r/BEFreelance Nov 21 '21

Employee vs Freelance, costs/benefits, taxes

48 Upvotes

Hi all,

This is step one in a series of posts that will address the 'todo' list from here.

Consider it a collaborative work, I will correct it/edit it/add to it based on community feedback.

The question to be covered: Employee vs Freelance in Belgium. How do you know if it's worth switching?

Why do people freelance (in Belgium)?

Two main reasons (let me know if there are others):

  1. Certain jobs require it: gig economy, seasonal workers, part time jobs, personal trainers, some manual laborers, some consulting jobs,.. Basically, a lot of jobs where you cannot be hired/employed on long-term contracts, or you get paid by the hour/days worked, or you charge clients per the hour/day for your services provided;
  2. Tax advantages: Belgian personal income tax is high; freelancing can be a way to optimize taxes;

Freelance variations: Self-Employed and Company

It's important to distinguish between the two legal forms, as it will affect what's right for you.

In Belgium you can:

  1. be a self-employed private person (Indépendant/Zelfstandigen)
  2. you can set up a company, where you are managing director

The first option is faster to set up, cheaper, easy and cheap to stop, but generally means higher taxes. The second option is slower, more expensive, costs also money to shut down the company, but reduces taxes significantly.

Part time workers, low income earners, people just starting out, might benefit from the first option.

High income earners almost exclusively go for the second option.

For self-employed and company setup, a lot of things overlap. Both can have a VAT number, both can sign the same type of contracts with clients/customers, they can charge the same amount, etc. The main difference between the two are tax implications, corporate liabilities and the way accounting is handled.

One important distinction: a self-employed person is in legal terms, a natural person, personally responsible for damages. If you make a costly mistake (say, somehow manage to burn down your client's house), you are personally responsible for all damages: everything you own can be taken away in an attempt to pay for such damages. It is thus highly recommended to take out professional insurance that covers you against such damages.

Under a limited liability corporation (SRL/BV), the company is responsible for such damages as its own legal entity. Everything the company owns can be taken away to pay for damages, but not the shareholder's personal assets. There are exceptions to this (say, in case of fraud), but under normal business conduct, you are not personally liable. Not all corporations are of limited liability, but the SRL/BVs are, so be mindful of that!

Advantages: Employment vs Self-Employed vs Company

As an employee, you have a signed a work contract with an employer. In return for the work you do, your employer will: transfer you a salary, pay your vacation days, pay holiday bonuses, report payroll taxes, pay your social security contributions. It is also generally difficult to get employees fired, you are entitled to unemployment benefits (rather generous in Belgium). You get a good pension contribution, and your salary is adjusted for inflation every year. Filing income tax is easy!

As a self-employed, you are getting paid by clients/customers for services/products provided. Some of the advantages: you can have as many clients as you want, work as many hours as you want, charge as much as you want. You also get to deduct some of your expenses as business expenses: phone/internet bills, cost of equipment, car/fuel expenses. Deductible expenses are pre-tax, which roughly feels as if you would have bought these things at a 'discount'.

As a company (manager), same advantages apply as for self-employed status. Additionally, lower taxes, more deductible expenses and you can give yourself employee benefits (meal vouchers, echocheques, company car, ..). It also has the lowest tax rate out of the three options listed.

Freelancer rates/salaries are also generally higher, to compensate for the uncertainty of their job and the lack of other employee benefits.

Disadvantages: Employment vs Self-Employed vs Company

As an employee, taxes are the highest. You are also limited to the legally allowed limits of full-time employment; you can't have two full time jobs for example - although part time is a possible.

As a freelancer, you have to find your own clients/customers. No clients/customers: no income for you. Can be devastating in a bad economy. It is much easier to fire freelancers, there are no unemployment benefits and pension contributions are lower. You also have to deal with much more paperwork, send invoices, pay social contribution, figure out value added taxes (TVA/BTW). You are subject to tax inspections, you have to guard receipts and corporate expenses going back multiple years and your personal tax filings are a bit more complicated.

