Belgium vs France

The common company is a BV/SRL (private limited); formation requires a notarial deed and registration in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (KBO/BCE), which issues a company number. VAT registration follows if applicable.

Companies in France (commonly a SARL or SAS) are registered through the single online business-formalities portal, which files with the national business register (RNE) and issues a SIREN number. Steps include drafting statutes, depositing capital and publishing a legal notice.

Belgian banking is EU-integrated and digital, using the Bancontact payment system. Opening an account usually needs ID, proof of address and often a national register number; the National Bank of Belgium oversees the system.

France's banking includes large retail banks and growing online banks. Opening an account usually needs ID, proof of address and a residence status; a French account is often required for rent and utilities. The Banque de France oversees the system.

Belgium welcomes foreign investment through regional agencies (Flanders Investment & Trade, AWEX, hub.brussels), with EU free movement of capital and no exchange controls. A federal screening mechanism reviews investments in sensitive sectors; incentives are largely regional (grants, R&D and payroll-tax reliefs).

France courts foreign investment through Business France and the 'Choose France' initiative, with free movement of capital. Investments in sensitive sectors need prior authorization under the foreign-investment control regime (run by the Treasury); incentives include the research tax credit (CIR) and regional aid.

Belgium taxes personal income progressively (with communal surcharges), corporate profits and VAT, run by the FPS Finance. Residents are taxed on worldwide income, and rates are relatively high.

France taxes personal income progressively with pay-as-you-earn withholding, adds social levies, and applies VAT (TVA) to most goods and services; corporate tax applies to companies. Tax residents are taxed on worldwide income.

Non-EU nationals need a single permit (combined work and residence), usually employer-sponsored; EU citizens work freely. Belgium's regions (Flanders, Wallonia, Brussels) handle the work-authorisation part.

Non-EU nationals generally need a work authorisation and a long-stay visa or residence permit to work in France; the 'Talent Passport' covers skilled workers, founders and researchers. EU/EEA citizens work freely. The process involves the employer, labour authorities and French consulates.

Non-EU students admitted to recognised Belgian higher education generally need authorisation to stay for more than 90 days, usually via a D visa application made abroad, with the Immigration Office deciding the residence conditions. The first gate is whether your institution counts as recognised higher education — private or non-recognised training is treated differently. Plan admission, funds, health insurance and municipal registration together.

Non-EU students staying longer than three months need a long-stay study visa, usually the VLS-TS "étudiant". Its defining feature: once you validate it online within three months of arrival, it doubles as your residence permit — no separate permit application. In many countries the process runs through Campus France's "Études en France" procedure before the consular step. It allows part-time work and Schengen travel.

Belgium applies Schengen short-stay rules: tourist and other short visits are generally limited to 90 days in any 180-day period, with the visa requirement depending on nationality and the main-destination rules. Visa-free nationals must still meet the Schengen entry conditions, and a tourist stay is not a general route to work authorisation.

France is in the Schengen Area, so short tourist or business visits follow Schengen rules: up to 90 days within any 180-day period across the whole area. Visa-exempt nationals can visit without a visa; everyone else applies for a short-stay (type C) Schengen visa through the official France-Visas portal. A new ETIAS authorisation is being introduced for visa-exempt travellers — check the current requirement.

Belgium grants unlimited (permanent) residence after generally 5 years of continuous legal residence, via a national permit or the EU long-term residence permit. You show stable income, health insurance and integration; permanent residence then leads toward Belgian citizenship (usually after 5 years).

France's long-term residence is the carte de résident, typically a 10-year renewable card available after several years of legal residence (or immediately for some family of French citizens). The multi-year Talent Passport is a common step toward it.

In Belgium the main route is nationality by declaration after 5 years of legal residence (or 10 years on a longer track), showing language knowledge (one of Dutch, French or German), social and economic integration (usually work). Belgium permits dual nationality.

French citizenship by naturalization generally requires five years' residence (reduced in some cases), integration, French language ability and stable resources. France allows dual citizenship, and marriage to a French citizen is a separate route.

Belgian employment is well-protected: a guaranteed average minimum income (with sector collective agreements often higher), 20 days' statutory holiday plus holiday pay, and notice periods that grow with seniority. Joint committees set sector rules, social security is compulsory, and disputes go to the labour tribunal (tribunal du travail).

French employment is highly regulated by the Code du travail: a 35-hour legal working week, the SMIC minimum wage, five weeks' paid leave, and structured dismissal rules. Most jobs are permanent (CDI); employee representatives (CSE) and collective agreements apply, and disputes go to the labour court (conseil de prud'hommes).

Belgian trade with non-EU countries clears through the Customs and Excise Administration with an EU EORI number, often via the major port of Antwerp. You classify goods in TARIC, and import VAT (21%) can be deferred to your VAT return with an ET 14000 licence. Declarations are electronic; intra-EU trade needs Intrastat and dual-use exports need a licence.

French trade with non-EU countries goes through French customs (la Douane) with an EU EORI number. You classify goods in TARIC to find duty, and import VAT (20%) is now self-assessed on your VAT return. Declarations are electronic via DELTA; intra-EU flows need statistical (EMEBI/DEB) reporting and dual-use exports need a licence.

There is no national Belgian trademark: Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg share the Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP). You file one Benelux application under Nice classes; after examination on absolute grounds it publishes with a two-month opposition period. A Benelux trademark lasts 10 years and is renewable; an EU-wide alternative is the EU trademark via EUIPO.

