At a glance
If your employer outside the EU transfers you to a related business in Belgium, the intra-corporate transferee (ICT) permit may apply. It covers eligible managers, specialists, and paid trainees. You must remain employed by the business outside the EU throughout the transfer.
- Roles
- Managers, specialists, and trainee employees
- Employer
- Transfer must be within the same company group
- Employment
- Remain employed by the company outside the EU throughout the Belgian assignment
Summary
Belgium's transfer permit allows a company outside the EU to assign an eligible manager, specialist or paid trainee to a related Belgian business. The worker keeps the foreign employment relationship throughout the assignment. Prior service within the company group, role-specific qualifications and regional pay rules must also be met.
The Belgian host submits the combined work and residence application. This differs from hiring someone onto a Belgian employment contract or supplying a consultant to an unrelated client. The overall stay is capped at three years for managers and specialists or one year for trainees; a move into ordinary Belgian employment needs the appropriate separate permission.
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Prove the corporate-group connection Confirm that the foreign employer and Belgian host are genuinely linked.
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Document the manager, specialist, or trainee role Check the region’s pay, prior-employment, and qualification requirements.
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Host files the combined ICT application For a direct Belgian filing, follow the requirement to remain outside the EU.
This is a temporary intra-group transfer, not a local Belgian hire or an assignment between unrelated companies.
Eligibility
A direct ICT case generally requires:
- A non-EU national residing outside the EU at filing.
- Continuing employment with a company established outside the EU.
- A transfer to a Belgian entity in the same undertaking or corporate group.
- A role as manager, specialist, or paid trainee employee.
- The required prior group employment, qualifications, experience, assignment letter, and pay under the relevant region's rules.
- Federal residence documents, including passport, fee, police record where required, medical certificate, and insurance.
A trainee employee must have a university degree and be transferred for career development or training in business techniques or methods. A specialist must show the specific group knowledge and high-level qualifications or professional experience required by the rules.
Regional salary thresholds differ. For example, Brussels publishes 2026 gross monthly minima of €5,460.20 for an ICT manager, €4,510.60 for an ICT expert, and €2,611.40 for an ICT trainee. These are Brussels figures, not national amounts.
More about this route
For a direct transfer to Belgium, the worker must reside and be outside the EU when the application is made. The Belgian host and foreign employer must be genuinely linked, and the Belgian entity must not have been created mainly to facilitate ICT admissions.
The maximum total transfer is three years for a manager or specialist and one year for a trainee employee. This is an intentional temporary limit, not a normal renewable career permit.
What This Route Allows
The ICT permit authorizes temporary Belgian residence and work for the approved intra-group assignment. A direct transferee receives an I card after the visa and commune registration process.
An ICT permit issued by another participating Member State can support short-term mobility in Belgium of up to 90 days under the applicable rules, or long-term mobility of more than 90 days through a Belgian application and J card. The worker may work only for an entity within the same group.
What This Route Is Not
This is not a local Belgian hire, an open work permit, a consulting assignment between unrelated companies, or a route that transfers the employment contract to Belgium. The worker must remain bound to the non-EU employer.
It is not designed for settlement: the three-year or one-year total cap applies. A person moving into ordinary Belgian employment generally needs the employer to secure a different Single Permit or Blue Card before that work begins.
Next Steps
- Confirm that the foreign employer and Belgian host are legally within the same undertaking or group.
- Classify the worker as manager, specialist, or paid trainee and gather evidence meeting that definition.
- Identify the region responsible for the application and verify prior-employment, pay, qualification, and document requirements.
- Keep the worker outside the EU for a direct Belgian ICT filing; do not enter early expecting to convert in Belgium.
- Have the host submit the combined application and wait for authorization before the assignment starts.
- After approval, obtain the D visa and register with the commune within eight working days.
- Track the EU-wide maximum transfer duration and plan either departure or an independently approved new status before it is reached.
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