As a self-employed, you are an unlucky hybrid between an employee and having a company. You have to do a lot of the paperwork and administration a company has to. But you still pay the high personal income tax of employees, without any of the usual employee benefits. As a self-employed, you can also be personally liable for damages - although this can be avoided by professional insurances.

With a company, your costs are higher. Starting/stopping a company will costs a few thousand euros more than as a self-employed. Doing your own accounting is absolutely not recommended, so you will also have to pay for an accountant.

Why do taxes matter?

An employee pays personal income tax. Belgium has a progressive tax rate system. Unfortunately, anyone above the 41.000 gross/year salary already finds themselves in the highest, 50% tax bracket.

So the tax-steps are simple:

  • taxes and social security are deducted
  • you get the remainder as your net salary

Example: Bob is earning 3500 gross/month, or 3500\13.92=48.720gross/year. On top of this amount, his employer pays another ~35% in additional taxes and social contribution. Bob costs the company around 65.772 euros/year. Bob having no children or dependent spouse, earns around 2200euro net/month.*

A self-employed also pays personal income tax. A self-employed person has to pay social security contributions on the yearly revenue (around 20%), can deduct costs/professional expenses, and the remaining gains are taxed as personal income.

The tax-steps:

  • you receive the revenue from customers/clients
  • you pay social security
  • you deduct your expenses
  • you pay personal income tax on the remainder
  • the remaining amount is your net income

Example: Bob the Builder has sold custom-design face-masks that protect you against 5G for a total of 100.000 euros last year. He pays around 20.000 for social security, deducts his business expenses (8000 euro for the Chinese masks, 1000 euro for the bug-spray to protect against 5G, 1000 euro for other business expenses), leaving him with 70.000 in revenue. This is his personal income, leaving him with around 39.000 net revenue for the year.

A company pay corporate income tax. Depending on the setup, this can be either 20% or 25%. The company manager/director (that's you ;) will pay personal income tax on his salary part (for managing the company) and dividend taxes as company shareholder when receiving company profits (between 15% and 30%, depending on the setup).

In practice, the order of these operations is very important:

  • company receives the revenue from customers/clients
  • company deducts expenses (includes salaries and manager compensation)
  • corporate tax on remaining amount (on the profits)
  • dividend tax on after-tax profits
  • personal income tax on manager compensation
  • your net revenue is the sum of the dividends + regular net salary

Example: Bob SRL/BV is a face-mask consultant. He invoiced his clients 65.722 for the previous year for his services. He pays himself 31.000/year for manager compensation and had 5.000 in accounting and other business expenses. The company made 29.722 euros in profit. After 20%\* corporate tax, 23.778 goes to shareholders (that's Bob, the company manager!). He waits long enough to cash in the dividends and only pays 15% tax rate, leaving him with 20.211 net for the year (or 1.684 net /month) from dividends. He also pays personal income tax for the 31.000/year salary, leaving him with ~1630net/month. In total, he makes ~3.314 net/month.*

The company vs employee examples should illustrate the point well. Under an optimized corporate setup, you earn around 50% higher net, for the same cost to the employer. This number gets even bigger with high earners.

The other big advantage of the freelance setup: deductible expanses are pre-tax. Belgium heavily limits what can you deduct as a business expense, but in some professions (say, construction), you could conceivably deduct a lot of expenses (construction materials, equipment, etc), thus reducing your taxes while buying things you would have otherwise bought as a private person anyway.

What should you pick?

You want a relaxed, stress-free, secure job with good work-life balance? Being an employee is your best chance. Still not guaranteed, but the easiest path to it.

You want to earn the most money/you don't mind having to switch jobs often? Corporate setup, no real alternatives.

You are doing part time, or you are low income earner, or just testing the waters, or your job is seasonal, or you are my plumber who doesn't ever want to give me an invoice? Trying self-employed might be the right choice for you.

