The Law of 15 December 1980 on the access to the territory, residence, settlement and removal of foreigners establishes the legal framework for the residence of Union citizens and their families. The Royal Decree of 8 October 1981 specifies the procedures for implementing this law – particularly Articles 42 and following, relating to the registration certificate (known as 'Annex 19' for EU citizens, Swiss nationals, and their family members).

The procedure for acquiring Belgian nationality is expected to become significantly more expensive. The current administrative fee of €150 will be raised to €1,000, with annual indexation to follow. While this increase was initially announced for July 1, 2025, the measure is part of a draft programme law submitted on May 27, which still needs to be approved and published in the Belgian Official Gazette before it takes effect.

Since the re-election of Donald Trump, the United States has experienced an increasingly politically polarized climate, with decrees, regulations and laws gradually limiting many individual freedoms. This situation has led many Americans, including environmentalists, researchers, Democrats and members of the LGBTQ+ community, to consider moving to Europe.

Transmission of the family name has long been perceived as the indisputable legacy of the father. The Belgian Civil Code thus restricted the choices as to transmission of the surname, making transmission of the father's name the rule, and transmission of the mother's name the exception (mainly when there was no legal father). In response to modern society's quest for better gender equality and greater international mobility in regard to the transmission of names, people's rights to naming children have evolved.

The loss of Belgian citizenship often feels like a real injustice, with former Belgians feeling dispossessed of part of their identity. These former Belgians can try to get their nationality back via the recovery procedure. However, the impact of such a procedure is limited since it only applies to the individual person and, for the moment, does not have an automatic retroactive effect, which can have significant consequences, especially for the nationality of any children.

Before the reforms of the Belgian Nationality Code in 2000 and 2012, obtaining nationality included a morality and personality investigation. These investigations, conducted by police officers, intended to assess the integration of candidates for Belgian nationality. Among the criteria assessed were language proficiency, participation in social life, but also more personal, sometimes intrusive aspects, including questions about knowledge of traditional Belgian dishes. These investigations, perceived as disconnected from genuine integration efforts, were widely criticized for their excessive and inappropriate subjective nature.

The European Union is soon set to implement two new border control systems, ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorization System) and EES (Entry/Exit System), aimed at enhancing security and simplifying border checks.

Obtaining long-term resident status in Belgium is possible under certain cumulative conditions: the applicant must be a national of a non-EU country, have stable, sufficient, and regular resources, be covered by health insurance, not be a threat to public order or national security, and provide proof of five years of legal and uninterrupted residence in Belgium.

1. Country overview

The year 2022 was marked by the asylum reception crisis. For months, the Belgian government has been failing to comply with its legal obligations regarding the reception of asylum-seekers.

Sign the petition: https://dekamer.mijnopinie.belgium.be/initiatives/839

As a rule, reacquisition of Belgian citizenship is required to be done on Belgian soil, after one year of residence in Belgium and provided that one has an unlimited residence permit in Belgium at the time of their application (Article 24 of the Belgian Nationality Code).