Retired in Belgium in 2026: how much can you earn on top of your pension, with or without a flexi-job?
In short
In 2026, you can earn without limit on top of your retirement pension from 1 January of the year you reach the statutory retirement age (65, 66 or 67, depending on your year of birth) or if you have a 45-year career; there is also no limit with a transitional allowance. Otherwise, with an early retirement pension, your earned income may not exceed €10,432 gross a year (€15,648 with a dependent child), including at most €8,121 from a flexi-job; with a survivor’s pension only, the limit is €24,289 gross a year before the statutory retirement age. Above the limit, your pension is cut by the same percentage as the excess, and by half that percentage for the flexi limit. With a statutory retirement or survivor’s pension, your flexi income is tax-free, whatever the amount.
When can you earn without limit?
With a retirement pension, your earned income is unlimited from 1 January of the year in which you reach the statutory retirement age, even if your birthday falls late in that year. The same applies if you had a career of at least 45 years when your first Belgian pension started: years of at least 104 days if your pension starts before 1 January 2027, of at least 156 days if it starts on or after that date. With a transitional allowance, you can also earn without limit. In these three cases, you do not have to declare your work to the Federal Pensions Service.
| Your year of birth | Your statutory retirement age | Unlimited income (retirement pension) from |
|---|---|---|
| Before 1960 | 65 | 1 January of the year you turn 65 (already the case in 2026) |
| 1960 | 66 | 1 January 2026 |
| 1961 | 66 | 1 January 2027 |
| 1962 | 66 | 1 January 2028 |
| 1963 | 66 | 1 January 2029 |
| 1964 or later | 67 | 1 January of the year you turn 67 (2031 if you were born in 1964) |
What are the limits in 2026 if there is no unlimited income?
| Your situation in 2026 | Limit on earned income per year |
|---|---|
| Retirement pension before the statutory retirement age, career under 45 years, no dependent child | €10,432 gross, including at most €8,121 from a flexi-job |
| Same situation, with one or more dependent children | €15,648 gross, including at most €8,121 from a flexi-job |
| Same situation, working as self-employed | €8,346 net (€12,519 net with a dependent child) |
| Survivor’s pension only, before the statutory retirement age, no dependent child | €24,289 gross |
| Survivor’s pension only, before the statutory retirement age, with dependent children | €36,434 gross with one child, plus €6,072 for each additional child |
| Survivor’s pension only, statutory retirement age reached, no dependent child | €30,132 gross |
| Survivor’s pension only, statutory retirement age reached, with dependent children | €36,652 gross |
These amounts are for a full calendar year. In the year your pension starts, only income from work done from that start date counts, and the limit follows the number of months of pension: for a pension starting on 1 May 2026, €10,432 × 8/12 = €6,954.67, and €8,121 × 8/12 = €5,414 of flexi income. For salaried work, what counts is your gross income, before social security contributions and tax, even if it is tax-free like flexi pay, single holiday pay included, in the year it is paid. You have a dependent child in particular if you receive child benefit for that child; only one of the two spouses may use the higher limit. Spouse of someone receiving a household rate pension, GIEP, civil servant with an extra guaranteed minimum allowance, special schemes: other rules apply, check with the Federal Pensions Service.
What happens if you go over the limit?
Your pension is cut by the same percentage as the excess: 35% over the limit means 35% less pension; at 100% or more, it is suspended. Example: early retirement pension of €20,000 gross a year, no dependent child, and €11,475.20 of gross wages in 2026. You are 10% over the €10,432 limit: your pension drops by 10%, or €2,000 over the year, for €1,043.20 earned above the limit.
Flexi income is checked in two steps. First, all your income, flexi included, against the general limit. Then your flexi income alone against the €8,121 limit: if it is higher, your pension (already reduced where needed) drops by half the percentage of the excess. With the same €20,000 pension, €9,745.20 of flexi income and no other income: the general limit is respected, the flexi limit is exceeded by 20%, and your pension drops by 10%, or €2,000.
And a flexi-job when you are retired?
You do not need to have worked 4/5: with a statutory retirement pension (early retirement included) or a survivor’s pension, you can take a flexi-job without the quarter T-3 condition, from the quarter in which your pension starts. In that quarter, not with the employer you worked for before your pension; with that employer, it is allowed from the next quarter. Your flexi income is fully tax-free, without the €18,440 cap that applies to people who are not retired, and you do not enter it in your tax return. A transitional allowance does not count as a pension for flexi-jobs: the 4/5 condition and the €18,440 cap then apply.
To do: if your income is not unlimited, declare your work within 30 days of starting it (form ‘model 74’ if you are already retired), to the Federal Pensions Service, or to the NISSE (INASTI) if you only receive a self-employed pension. Think about tax too: the tax withheld from your pension does not take your other income into account, so an ordinary salaried job may lead to extra tax to pay; you can ask for more tax to be withheld from your pension. Your statutory retirement age and your earliest possible pension date are on mypension.be.
Related questions
Retired: how much can I earn from a flexi-job in 2026?
No limit from 1 January of the year you reach the statutory retirement age, or with a 45-year career. With an early retirement pension and no 45-year career: €8,121 of flexi income a year (in a flexi-job, gross is also net), and €10,432 gross in total with your other earned income (€15,648 with a dependent child). With a survivor’s pension only, there is no separate flexi limit: €24,289 gross a year in total before the statutory retirement age.
Flexi-job and early retirement: is it possible?
Yes, without the 4/5 condition and without tax on your flexi income. But without a 45-year career, above €8,121 of flexi income in 2026 your pension drops by half the percentage of the excess; above €10,432 gross of total income (€15,648 with a dependent child), it drops by the same percentage as the excess.
I retire during the year: which limit applies?
The yearly limit is multiplied by the number of months of pension and divided by 12, and only income from work done from the start of your pension counts. Pension from 1 October 2026: 3 months, so €2,608 gross instead of €10,432, including €2,030.25 of flexi income instead of €8,121.
Is my flexi income taxed when I am retired?
No. With a statutory retirement pension (early retirement included) or a survivor’s pension, all your flexi income is tax-free, whatever the amount, and you do not enter it in your tax return. A transitional allowance does not count as a pension: the €18,440 cap then applies.
Does working during retirement increase my pension?
In principle, no: work done after your pension starts does not build up extra pension rights, apart from a few exceptions (Federal Pensions Service).
Official sources
- Federal Pensions Service, additional income during retirement: 2026 limits
- Federal Pensions Service, when can I retire? (statutory retirement age)
- NSSO (ONSS), administrative instructions 2026/3: flexi-jobs and pensioners (in French)
- NSSO, instruction of 26 June 2026: pension starting during the quarter (in French)
- FPS Finance, flexi-jobs: exemption for pensioners (in French)
Trakko is not an official source: this guide sums up the rules as published by the authorities on the date shown. For an answer you can rely on, check Student@work, mycareer.be or the body quoted.