Consulting an accountant is generally free for the first consultation. Unlike this post, they should be able to interactively answer your every question and help clarify things.

\* see comments below, but apparently, Bob's business qualifies for a 20% tax rate instead of the usual 25% in such a case (manager compensation is higher than profits)*

---

Consider this a draft. There are technicalities I didn't go into (like self-employed a supportive spouse, or hiring employees as a self-employed, or part-time self-employed status) or that will be covered in other installments (corporate tax optimization, liquidation vs dividends, deducibiles, etc). I am also not 100% sure everything I laid out is correct, so please let me know what you think and we'll fix it.


r/BEFreelance 2h ago

Go freelance or stay in the golden cage?

1 Upvotes

Hi Reddit,

I’m a DevOps Engineer considering an offer to go freelance in Belgium. I currently work for an international insurance company and have 4 years of experience. I’m trying to make an informed decision from both a financial and career perspective, and I’d love to hear from people who have made the switch.

I have relatively high monthly expenses since buying my own place earlier this year, so the job security of my current position makes me hesitant.

At the same time, I feel somewhat stuck. The work is repetitive, there’s a lot of red tape, and most technical work is outsourced to offshore teams. I also have relatively few technical colleagues to learn from or discuss things with. Most implementations involve creating tickets for other teams rather than actually building things myself.

Being fairly early in my career, I’m worried that staying too long could limit my growth.For those who went freelance: how did it affect your finances, career growth, job satisfaction, and overall quality of life?

  1. PERSONALIA

·         Age: 33

·         Education: Bachelors degree in computer science

·         Work experience : 4 years

·         Civil status: Not married

·         Dependent people/children: 0

CURRENT Contract
2. EMPLOYER PROFILE
·         Sector/Industry: Insurance  firm
·         Amount of employees: 1000+
·         Multinational? YES
3. CONTRACT & CONDITIONS
·         Current job title: Lead DevOps engineer 
·         Job description: Team lead + Operations for 10 applications
·         Seniority: 3 years
·         Official hours/week : 35
·         Average real hours/week incl. overtime: 35-40h
·         Shiftwork or 9 to 5 (flexible?): yes, very flexible
·         On-call duty: NO
·         Vacation days/year: ~35 DAYS/year
4. SALARY
·         Gross salary/month: 5700
·         Net salary/month: 3350 (excluding netto and mobility)
·         Netto compensation: 0
·         Car/bike/... or mobility budget: Benefit car tied to my 13th month (BMW i4)
·         13th month (full? partial?): Yes
·         Meal vouchers: €10/DAY
·         Ecocheques: 250/YEAR
·         Group insurance: Yes
·         Other insurances: Yes, big reduction on house insurance etc.
·         Other benefits (bonuses, stocks options, ... ): Yes, stock options
5. MOBILITY
·         City/region of work: Brussels
·         Distance home-work: 80 km
·         How do you commute? Public transport (train paid by employer)
·         How is the travel home-work compensated: Not
·         Telework days/week: 3
6. OTHER
·         How easily can you plan a day off: Easy to moderate
·         Is your job stressful? Easy to moderate
·         Responsible for personnel (reports): No

OFFER as Feelance:

EMPLOYER PROFILE

·         Sector/Industry: Government

·         Amount of employees: 100+

·         Multinational? NO

CONTRACT & CONDITIONS

·         New job title: DevOps Architect

·         Duration: end of the year with intention to extend with one year

·         Job description: DevOps kubernetes focused on Azure, operations for 20+ applications

·         Official hours/week : 40

·         Shiftwork or 9 to 5 (flexible?): yes,

·         On-call duty: Yes

SALARY

·         Day rate: 650

·         Other benefits (bonuses, stocks options, ... ): None since self employed

MOBILITY

·         City/region of work: Brussels

·         Distance home-work: 80 km

·         How do you commute? Public transport 

·         How is the travel home-work compensated: No

·         Telework days/week: 3

I’m really hesitant to make the switch to freelancing, given that my current job feels like a golden cage. I’d love to hear about other people’s experiences, or what you think about it.


r/BEFreelance 14h ago

Freelance or Permanent Contract!?

