Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) September 15, 2026 – Non-European Union residents were significantly more likely to receive residence permits for family reunification or refugee status than for employment in Belgium in 2025, according to data from European statistics agency Eurostat. While family reunification accounted for 56.2% of all permits issued in Belgium—the highest proportion among all EU member states—employment accounted for just 9.4%, putting the country near the bottom of the block. In contrast, employment permits surged across the wider EU, outstripping family reunification as the primary reason for issuing first residence permits continent-wide.
Belgian Residence Permit Breakdown Highlights Family Reunification Dominance
New figures published by Eurostat disclose that non-EU residents obtaining permission to reside in Belgium were disproportionately granted entry through family connections and international protection rather than labor market channels.
Out of all residence permits granted by Belgian authorities to non-EU citizens in 2025, family reunification accounted for 300,906 permits, representing 56.2% of the country’s total. International protection or refugee status accounted for 77,416 permits (14%), while general non-specified reasons represented 13%.
Employment-related residence permits made up 50,512 issuances, or 9.4% of Belgium’s overall total. The remaining permits were issued for education and other miscellaneous categories.
The distribution sets Belgium apart from broader European trends. Across the European Union, an average of 32.4% of valid residence permits were held for family reunification. Belgium’s 56.2% share represents the highest proportion recorded across all 27 EU member states. Luxembourg and Sweden recorded the second-highest shares for family reunification, each standing at 51.5%.
Conversely, Belgium’s proportion of work-related residence permits—at 9.4%—placed the nation near the bottom of the EU rankings. The EU average for employment-based residence permits stood at 22.3%. Member states leading the block in granting work permits included Croatia, where work accounted for 79% of all issued permits, and Lithuania, where work permits represented 68.1% of the total.
Divergence Between Belgian Figures and Broader European Union Trends
The Eurostat statistics illustrate a divergence between Belgium’s national permit allocation and wider trends observed across the European Union.
At the European level, EU member states issued a total of 3.9 million first residence permits to third-country nationals in 2025, marking a 10.1% increase (an additional 355,350 permits) compared to 2024. Employment was the leading reason for issuing first-time residence permits across the block, comprising approximately 1.3 million permits, or 33.6% of the total issued in 2025.
Family reasons accounted for the second-largest category of first-time permits across the EU at 1.1 million (28.1%), followed by international protection and other reasons at 0.9 million (22.8%), and education at 0.6 million (15.5%).
Year-on-year comparisons for first-time permits across the entire EU show that employment-related issuances grew by 16.1% from 2024 to 2025. First-time permits issued for family reasons grew by 14.1%, while education-related permits expanded by 9.0%. The category covering international protection and other reasons was the only group to register a decline, dropping by 0.9%.
Long-Term Growth in EU Residence Permits Since 2016
According to the Eurostat figures, approximately 27.8 million non-EU citizens held valid residence permits across the European Union at the end of 2025. The total stock of valid residence permits held by third-country nationals has expanded by 53.4% since 2016.
Over this nine-year period, labor mobility has served as the primary driver of permit expansion block-wide. Residence permits issued for employment reasons recorded a 120.7% increase across the EU between 2016 and 2025. Permits issued for educational purposes grew by 96.8% over the same timeframe. In comparison, valid residence permits issued for family reunification expanded at a lower rate of 28.6% across the block.
Germany, France, and Spain held the largest overall stocks of valid residence permits of all categories granted to non-EU citizens at the end of 2025.
Regarding national origins, Moroccan citizens held the largest number of valid residence permits across the EU at the end of 2025, totaling 2.2 million. Turkish nationals represented the second-largest group with 2.0 million valid permits, followed by Ukrainian citizens with 1.7 million valid permits.
Rounding out the top ten primary nationalities holding valid EU residence permits at the end of 2025 were citizens from China (including Hong Kong), Syria, India, the United Kingdom, Russia, Albania, and Algeria.
In terms of newly issued first permits during 2025, Ukrainian citizens received the highest volume at 335,100 first residence permits. Citizens of India received the second-highest number of first permits at 227,600, while Moroccan citizens received 202,100 first permits.
Legislative Context and Administrative Framework in Belgium
The distribution of residence permits in Belgium occurs against the backdrop of specific national administrative processes and legal frameworks governing entry for third-country nationals.
Under Belgian immigration rules, third-country nationals seeking work in Belgium for a duration exceeding 90 days must secure both work authorization from the competent regional authority and a residence authorization (a single permit) from the federal Immigration Office. Applications for long-stay visas (Visa D) are submitted through Belgian diplomatic or consular missions abroad, or through local municipal administrations for individuals already lawfully residing in the country.
Family reunification for non-EU/EEA nationals residing in Belgium requires applicants to meet specific criteria, including demonstrating sufficient, stable, and regular financial resources, adequate accommodation, and health insurance. Eligible family members include spouses, legal partners, unmarried minor children, and disabled adult children. Applications undergo examination by the Immigration Office, which operates under a statutory decision timeframe of up to nine months.
Upon arrival and registration at a Belgian municipality, family members receive a temporary residence card (A-card) valid for one year, which is renewable annually. Family members holding this residence permit are granted statutory access to employment and education within Belgium. After five years of continuous legal residence, permit holders become eligible to apply for an unlimited residence permit (B-card)
