What the law calls a fixed-term contract
A fixed-term contract sets its own end date when it is signed, either through a precise date or through an event that is certain to happen. The Employment Contracts Act of 3 July 1978 attaches a condition to it that still catches employers out: the written contract must exist at the latest by the time the employee starts work.
No document on that day, or one signed the morning after the first shift, and the contract counts as concluded for an indefinite period. The employee then enjoys the more protective regime, with the notice periods and severance rules that come with it.
Two related formats sit next to the classic fixed-term contract. A contract for clearly defined work ends once the assignment is complete, with no calendar date. A replacement contract covers the absence of an employee whose own contract is suspended, for long-term illness or parental leave for instance.
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A written contract signed by both parties, at the latest on the first working day
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A clear end point, known at signature, with no vague wording
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The same pay scales, bonuses and benefits as a permanent colleague in the same role
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One copy handed to the employee, the other kept in the personnel file
A verbal fixed-term contract does not exist under Belgian law. If the contract has not arrived from your payroll office on the morning the employee starts, have a short document signed covering at least the parties, the role and the end date.
Duration, renewal and successive contracts
The law sets no minimum and no maximum for a single fixed-term contract. Three weeks is valid, three years is valid too. What is regulated is the chain: signing one contract after another amounts, in the eyes of the legislator, to sidestepping the protection of a permanent contract.
The starting point is therefore a ban on successive contracts, softened by two narrowly drawn exceptions. Outside those frameworks the employer has to show that each renewal was justified by the nature of the work or another legitimate reason, an argument that rarely convinces a labour court.
Watch the silence at the end of the term as well. If the employee keeps working and nobody says anything, the relationship continues on the same conditions, but for an indefinite period.
Successive contracts: what the law allows
| Situation |
Number of contracts |
Total duration |
Condition |
| A single contract |
One |
Free |
Written contract before the start date |
| First exception |
Four at most |
Two years at most |
Each contract of at least three months |
| Second exception |
No cap |
Three years at most |
Prior authorisation from the Labour Inspectorate, contracts of at least six months |
| Outside the exceptions |
Successive |
No legal framework |
Employer must prove the justification, otherwise permanent contract |
A break of a few days between two contracts does not undo the chain when the employer caused it. School holidays and collective shutdowns do not reset the counter.
Ending a contract before its term
A fixed-term contract ends on its own on the agreed date. No notice, no severance, nothing beyond the final pay slip and the usual social documents. That is its main appeal for an employer.
Before the term, the picture changes. Since the single employment status came into force in 2014, either party may give notice during the first half of the contract, capped at six months, using the notice periods that apply to permanent contracts. After that window, early termination costs the salary still due until the end date, capped at twice the severance pay that a permanent contract would have triggered.
Two doors stay open at any time. Termination by mutual consent, which you put in writing and negotiate. And serious cause, which requires misconduct making the working relationship immediately impossible, within a strict procedure: notification within three working days, reasons given within the following three days.
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Normal end on the agreed date: no notice, final settlement and social documents
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Termination during the first half, six months at most: permanent contract notice periods
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Termination after that window: remaining salary, capped at twice the severance pay
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Mutual consent: possible at any time, always in writing
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Serious cause: notification within three working days, reasons within the following three days
Notice periods when ending the contract during its first half
| Length of service at notification |
Notice from the employer |
Notice from the employee |
| Under 3 months |
1 week |
1 week |
| 3 to under 4 months |
3 weeks |
2 weeks |
| 4 to under 5 months |
4 weeks |
2 weeks |
| 5 to under 6 months |
5 weeks |
2 weeks |
| 6 to under 9 months |
6 weeks |
3 weeks |
| 9 to under 12 months |
7 weeks |
3 weeks |
The first half is counted in calendar days from the start of the contract. On a ten-month contract the window therefore closes in the fifth month, not the sixth.
What a fixed-term contract costs an employer
On the contributions side, a fixed-term contract is no cheaper. Same employer social security contributions, same accident at work insurance, same occupational health service, same meal vouchers where your joint committee provides for them. The principle of non-discrimination also forbids paying someone less purely because their contract carries an end date.
Two items deserve attention all the same. The first is departure holiday pay. When the contract ends you pay a white-collar employee roughly 15.34 percent of the gross salary earned, single and double holiday pay combined. That amount lands in one go on the final settlement, whereas a permanent contract spreads it over the following year.
The second is the cost of turning the role over. Recruiting, training and settling someone in takes time every single round. Three four-month contracts in the same position often work out dearer than one permanent hire, once you add up the learning curves and the disruption the team absorbs.
The Novadesko employer cost calculator gives you the full annual budget for a role: employer contributions, thirteenth month, double holiday pay, meal vouchers and payroll office fees. Run two simulations, one at the gross salary you have in mind for the fixed-term role and one at the permanent salary, before you draft the offer.
Set the departure holiday pay aside from the day you sign. It is the classic last-month surprise, especially on a contract that starts in January and runs to December.