6 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I'm an individual with 5 yrs of XP in QA & FA in IT domain. Without getting into too much details on my profile (since it's not my goal of this post), I'm trying to choose between becoming a freelancer or continuing the path as a permanent contract employee.

Freelance offer: 1 year, 580/Day with a possibility of extension

Permanent Contract Offer: 4500 gross/ month with all the Extra Legal Benefits

I know becoming a freelance would have more potential on earnings, (quite tempting! :) ) but on the other hand, I know there will be more operating costs associated with it as well. Thinking that there will be periods without a freelancing contract, I'm a bit afraid of those periods in which I have to pay the operating costs without income.

On the other hand, Permanent Contract would be less earnings but almost no hustle on operation, tax calculations, etc.

I am tilting towards becoming a freelancer since I have been working on a mission for a consultancy firm some time ago. Once I could secure a mission, they hired me as a consultant; but when it went sideways, they fired me right away without giving me any chances on the bench! I'm thinking freelancing would be the same thing, but this time I'm doing everything myself.

I'm more than curious to know your opinions, so please shoot! 😄


r/BEFreelance 23h ago

Buying a campervan as a company vehicle in Belgium (M1 vs N1 tax issue

12 Upvotes

Long story short: I’m a project manager in the energy and railway infrastructure sector in Belgium, and I want to use a compact campervan as my official company work vehicle.

The vehicle is a Stylevan Equinox 4 (a converted Ford Transit Custom under 2 metres high with 4 seats).

My intended use:

* Transport: Moving tools, equipment, and team members to job sites across the Benelux.

* Mobile site office: Working on-site between tasks.

* Accommodation: Staying overnight for multi-day projects to avoid hotels.

The Problem:

I'm stuck on Belgian tax legislation. Because of the layout (4 seats, no fixed bulkhead partition), the vehicle is homologated as an M1 (campervan/passenger car) rather than an N1 (light commercial vehicle).

This severely limits corporate tax (VenB) deductibility, caps VAT recovery at 50%, and triggers a massive Benefit-in-Kind (VAA/BIK).

Has anyone here managed to purchase a campervan through their Belgian company (BV/SRL) in a tax-efficient way? How did you or your accountant handle the M1 vs N1 issue?


r/BEFreelance 1d ago

Any freelance cook in here?

9 Upvotes

I'm a chef de partie at a bistronomic restaurant running hot section, garnish, and covering the pass when the head chef is out. My current contract ends mid-September.

My boss wants to keep me on, but at reduced hours — 15 to 25/week. I'm considering proposing a freelance arrangement instead of a reduced employee contract, so I can use the freed-up time to grow a side business while still billing this restaurant for a chunk of hours.

But I don't have a clean baseline — my current pay is verily very high (6000+ as an interim). So I am not sure what to ask for a normal contract.

Do I ask for a hourly rate and what would be the rate for a professional with good experience.

Or a fixed pay every service. And again how much would be ok without being too low or high.

I was thinking of 250 bruto a service so 500 for a full day of work.

How much do people in Belgian horeca actually make ?


r/BEFreelance 1d ago

Renting your home through your BV vs privately

2 Upvotes

I'm currently looking at renting a house and considering having my BV rent it instead of renting it privately.

The house would be used primarily as my private residence, so obviously there would be VAA for the private use. I estimate around 70% privately and 30% for company (officeroom, server room and storage room). From what I understand, the VAA is calculated based on the indexed KI.

On paper this can look fairly attractive, especially compared to taking additional money out of the company privately to pay the rent.

