On 20 March 2026, the Belgian Council of Ministers approved a draft law that would link the level of social assistance granted to beneficiaries of subsidiary and temporary protection to their participation in integration efforts through the Individual Social Integration Project (ISIP). Under the proposal, the amount of social assistance could be adjusted depending on the efforts made by the beneficiary to integrate.
From 1 January 2026, the Onder1Dak project, which promotes co-housing between private homeowners and recognised refugees in Flanders, has restarted following renewed support from the Flemish Minister for Civic Integration and Integration. The initiative aims to facilitate access to housing while supporting the social and professional integration of recognised refugees.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: refugee, access to housing
On 23 December 2025, the Belgian Council of Ministers approved a draft law linking social assistance to integration efforts. For recognised refugees, the draft law foresees that the Individual Social Integration Project (ISIP) should include, at a minimum, participation in an integration path. Other newcomers, including third-country students and economically inactive EU citizens, would now need to have legally resided in Belgium for five years before becoming eligible for social assistance.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: integration income, Integration path, integration programme, requirement, efforts to integrate
Op 31 oktober 2025 publiceerde het European Migration Network (EMN) de Inform, waarin wordt uitgelegd hoe 25 EMN-leden en waarnemerslanden omgaan met de toegang tot onderwijs voor migrantenkinderen. Het rapport toont aan dat bijna alle deelnemende landen nationale maatregelen hebben genomen om de linguïstische, sociale en emotionele integratie in scholen te ondersteunen. Ondanks aanhoudende obstakels, zoals taalproblemen en ongelijke leerresultaten, komen er goede praktijken naar voren in heel Europa.
Hoofdthema: Integratie
Trefwoorden: migrantenkinderen, kinderen in migratie, toegang tot onderwijs, inclusie, taal leren, psychosociale ondersteuning, ouderbetrokkenheid
The Flemish government has decided that third-country workers – from outside the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland – will follow a mandatory tailored integration trajectory from 2027. The initiative, proposed by Minister Hilde Crevits, will be delivered digitally and can be started in the country of origin or within six months of arrival in Flanders. The programme provides essential information on work, rights and responsibilities, and Flemish norms and values. Certain temporary or seasonal workers, students, and holiday-work participants are excluded.
Hoofdthema: Integration, Economic migration
Trefwoorden: migrant worker, self-employed, integration programme, digital learning
In 2024, a total of 17.939 newcomers obtained an integration certificate in Flanders, according to the Jaarrapport Inburgering 2024. This is the highest number recorded since 2018 and marks a 16% increase compared to the previous year.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: civic integration programme, integration certificate, Flanders
Nearly one in eight self-employed workers in Belgium do not hold Belgian nationality. This proportion rises to more than four in ten in the Brussels-Capital Region. An analysis of recent data from the National Institute for Social Security of the Self-Employed (INASTI) by the social insurance fund Acerta highlights these figures. The study also reveals differences in age, sector activity, and income between Belgian and non-Belgian self-employed individuals.
Hoofdthema: Integration, Data & Statistics, Economic migration
Trefwoorden: self-employed, Belgian, non-Belgian
Op 6 juni 2025 nam de Vlaamse regering een belangrijke maatregel om de integratie van nieuwkomers in Vlaanderen te verbeteren. Het gaat om de ontwikkeling van voortrajecten in het land van herkomst voor mensen die naar Vlaanderen willen komen in het kader van gezinshereniging of arbeidsmigratie. Deze maatregel bouwt verder op eerdere proefprojecten en heeft als doel om gezinsherenigers en arbeidsmigranten via een digitale cursus maatschappelijke oriëntatie beter voor te bereiden op het leven in Vlaanderen. Deze stap maakt deel uit van het Vlaamse Regeerakkoord 2024–2029.
Hoofdthema: Integratie
Trefwoorden: inburgeringsprogramma, inburgeringstraject, integratie vóór aankomst, oriëntatie vóór aankomst, proefproject, digitaal hulpmiddel, nieuwkomers
In 2024, 19.435 people participated in the Social Orientation (Maatschappelijke Oriëntatie, MO) course in Flanders. This marks a significant increase in participation. Alongside the rising numbers of participants in the Social Orientation course, the demand for Dutch as a Second Language (NT2) courses also remains high, as evidenced by recent reports from AMAL vzw, Atlas Antwerp, and the Agency for Integration and Civic Integration.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: civic integration course, Agency for Integration and Civic Integration, language learning, language course
On the occasion of Labour Day, Fedasil published new figures on the professional activity of applicants for international protection residing in reception centres. In 2024, 41% of those allowed to work were active on the Belgian labour market. The data show differences in employment rates depending on gender, age, and nationality.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: applicant for international protection, access to employment, labour market access
The Education Department of Caritas International Belgium, in collaboration with the non-profit organisation Sankaa, has launched "Building Bridges", an educational resource for secondary school teachers. This resource helps educators address key topics such as identity, prejudice, racism, and media representation. At its core, "Building Bridges" explores the central question: How can we create a more supportive and inclusive society where everyone has a place?
