I no longer see myself staying for long at a company that won't reward hard work, despite the great colleagues and my love for the field.

We get a yearly bonus (10% if we reach the total budget), but the objectives are really high and my colleagues told me we don't get the full bonus most of the time.

When negotiating I managed to get 3,200€ (88€ increase in netto) which imo is still shit. They tried to lure me with the possibility to renegociate later, but when I asked for this to be in my contract (the actual raise I can expect next year, with clear objectives I need to reach) they immediately backtracked and said they couldn't do that because "raises are only after 3 years, it's unfair to the other employees blablabla". So trust is completely gone and I know I will never get a decent paycheck at this place. I still took the offer because I know I will at least learn new skills and develop my network, plus it will be easier to switch jobs with this extra line on my CV, but I'm not even sure it was worth it.

So now, I want to know what steps I can take for my career ( and to actually get decent working conditions). I don't want to be a billonaire, but I'd like to have a decent life (be able to own a nice appartment in Brussel one day and travel a little bit), especially because I don't think I can find a job in the fields I'm actually passionated about. Right now I'm gonna make 2450€ netto which isn't even enough anymore to live without roomates (studios are like 1000€/month in Brussels).

Here is what I have so far:

• Speaks fluently English, Spanish and French (native or near native), C1 level in Dutch, B1 level in Japanese (I'm taking evening classes and hope to reach a B2 level in like 1-2 years)
• Three master's degrees (master in translation from a top Spanish university, then double degree in project management and translation in Belgium), with honors. I already know that this isn't a great major and that I will be underpaid because my degree says "translation", although I think I still have a lot of very valuable and transferable skills. I graduated last year.
• Erasmus, year abroad and internship in 3 different European countries
• I always made sure to gain professionnal experience as a student (student jobs that were related to languages, internships -but nothing prestigious unfortunately, as I was dumb and followed my passion back then-, and I have been working as a freelance translator even before I graduated

I know that on paper this doesn't look that great, but I'm convinced I deliver great work everywhere I go. Which is why my initial goal was to start small and then climb the ladder. I started with a shitty underqualified and underpaid job at a prestigious company, then used the skills/network I gained there to switch as a Sales Assistant at my current company (which pays slightly more and treated me better... until now), proved my worth and got promoted after 6 months. But I realise companies don't value good employees, only money, and they use the fact that I started at a lower position to underpay me compared to my colleagues with the same skills and experience who were hired externally.

So any advice is welcome. Any skill I should learn, any evening class/new degree I should take, any field I should focus on... So I can build a better career.

Right know I'm focusing on improving my Japanese to B2 and my Dutch to C2 and saying yes to all trainings offered at my current company. I'm not longer going the extra mile like I did (no more unpaid overtime just so I can maybe get 30€ extra in 2029) and will instead use that extra energy to first gain new skills, and then job hunt so I can either get a better job, or leverage that new offer at my current company. Does that sounds like a good plan or should I pick a different strategy?

1. Personalia

• Age: 25
• Education: Master’s degree
• Work experience: 1 year total; switching jobs in September
• Civil status: Living together with cohabitation contract
• Dependents/children: 0

2. Employer Profile

• Sector/industry: Automotive → Education
• Number of employees: No idea
• Multinational: Yes → No

3. Contract & Conditions

• Current job title: Electronics Engineer → Lector
• Job description: Developing electronics for cars → Teaching young adults
• Seniority: 0 → 0
• Official hours per week: 38 → 38
• Average real hours per week, including overtime: 38 → No idea yet
• Shift work or 9-to-5: Flexible/9-to-5 → No
• On-call duty: Yes, only during major issues, but it never happened → No
• Vacation days per year: 37, or 42 including bought days → Around 55

4. Salary

• Gross salary per month: €3,300 → €4,500
• Net salary per month: €2,450 → €2,700–€2,800, according to the simulation tool
• Net compensation: €0 → €20
• Car/bike/mobility budget: Company car → Bike lease
• 13th month: No → No
• Meal vouchers: €0 → €0
• Ecocheques: €0 → €0
• Group insurance: Not sure
• Other insurances: Not sure
• Other benefits: Profit sharing → not sure

5. Mobility

• City/region of work: Heerlen, Netherlands → Hasselt, Belgium
• Distance home-work: 40 km, around 35 minutes → 10 km, maximum 30 minutes by bike
• Commute: Car → Mostly bike, sometimes car
• Travel compensation: Company car and fuel card → Bike leasing
• Telework days per week: 0 → 0

6. Other

• How easily can you plan a day off? Easily → Fixed dates
• Is the job stressful? No → I do not expect much stress
• Responsible for personnel/reports: 0 → 0

I currently work in the Netherlands, so I also pay around €150 per month in extra insurance costs. I will no longer have to pay this after switching jobs.