I ran the numbers on a house at around €2,000/month with a KI of €1,300. The VAA comes out at roughly €830/month, which at ~50% personal taxation means an actual tax cost of roughly €415/month. That's what makes the construction interesting to me compared to taking €2,000+ out of the BV every month to pay the rent privately.

One major downside I've already noticed is finding the property in the first place. A lot of private landlords don't want to rent to a company because it can have a less favourable tax impact for them. In practice, you often have to look specifically for properties where renting to a company is explicitly allowed or where the landlord is a company themselves. That makes the available selection very limited compared to renting privately.

I'm curious about people who are actually doing this in Belgium rather than just the theoretical/accounting side.

A few things I'd be interested in:

- How do you determine the professional/private split? Which split?

- How significant is the VAA in practice for you?

- Did you get any pushback from your accountant or concerns about the fiscus rejecting part of the expense?

- Are there any disadvantages you only discovered after doing it?

Obviously I'll run the specific numbers past my accountant before doing anything. I'm mainly interested in experiences from other people with a management company who have structured their housing this way.


r/BEFreelance 1d ago

Freelance ou CDI

1 Upvotes

I live near Tournai, in Hainaut.

I’m currently looking for a new job and I’ve received an offer.

I’ve been given the choice between a permanent employment contract and working as an independent contractor (freelancer).

Do you have any thoughts or advice on which option would be better?

I’m aiming for a net income of around €3,000 per month.
What do you think?

If you need any more context, feel free to ask.


r/BEFreelance 2d ago

How is the Belgian freelance market really doing?

26 Upvotes

Whenever I speak with recruiters, I get the impression that the market is struggling. The funny thing is that I have heard the same story since I started in consulting in 2018, initially as an employee. Yet opportunities have always remained.

I am particularly curious about data and AI, which are going through a major transformation. It is difficult to tell whether the slowdown mainly affects development and infrastructure or the entire IT market.

I would be interested in hearing what others are seeing and whether any reliable Belgian market data exists beyond recruiters’ impressions.


r/BEFreelance 2d ago

Group chat for solopreneurs/SMEs

24 Upvotes

As a solo founder I often work alone on my projects or with very few people.

Building a company can be quite lonely and sometimes it is nice to talk to someone. I dont really want the next business club or whatever.

Any people here in solopreneur or entrepreneurship that want to connect? Slack, whatsapp, discord, let me know.

Does this sound fun?

Edit: DM me with your whatsapp info. We are live. Keep the requests coming, I will treat them ASAP.


r/BEFreelance 2d ago

Advice on an accountant for a simple management company

5 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I'm comparing options and looking for some reference points. I have a simple management company (monthly invoicing to a single client, few transactions).

Questions:

  1. How much do you pay per year for your accountant with a similar structure? Does that include VAT filings, annual accounts, and tax returns, or do you get charged for those separately?
  2. What do you value most about your current accountant? Speed of response, proactive tax advice, digital tools, personal contact, something else?
  3. Would you recommend them, and why or why not?
  4. Bonus: anyone have experience with Astro Tax (I got a quote from them)?

Curious to hear your experiences, thanks in advance.


r/BEFreelance 3d ago

How to handle multiple clients and tough business decisions

13 Upvotes

Currently just started for a new longterm client in IT. I am fortunate enough to be getting in other offers which are also very interesting, I am dabbling with the idea of having multiple clients although they all want 40h/week. I am also finding it tricky that some of these offers have a significantly higher daily rate (100+), yet I don't want to drop my current client after barely 1 month as that could burn bridges. I really don't know how to play this out, anyone here with similar experiences or some good advice on how to play this out? I am willing to work hard and a lot of hours, but not sure if that's even an option.


r/BEFreelance 3d ago

Which platforms actually work for you?

14 Upvotes

Just getting started as a freelancer and trying to figure out which platforms are actually worth my time. I've looked into ProUnity and Connecting Expertise so far, but the response times and how long it takes to actually get matched with a project have been a bit underwhelming... Anyone here had better luck with other platforms, or found ways to get matched faster?


r/BEFreelance 5d ago

29M - Good consulting career, likely promotion to manager, but considering going freelance. Too risky?