Fixed-term or permanent: how to decide
A fixed-term contract makes sense when the end of the need is predictable: a seasonal peak, a bounded project, a replacement, a grant awarded for twelve months. You know the exit date, you budget for it, the matter is settled.
A permanent contract wins as soon as the need is structural. It reassures the candidate, which weighs heavily in shortage occupations, and it opens the door to hiring incentives that a short contract cannot always unlock.
One practical point matters more than small employers expect. A recent permanent contract is cheap to end: during the first months notice is counted in weeks. A fixed-term contract broken late is paid out to its term. So the fixed-term route is not always the more flexible one, whatever its reputation suggests.
Fixed-term and permanent side by side
| Criterion |
Fixed-term |
Permanent |
| End of the contract |
Date known at signature |
Notice or severance pay |
| Written contract |
Required before the start date |
Not required |
| Early termination |
Notice during the first half, remaining salary afterwards |
Notice based on length of service |
| Employer contributions |
Identical |
Identical |
| Holiday pay |
Departure holiday pay on the final settlement |
Double holiday pay every spring |
| Effect on recruitment |
A brake in shortage occupations |
An argument that attracts |
Candidates compare too. At equal pay, a permanent contract with one week of notice in the first three months often looks better than a six-month fixed-term offer.
The mistakes that create a permanent contract
Reclassification as a permanent contract remains the number one risk, and it is almost always triggered by paperwork rather than by the substance of the case.
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Contract signed after the employee started, or never signed at all
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A blurred end point, replaced by wording such as until the site is finished
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Contracts chained outside the legal exceptions, with no justification you can prove
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Work continuing past the end date with no new contract
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A trial period written into the contract even though it disappeared in 2014, apart from student contracts, agency work and flexi-jobs
A void clause does not bring the whole contract down, but it weakens your position in a dispute. Have your templates reviewed by your payroll office rather than copying a contract found online.
Keeping payroll costs under control
A fixed-term hire leaves regular traces in your books: monthly statements from the payroll office, a provision for the year-end bonus in proportion to the months worked, departure holiday pay on the final settlement. Those entries belong with your purchases, with the supporting document attached.
In Novadesko these amounts sit next to your invoiced revenue and your cash forecast. Month after month you see what the role consumes and what it brings in, without a spreadsheet running alongside.
One habit pays off near the end of a contract: put the date in your cash forecast. The final settlement weighs more than the previous ones and often lands in the same month as a VAT payment.
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Record every payroll statement as a purchase, supporting document included
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Provision the year-end bonus in proportion to the months worked
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Mark the end date and the departure holiday pay in your cash forecast
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Compare payroll costs with the revenue collected, not the revenue invoiced
Frequently asked questions
Can a fixed-term contract be ended before its term?
Yes, under precise conditions. During the first half of the contract, and for six months at most, either party may give notice using the periods that apply to a permanent contract. After that window, early termination costs the salary due until the end date, capped at twice the severance pay a permanent contract would have triggered. Mutual consent and serious cause remain available at any time.
How many successive fixed-term contracts are allowed in Belgium?
The general rule bans successive contracts. Two exceptions exist: four contracts of at least three months over a maximum of two years, or, with prior authorisation from the Labour Inspectorate, contracts of at least six months over a maximum of three years. Outside those frameworks the employer must prove the renewal was justified, failing which the relationship becomes a permanent contract.
Is a fixed-term contract cheaper than a permanent one?
No. Employer contributions, accident at work insurance and the benefits set by your joint committee are identical. A fixed-term contract even adds departure holiday pay of roughly 15.34 percent of the gross salary earned, paid in one go on the final settlement. The employer cost calculator gives you the full annual budget for both scenarios.
What happens if the contract is not signed before the first working day?
The contract is deemed concluded for an indefinite period. The employee can then rely on permanent contract rules, notably on notice and severance pay. A contract signed the day after the employee started is enough to trigger that outcome, even when everyone acted in good faith.
Is a trial period still possible?
No, trial periods disappeared from ordinary employment contracts in 2014. They survive only for student contracts, agency work and flexi-jobs. The very short notice periods of the first months now play the role they used to.
Do you have to give notice when the contract reaches its end date?
No. The contract expires by itself on the agreed date. You hand over the final settlement and the social documents, including the C4 form, and the collaboration stops there. Be careful though: if the employee keeps working after that date with no new contract, the relationship becomes permanent.
Can the employee claim unemployment benefits afterwards?
They may open a right to benefits if they have enough working days within the reference period used by the national employment office, which depends on their age and their track record. Your role as employer stops at issuing a correct C4 on time. The rest is settled between the employee, their payment body and the employment office.
How do you calculate the employer cost of a six-month contract?
Start from the monthly gross salary, add employer contributions, the pro rata share of the year-end bonus, meal vouchers and departure holiday pay. The Novadesko employer cost calculator does that item by item and shows the annual total: divide the result by two for a six-month contract.
Read next
This guide summarises Belgian employment law for information only. Notice periods, thresholds and exceptions also depend on your joint committee: have every contract checked by your payroll office before you sign it.
