Are you planning your schedule for the rest of the year, or simply want to know when your clients are likely to be on holiday? Even when you’re self-employed, it's handy to know when the official public holidays and vacation periods fall in Belgium.
That way, you can plan ahead, know when to expect quieter or busier periods, and better anticipate your customers' needs.
On this page, we've listed all public holidays, construction-related holidays, and certain peaks in business activity.
Belgium has 12 public holidays that are observed across the whole country.
| 01/01/2025 | New Year's Day |
| 20/04/2025 | Easter Sunday |
| 21/04/2025 | Easter Monday |
| 01/05/2025 | Labour Day |
| 29/05/2025 | Ascension |
| 08/06/2025 | Pentecost |
| 09/06/2025 | Whit Monday |
| 21/07/2025 | Belgian National Day |
| 15/08/2025 | Assumption |
| 01/11/2025 | All Saints' Day |
| 11/11/2025 | Armistice |
| 25/12/2025 | Christmas Day |
| 11/07/2025 | Flemish Community Day (for Flemish public services) |
| 09/27/2025 | Wallonia-Brussels Federation Day (for Walloon public services) |
| 02/11/2025 | All Saints' Day (for federal public services) |
| 15/11/2025 | King's Day (for federal public services) |
| 15/11/2025 | German-speaking Community Day (for German-speaking public services) |
Construction holidays are not a legally mandated vacation period, but rather an agreement within the construction sector.
While they’re not mandatory, most construction companies, suppliers, architects, and other independent contractors in the sector respect these periods.
| Construction holidays in West Flanders | From 22/07/2025 to 08/08/2025 |
| Construction holidays in Antwerp, Flemish Brabant, Limburg and East Flanders | 14/07/2025 to 01/08/2025 (canton of Lokeren: 22/07/2025 to 08/08/2025) |
| Construction holidays in Walloon Brabant and Namur | 14/07/2025 to 01/08/2025 |
| Construction holidays in Liège and Hainaut | 07/07/2025 to 01/08/2025 |
| Construction holidays in Luxembourg | 22/07/2025 to 08/08/2025 |
In addition to statutory public holidays, there are periods when clients or suppliers tend to take more time off or, on the contrary, periods that are busier, both in terms of projects and marketing.
As a freelancer, it's worth taking these into account for marketing campaigns or when planning your own vacation periods.
| Valentine's Day | 14/02/2025 |
| Mother's Day | 11/05/2025 15/08/2025 (Antwerp) |
| Father's Day | 08/06/2025 |
| Halloween | 31/10/2025 |
| Black Friday | 28/11/2025 |
| Saint Nicholas | 06/12/2026 |
Being self-employed means being free to work whenever you want. But it's best to take note of public holidays, periods when public services are closed, and major peaks in the year to effectively plan your schedule.
Keep these dates in mind so you can use them to your advantage, like taking some well-deserved time off at the right time, and then being fully available during the peaks.
A public holiday when your clients and suppliers are not working is a great day to get your admin in order, for example. Luckily, that’s quick and easy with Accountable, so you still get to enjoy some free time too.
Author - Valesca Wilms
As content marketing lead at Accountable Belgium, Valesca writes about freelancing, self-employment, and taxes based on her own experience as a freelancer.
Who is Valesca ?Thank you for your feedback!
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