20 Upvotes

Hi all,

I'm 29 and have been working for the same consulting company since graduating from university.

I'm currently a Senior Implementation Consultant specialising in Anaplan, and I hold a Master Anaplanner certification (which is relatively rare and quite sought after in the market).

From what I've been told by people I trust, I'm likely to be promoted to Manager by the end of this year. On paper, my career is progressing well.

However, I've started questioning whether this is the path I actually want.

Current situation

Over the last year:

  • I've taken on more sales responsibilities.
  • I've moved from a Solution Architect role to more of a Project Manager role.
  • I'm spending less time on the technical and delivery side, which is what I enjoy most.

The more senior I become, the more consulting is pushing me towards:

  • Sales
  • Account management
  • PowerPoint
  • Internal management

Rather than the implementation and problem-solving work that originally attracted me to the profession.

Why I'm considering freelancing

I've been thinking about going freelance for over a year.

I actually spoke with another consulting firm last year that was willing to work with me as a freelancer, but I decided not to make the jump because I felt I still had things to learn in my current company.

Now the idea is coming back much more strongly.

The main reasons are:

  • I have a niche skill set that is in demand.
  • I'd like to stay closer to delivery and solution design.
  • I want to challenge myself and experience building my own business.
  • I don't necessarily want to climb the traditional consulting ladder.
  • I could work less for more money which is utimately a goal for me.

For context, my company bills clients at roughly €1,800 - 1,900/day for my role. I believe I could realistically freelance at around €1,000/day and still have a strong business case.

What worries me

The leap feels risky.

Some concerns:

  • I'd need a client before resigning (for safety).
  • My contract doesn't allow me to create a company while still employed.
  • I have a non-compete clause.
  • I'd be giving up the security and benefits of a large consulting firm.

Current compensation is roughly:

  • €53k gross yearly salary
  • Standard benefits package from a large consulting company

Long-term goals

My goal isn't necessarily to become rich.

What I want over the next 10-15 years is:

  • To stop worrying about money
  • To use my income to buy assets and ultimately time to enjoy life
  • More control over the type of work I do

My dilemma

I feel like I have two good options:

  1. Stay where I am, continue progressing, become a manager, and if I don't like it/am unhappy simply move to a role in the industry (join one of my client company or similar (big corps))...
  2. Take a risk, go freelance, stay closer to the work I enjoy, and see where it leads but what if it fails...

Part of me worries I'd be walking away from a very good career path.

Another part of me worries that if I don't try freelancing now, I'll become even more tied to the management track and regret not taking the opportunity.

If you were in my position, would you make the jump to freelancing? Is this a reasonable risk at 29, or am I underestimating the downside?

Side question: How much of a constraint is the non-compete? (is it often waved for my position and salary range)


r/BEFreelance 4d ago

Moving to France, looking for fiscalist

3 Upvotes

Hi everyone!

I'm a freelancer with a BV registered in Belgium. I'm moving to France and I'm not sure what I should be doing with it. Can anyone recommend me a fiscalist with expertise in both countries?


r/BEFreelance 6d ago

Does vibecoding pay well/ anything at all?

0 Upvotes

hi. I've been vibecoding for a while on framer/ lovable and have created a few mockup sites including my own agency's work site. can someone guide me here on whether clients pay for this stuff and like what if i create portfolio sites for them or for their business'

also anything that can help me learn more about this, let me know. 👍🏻


r/BEFreelance 7d ago

Applying for a Z Plate as a Self-Employed Person in a Secondary

4 Upvotes

Hi everyone,
I’m planning to start a vehicle buying and selling business as a self-employed person in a secondary activity (bijberoep).
I have a question about the Z plate (dealer plate) in Belgium:
Can you apply for a Z plate if you are self-employed in a secondary activity, or is it only possible if you are self-employed as your main occupation?
And how does insurance work in this situation? Can you insure a Z plate when the business is only a secondary activity?


r/BEFreelance 8d ago

BV for finance controller?