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: inclusion, secondary school, diversity, migratory background, discrimination
About sixty Eritrean refugees gathered in front of the Town Hall in Ghent to draw the authorities' attention to the impact of the housing crisis on their situation and integration prospects. The authorities expressed their intention to find solutions but called on Minister of Asylum and Migration Anneleen Van Bossuyt to address this issue together. They also stated that they would consider a European response to this widespread problem.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: housing shortage, homelessness
In a recent judgment, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) held that national legislation may oblige beneficiaries of international protection to pass a civic integration examination. However the fact of having failed such an examination cannot be systematically penalised by a fine.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: civic exam, civic integration course, fine
Due to the sharp rise in applications for the equivalence of foreign diplomas in Flanders and the time- and labour-intensive investigations involved, waiting times can reach seven months. This impacts the integration of migrants into the labour market.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: recognition of qualifications, diploma, equivalence
On 5 September 2024, the UN Refugee Agency was awarded the "Fair Play for Peace Award" for its ongoing work to improve the lives of refugees, displaced and stateless persons through sport, in particular following the launch of the Agency's "More than a Game" sport strategy which promotes sport as a powerful vehicle for peace, inclusion and social cohesion.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: sport, empowerment, peace
This election year will be the fourth time that non-Belgians who reside in Belgium can vote in municipal elections. Yet participation remains low, as shown by the figures released by the FPS Interior ahead of the registration deadline, on 31 July 2024.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: election, vote, foreign national
During a joint webinar, experts from the European Migration Network and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development highlighted the positive trends characterizing the labour market integration of Ukrainians, including employment rates and their progress, main sectors of employment, and most common policies and measures for facilitating labour market integration. They also identified the difficulties and remaining challenges in this domain.
Of the 14.779 Ukrainian refugees registered with the VDAB, 45 percent (6.599) have already worked and 27 percent (4.045) are still working. Some argue that more should be done to guide them into work, inter alia encouraging language learning in the workplace.
Hoofdthema: Integration, Temporary protection
Trefwoorden: Ukraine, employment rate, labour market access, language barrier
De multidisciplinaire woordenlijst van het Europees Migratienetwerk (EMN) heeft ongeveer 500 termen en concepten met betrekking tot asiel en migratie. Laten we ons vandaag concentreren op de term "toegang tot werk" om er zeker van te zijn dat we de term gemeenschappelijk begrijpen en gebruiken!
Hoofdthema: Integratie
Trefwoorden: toegang tot de arbeidsmarkt, toegang tot werk, integratie op de arbeidsmarkt
Al tien jaar lang heeft de organisatie "Duo for a Job" als missie om ongelijkheden in de toegang tot de arbeidsmarkt voor jongeren met een migratieachtergrond te verminderen, en de resultaten zijn overtuigend: zeven van de tien jongeren vinden met succes een stabiele baan, stageplaats, of opleiding die hen leidt naar hun oorspronkelijke carrièredoelen.
Hoofdthema: Integratie
Trefwoorden: toegang tot de arbeidsmarkt, mentorprogramma
Vandaag werd het Belgisch Contactpunt van het Europees Migratienetwerk (EMN) uitgenodigd om de resultaten van een aankomende publicatie te presenteren aan leden van het Vlaams Agentschap voor Binnenlands Bestuur, evenals om deel te nemen aan een coördinatiebijeenkomst tussen de vier integratiecontactpunten in België (voor Vlaanderen, Wallonië, Brussel en de Duitstalige gemeenschap).
Hoofdthema: Integratie
Trefwoorden: integratiecontactpunt, monitoring van de integratie
As part of his “Turbo Plan”, Flemish Minister for the Interior and Civic Integration, Bart Somers (Open VLD) wants newly-arrived third-country nationals without a high school diploma to undergo training in order to be able to practice a bottleneck profession. This training would be part of the civic integration programme.
Hoofdthema: Integration
Trefwoorden: civic integration programme, shortage occupation, on-the-job training
Op de Tent Partnership for Refugees European Business Summit die vandaag in Parijs plaatsvindt, hebben 41 vooraanstaande bedrijven gezamenlijk ambitieuze toezeggingen aangekondigd om meer dan 250.000 Oekraïense vluchtelingenvrouwen en andere vluchtelingen een baan en opleiding te bieden in heel Europa. Deze toezeggingen zullen het personeelsbestand van bedrijven versterken, arbeidstekorten opvullen en de Europese economieën een impuls geven.
Hoofdthema: Integratie
Trefwoorden: labour market integration
Vandaag vond het social-profitsalon plaats in Antwerpen als onderdeel van het project ‘Ieder talent telt (in social profit)’. Tijdens deze regionale social-profitsalons krijgen mensen met een migratieachtergrond de kans om in contact te treden met werkgevers, trainingsinstituties en ondersteunende organisaties, zoals VDAB en het Agentschap voor Integratie en Inburgering, die inzetten op diversiteit.
Hoofdthema: Integratie
Trefwoorden: diversiteit, talent
De vergadering bracht zowel institutionele actoren, als actoren uit de privésector samen om van gedachten te wisselen over eigen ervaringen en eventuele kennis van de toekomstige EU Talent Pool en andere databanken.