My long-term goal has always been to work in education, but I did not expect the opportunity to come this soon. Ideally, I would have liked to gain more field-related experience first, but this opportunity came up. If I follow my heart, I will choose teaching.

Trying to get a sense of where mid-level manager salaries land in Belgium these days. There's a lot of data floating around here for junior/senior IC roles, but manager-level comp seems underrepresented. Opening this up so people can compare notes.

If you're currently in a manager role (a few direct reports, some budget or project ownership, not director/senior leadership), drop your details:

• What's your gross monthly base?
• How many years of experience do you have and whats your age?
• Bonus structure (% target)
• Company car included or not (Mobility Budget)
• Sector
• How many people do you manage if any?

Would be good to get a sense of what "typical" looks like - both the comp itself and how many years it usually takes to get there.

Hiya

Me and my partner are aiming to live in Belgium. I am a Belgian citizen and my partner is immigrating to Belgium and we want to do this via the family reunification scheme. So long story short I would need a salary of 2400 net / month to make this process significantly easier. I am not working yet so this would have to be my starting salary.

Some info:

Degrees:
Professional bachelor in IT
Industrial engineering nuclear technology with focus on medical physics with high distinction

Work experience:

5 or 6 summers of student jobs of which 8 months or so related to software development or general engineering.

I'd be grateful if there are any people willing to share their starting salaries with similar profiles (industrial engineering), as well as general comments/input.

Thanks!

Do you pay rent/have a mortgage? how many % od your salary is it?

Car?

Other important big expenses?

I save around 24% of my salary (€500 at least) and everything i get on top of my normal salary ideally goes to the savings(vacation money, 13th salary and so on).

Curious what is it with people in my salary range, other commentators mention 50% and so on, but that's unrealistic with the salary like this, only if you make much higher.

Edit: Just adding my personal situation. My rent in Antwerp is 660 for a one bedroom apartment. I commute with a bike leased from work. No other big expenses rather than food. My salary is usually 2100 including fietsvergoeding, work 30hr.

* Age: 27
* Education: Master
* Work experience : 3,5
* Civil status: partner cohabitation
* Dependent people/children: no

**3. CONTRACT & CONDITIONS**

* Current job title: project leader sourcing: identify spend consolidation opportunities on a global scale. Focus on harmonisation/savings, etc
* Seniority: 3,5 years
* Official hours/week : 38
* Average real hours/week incl. overtime: 45-50
* Shiftwork or 9 to 5 (flexible?): flexible
* On-call duty: /
* Vacation days/year: 30 days 

**4. SALARY**

* Gross salary/month: 5500
* Net salary/month: Around 3400
* Netto compensation: 150
* Car/bike/... or mobility budget:
* 13th month (full? partial?): full
* Meal vouchers: 10/day 
* Ecocheques: 250 
* Group insurance: 100% employer: i think 4%
* Other insurances: Ambucare 
* Other benefits (bonuses, stocks options, ... ): 2k bonus a year

**5. MOBILITY**

* City/region of work: ///
* Distance home-work: 20’
* How do you commute? Own car
* How is the travel home-work compensated: is around 60/month
* Telework days/week: 2

**6. OTHER**

* How easily can you plan a day off: easy
* Is your job stressful? Sometimes, depends on project & deliverables
* Responsible for personnel (reports): project based, but no FTE

Happy for my age & experience. Curious to see if there are similar profiles here?

1. PERSONALIA

• Age: 27
• Education: Master
• Work experience : 7
• Civil status: Single
• Dependent people/children: 0

2. EMPLOYER PROFILE

• Sector/Industry: Banking
• Amount of employees: 50
• Multinational? NO

3. CONTRACT & CONDITIONS

• Current job title: IT Operations Manager
• Job description: Negotiate with Suppliers, Incident Management, Optimizing Operations, Reporting to regulators
• Seniority: 0 (7 in previous roles) its a new job.
• Official hours/week : 38
• Average real hours/week incl. overtime: I expect 45-50
• Shiftwork or 9 to 5 (flexible?): Flexible, more when there is a crisis
• On-call duty: Officially no but expected to act if there is a disaster and will be compensated seperately at 150/200% depending on weekend or night interventions.
• Vacation days/year: 20+12 ADV (32 total)