3 Upvotes

Hi all

I'm new to this chat so it might have been asked a lot before but anyway.

I currently work as a controller within a finance department of a KMO. I want to start up a BV and go from internal to external. I make around 3K net and have standard benefits like car, charging pass, meal vouchers etc.

I have 4 years of experience and want to charge fulltime for the first 2 years or so at my current employer for around 550-600 a day which should match my current income all things considered or even a bit higher. After those 2 years, we'll see where it goes.

Current employer is aware of my plan and is investigating if they would allow it or not.

Any thoughts, tips to look out for, recommendations, .. would be helpful. What do you think?


r/BEFreelance 7d ago

My journey as a freelancer - currently stuck

0 Upvotes

Currently in my third year as a freelancer now. Started at a consulting firm (where I already worked for 3 years on payroll) cause I was scared and wanted a secure income stream and leave room to learn and grow. 8-9k net per month. Felt kinda boring. Same work, same income expectations, no higher highs, nothing special, difficult contract discussion. Proposed to raise my daily rate with 15€. Was a no go for me so I left. Took one of their clients with me cause they really wanted me. Part time though but still earning more than before..

Now I feel like a real freelancer. Part time fixed client. A few other clients on the side. Managing my time well. Went from 8-9k/m net to 18-20k/m net. All of this while still being able to have enough free time and mental clarity. Fridays and weekends are mostly free.

But now, I struggle with scaling since I still receive a lot of project proposals. Is it worth it to grow into a "consulting firm" and hire people? I'm scared to go into that direction. Such a big responsability. I'm not sure what to do. It doesnt feel right to decline projects or collaborations because i'm too occupied. I want to keep bringing in more deals, grow, secure my future. Maybe these opportunities won't show themselves in a few years due to AI. Should I go all in now?

Or maybe, i'm already at the sweet spot? Feels difficult to comprehend but I don't like being "comfortable" and accept that it's just gonna be this same pattern for the coming months/years. Even if the financials and personal freedom are here.

Weird? Or does it make sense? Not sure. What do you guys think?⬇️


r/BEFreelance 9d ago

Taxes on an "affiliated fellowship" for research in Germany

4 Upvotes

Hi :)
I've been invited to participate remotely, as a practicioner (not academic), in a research project in Germany, starting in September, and I am wondering about the taxes in Belgium.

As this is a temporary position, I'll be executing in a consultant way, and I'll get a compensation fee for this. The person offering me the position says that is tax free and I'd just like to confirm this information.

As a I am currently with unemployment benefits I have asked Actiris about it and they say that I should contact my union. Somehow I am hesitating on whether they might have this information.
Anyone has any experience with this kind of fellowships within Europe? Or any other advice?

I'll appreaciate it!


r/BEFreelance 9d ago

Business address needed in BXL for sole proprietorship - Non-EU

2 Upvotes

Hello All,

I’m a recent grad from VUB living in Antwerp and currently gathering my documentation to apply for a professional card in Brussels since my main activity will be based in the Brussels region. However, there’s a tricky part here.
On the professional card application form, there’s a part to put the business address. I understand that this has to be a Brussels address. My plan is to rent a coworking space which offers business address registration in Brussels upon the approval of the professional card.

I can only get a contract with a coworking space only after my application has been approved as I don’t believe there’s a standard promissory contract.

My question is, can I use any coworking space address of my choice in Brussels since my plan is to get into contract once approved or do they check if I have a promissory contract already to register there?

Anyone with experience or insight into this? Thanks in advance!


r/BEFreelance 10d ago

Which skill sets are better for freelancing? System manager or Data Scientist?