French trademarks are registered with the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI). You search the register, file an application classifying goods/services under Nice, and it publishes in the BOPI for a two-month opposition period before registration. A French trademark lasts 10 years and is renewable; an EU-wide alternative is the EU trademark via EUIPO.

Belgium has no single national employment service for job placement — the public services are regionalised, with VDAB covering Flanders, Le Forem covering Wallonia and Actiris covering Brussels. The practical consequence is that the door you use is decided by region rather than by nationality or profession, and a search that looks only at one of the three sees only part of the country. Immigration work rights are a separate track from job-search support: non-EU workers generally need the correct single-permit or other residence basis before starting, and regulated professions may require recognition or language evidence.

France Travail is the public employment service and official job board — it was formerly Pôle emploi, so guidance still using the old name is dated. Non-EU workers generally need a work authorisation tied to a residence permit, such as salarié or passeport talent, which means the permit and the job are linked rather than separate matters. Certain shortage occupations, the métiers en tension, can have streamlined hiring, and Service-Public sets out the rules.

Belgium is the subtle case among its neighbours: there is no statutory minimum wage fixed directly by law, but there IS a national floor — the guaranteed average minimum monthly income (RMMMG/GGMMI) established under a national collective agreement, CCT/CAO 43. So unlike Denmark or Finland there is a national figure, it just does not come from statute. Sector collective agreements can set higher minimum pay above it, and net pay also depends on social-security contributions, withholding tax, family facts and local taxes.

France has a single national minimum wage, the SMIC, which applies across the country. Its distinguishing feature is the revaluation rule: it is revalued at least once a year and can rise mid-year if inflation triggers it — so unlike floors that move on a fixed annual date, a French figure can go out of date between scheduled updates. INSEE is authoritative for SMIC and average-wage statistics, while Service-Public explains the rules. Pay is quoted brut, with social contributions and income tax reducing net.

In Belgium, funding differs by community: Flanders offers the Master Mind Scholarships (via Study in Flanders) for excellent master's students, while the French-speaking community funds development scholarships through ARES; VLIR-UOS also funds students from partner countries. Many universities add their own awards. Explore the community and university sites and apply by each deadline.

France's flagship scholarship for international students is the Eiffel Excellence Scholarship (France Excellence Eiffel), funded by the Foreign Ministry for master's and PhD, alongside university and regional awards. Campus France is the official portal to explore funding and apply to study in France. Apply by each scheme's deadline, which is often well before the course starts.

To study in Belgium you apply to the university (in the Flemish or French-speaking community), then, once admitted, apply for a student visa (type D / authorisation to stay for study) at the Belgian consulate and register at your commune after arrival. Explore the community and university sites and apply by the deadline.

To study in France, students from many countries apply through the 'Études en France' procedure (via Campus France), then, once admitted, apply for a VLS-TS long-stay student visa, which you validate online within three months of arrival. Public university fees are low, though some are higher for non-EU students. Explore options on Campus France and apply by the deadline.

Belgium places no restriction on foreigners buying property. Renting is governed by regional tenancy law (Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels each have their own), with a deposit of up to two to three months placed in a blocked account and a registered lease. Buying goes through a notary (notaris/notaire), is registered, and carries registration duties that differ sharply by region: Flanders charges 2% on a sole own home you will live in (conditions apply) and 12% otherwise, while Brussels and Wallonia charge 12.5% with reductions for a main residence.

France places no restriction on foreigners buying property. Renting is tenant-protective (the 1989 law): the deposit (dépôt de garantie) is capped at one month's rent for unfurnished homes (two for furnished), and agency fees are regulated. Buying goes through a notaire, is registered at the land registry (publicité foncière), and carries 'frais de notaire' of roughly 7–8% (mostly transfer duties).

Belgium uses compulsory health insurance delivered through mutualities (mutualités / ziekenfondsen) and regulated by INAMI/RIZIV — a mutuality-based insurance model, not the Nordic tax-funded one. Residents normally affiliate with a mutuality, or with the public auxiliary fund, in order to receive reimbursements. Private travel or hospital insurance can supplement that cover but does not replace the requirement to register for compulsory insurance.

France's Assurance Maladie covers anyone working or residing in France on a stable, regular basis through the Protection Universelle Maladie (PUMa). The model is reimbursement rather than free-at-point-of-use: the scheme repays a large share of costs and most people take a complementary "mutuelle" to cover the remainder. You manage cover, reimbursements and your carte Vitale through an Ameli account.

Belgian insurance combines compulsory social protection, compulsory health affiliation through a mutuality, motor liability cover and optional private products. Two structural points matter: health reimbursement depends on your mutuality affiliation or on the public auxiliary fund, and employer and employee social-security contributions run through separate systems via ONSS/RSZ. Before buying specialised private cover, check that the insurer or the intermediary is authorised — the FSMA supervises conduct in the sector.

France's Sécurité sociale provides social insurance covering health, family, pensions and work accidents, with contributions collected largely through URSSAF. The detail that catches renters out is that France has two compulsory private insurances, not one: motor third-party liability, and home insurance for tenants. A complementary health mutuelle is widely held to top up Assurance Maladie, and insurers are supervised by the ACPR, part of the Banque de France.