4. SALARY

• Gross salary/month: 5100 EURO
• Net salary/month: 3100 EURO
• Netto compensation: 100 EURO Y1, 200 EUR Y2
• Car/bike/... or mobility budget: 700 EUR
• 13th month (full? partial?): Full
• Meal vouchers: 8 EURO/DAY
• Ecocheques: 250 EURO/YEAR
• Group insurance: With No Personal Contribution
• Other insurances: Hospitalization for me and family
• Other benefits (bonuses, stocks options, ... ): Performance bonus equal to 1 Month Salary

5. MOBILITY

• City/region of work: Brussels
• Distance home-work: 15 minutes walking
• How do you commute? Walking
• How is the travel home-work compensated: Not compensated
• Telework days/week: 3 days

6. OTHER

• How easily can you plan a day off: Easily if no migrations planned
• Is your job stressful? I expect it is going to be really stressful for the first 3 months
• Responsible for personnel (reports): 0

1. PERSONALIA

• Age: 25
• Education: Associate degree
• Work experience : 9 months
• Civil status: Single
• Dependent people/children: 0

2. EMPLOYER PROFILE

• Sector/Industry: Tech
• Amount of employees: 450
• Multinational? NO

3. CONTRACT & CONDITIONS

• Current job title: Junior back-end developer
• Job description: I develop and maintain e-commerce platforms, websites, and custom integrations (ERP/PIM) using Laravel
• Seniority: 9 months
• Official hours/week : 40
• Average real hours/week incl. overtime: 40
• Shiftwork or 9 to 5 (flexible?): 8:30-17:30 ±1hr
• On-call duty: NO
• Vacation days/year: 12 adv + 20

4. SALARY

• Gross salary/month: 2550
• Net salary/month: 2163
• Netto compensation: 150 (home office allowance) + 25 (internet allowance)
• Car/bike/... or mobility budget: bike lease
• 13th month (full? partial?): full
• Meal vouchers: 8 EURO/DAY
• Ecocheques: -
• Group insurance: 4% bruto
• Other insurances: Hospitalisation insurance
• Other benefits (bonuses, stocks options, ... ): -

5. MOBILITY

• City/region of work: Ghent
• Distance home-work: 40km / 1hr
• How do you commute? bike/train
• How is the travel home-work compensated: bike €0.36/km - train subscription is paid
• Telework days/week: 2

6. OTHER

• How easily can you plan a day off: Easy
• Is your job stressful? No
• Responsible for personnel (reports): 0

I received a pay increase last week from 3100 to 3300. I feel like this is a good offer but I don't know if this is 'marktconform'? Do you think this is a great pay?

1. PERSONALIA

• Age: 25
• Education: Bachelor Applied Informatics
• Work experience : 3,5
• Civil status: Unmarried
• Dependent people/children: 0

1. EMPLOYER PROFILE

• Sector/Industry: IT
• Amount of employees: +-130
• Multinational? NO

3. CONTRACT & CONDITIONS

• Current job title: Automation QA engineer + stakeholder support
• Job description: Only tester within the team so all testing responsibilities are mine, creating and executing testcases, making an automation framework for multiple applications, provide support to different stakeholders, giving them demo's...
• Seniority: 3,5
• Official hours/week : 40
• Average real hours/week incl. overtime: 40
• Shiftwork or 9 to 5 (flexible?): flexible
• On-call duty: NO
• Vacation days/year: 20 + 12 ADV

4. SALARY

• Gross salary/month: 3300
• Net salary/month: +-2460 (incl net comp)
• Netto compensation: 225
• Car/bike/... or mobility budget: EV + charging card
• 13th month (full? partial?): full
• Meal vouchers: 8 EURO/DAY
• Ecocheques: 250 EURO/YEAR
• Group insurance: 3% Salary by employer
• Other insurances: Hospitalisatieverzekering
• Other benefits (bonuses, stocks options, ... ): Cafetariaplan

5. MOBILITY

• City/region of work: Ghent
• Distance home-work: 1h one-way
• How do you commute? By car
• How is the travel home-work compensated: Charging card
• Telework days/week: 3 days a week

6. OTHER

• How easily can you plan a day off: Very easy
• Is your job stressful? Sometimes
• Responsible for personnel (reports): No