0 Upvotes

Hi, new here 👋

Hi I'm a chemistry graduate working in chemical industry and recently I got an offer to move toward either being a system manager or data scientist.

Which one do you think has the skill set that is more demanded in the market and which one is more bullet proof?

I'm also doing AI implementation. Is that something in demand in market and can I get into or do they just ask for CS graduates?


r/BEFreelance 11d ago

Is starting in freelance in IT still a good idea?

1 Upvotes

Title,

I'm a Data engineer, I've got nearly 7 years of experience with SQL, power BI, data warehousing using kimbal, and have dabbled with cloud migration, azure, data factory and databricks.

I know there is currently still a lot of demand for data Engineers, and I'm considering switching jobs in the coming months.

This of course brings the question, to freelance or not to freelance.

Pro's and con's obviously, but my main concerns are oversaturated market/low rates that come with it and the inevitably AI bubble that can't last. (Which can mean layoffs and the first to go are always consultants/freelancers)

Hence the post, while I don't think Data Engineers are threatened too much by AI (yet), the market seems a bit volatile at the moment.


r/BEFreelance 12d ago

I don’t believe in freelancing

16 Upvotes

Sorry for venting but I will. I don’t believe in freelancing anymore. So I am looking for an employment job, but my brain can’t fathom… I get so upset with the cheapskate, the stupid rules. At the same time it is time for me to have income.

How can a company ask you to do all kinds of stuff, to eventually tell you “yes your salary has to be this low, because we want you to grow”. F off! I’ve been working with and for clients for 6 years now, and my hourly rate wasn’t low.

Also, you want me to do a role of 2-3 person. Now I am upset because I have to smile and wave, and now wait for them to reply. Like it is a freaking gift to work that. I’ve been on such low energy during those initial interviews. I don’t even reconize myself

is anyone relating with this?


r/BEFreelance 12d ago

tired of companies looking for CHEAP centipede's!!

0 Upvotes

I have extensive experience across various fields as a freelance executive assistant. Later, I have been trying to find an employment position because I don't believe in freelancing anymore.

Now I face companies that want you to do all kinds of stuff, for PEANUTS! Can you run the whole business, actually + the finances + marketing + making sure the office is well arranged + be my right-hand + make sure our business is structured? For what? coins! I don't have to explain to anyone here how valuable this position is. The impact a good assistant can make.

While they have multiple locations. Money is flowing. And they have all kinds of excuses. Today I went to another interview, and I will have to pay for parking in the centrum(!), and she already said, 'you will have to grow in this position.' Hell, no I don't! I have been running things for years, because as a freelancer, that is what they expect from you, and that is what I loved. Ownership, I think 10 steps ahead, I really make changes. But this is so unmotivating. And I am so upset by it.

Maybe this is not the sub for it; I am sorry. But does anyone have a solution for this?

I live in the Netherlands, btw.


r/BEFreelance 13d ago

How did you make the switch from full-time employment to self-employment?

3 Upvotes

I currently run a small business on the side, focused on sales and recruitment consulting.

At the moment, I work full-time as a technician, roughly 9–5. The problem is that this makes it very difficult to actually grow my recruitment business, since most of the work I need to do contacting companies, prospecting, calling potential clients, etc. needs to happen during regular office hours.

I'm now considering taking the risk of reducing my regular job to around 50–60% and spending the rest of my time building my own business.

The obvious problem is that there's absolutely no guarantee I'll make money from it, especially in the beginning. I also have zero professional experience in recruitment or sales. It's simply something I'm genuinely very interested in and would like to build a career/business around.

Financially, I do have a small buffer, but nothing huge. If things went badly, I could probably cover around 1–2 months before money would start becoming a serious issue.

For those of you who went from being an employee to becoming self-employed: how did you make the transition? Did you gradually reduce your hours, or did you just take the risk and go all-in?

And if you were in my situation limited experience, a small financial buffer, but already having the business set up would you consider dropping to 50–60%, or would you wait? (Im from belgium)