Brussels - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the availability and cost of household help, and what types of help are typically employed by expatriates?
Nannies and babysitters are expensive. Diplomats cannot sponsor nannies or any domestic household help. Brussels does subsidize household cleaners if you go through the official government program, which is nice, but you need to do a fair amount of paperwork to set it up initially. - Feb 2023
We had someone who came once a week to help with cleaning, and the cost was around 10 euros an hour. - Jan 2022
People employ housekeepers and nannies. It is relatively inexpensive. You can go through the "titre" service, which is the official service, or get someone by word of mouth and pay in cash. - Oct 2021
I lived in embassy funded housing. - Apr 2021
There a service provider called Sodexo and all houshold help can be hired through them. You pay 9 EUR / hour. - Sep 2020
There is a theoretically required public system called "titres services" that allows you to hire household help with a voucher system that is only 9 euros per hour. Some people pay locally on the market and I am not sure of that cost. It is only good for housecleaning and ironing. Most people use the local daycare system for childcare as private nannies are supposedly quite expensive. - Sep 2020
There is a process to go through to buy pre-paid "checks" for household help. This is to ensure that the people you hire are properly documented and their taxes are taken care of, etc. I believe the going rate is 9 euros/hour. We pay babysitters 8 euros/hour to take care our our child. This is probably higher than the going rate. Many people have a housekeeper who comes in once a week or twice a month but no one has a full time housekeeper. Some people have nannies but not live in, and I think they pay around 100 euros/day. It's not cheap at all. - Mar 2020
We have a housekeeper once a week and pay 12 euro an hour. Typical rate is 10-12 euro per hour - Feb 2019
There is a very intricate and bureaucratic process to hire household help. Frankly, we haven't, but many do. I can't say how much it costs, but this IS Western Europe, so it's not inexpensive. - Feb 2019
Not cheap, but doable for a one-day/week type of cleaning (usually about 10 Euro/hour). - May 2018
There's a local program called dienstencheques/titres-services where you can hire household help on an hourly basis at a pretty good rate. Live-in help is virtually unheard of, both because few people have the extra space and because wages are quite high here. - Jan 2018
It can be expensive. Many families have weekly or bi-weekly help with cleaning and make contacts through families that are getting ready to leave. We had someone come three hours a week and her rate was 10 euro per hour plus 5 euro for metro. - Feb 2017
Belgium has severe restrictions and virtually no visas are being approved for domestic/childcare help. It is unlikely that your domestic employee will be granted a visa, so be prepared to find domestic help or childcare locally using Belgian resources.
Belgian resources available for domestic help include Sodexo and its service-checks, also known as "titres-services." You can use them for a variety of services, such as cleaning, cooking and other household tasks (excluding childcare). You pay for services with "checks". The number of checks purchased per calendar year is limited to 500. The first 400 checks cost 9 euro, the next 100 checks cost 10 euro each. One check normally equates to one hour of work. The website provides more information, but unfortunately the information is only provided in the three official languages spoken in Belgium (Dutch, French and German): http://www.titresservices.brussels/.
To register for the service, you will have to provide Sodexo with a completed registration form, copy of your Belgian ID card and an official Belgian document listing the members of your household called a "composition de menage". - Dec 2016
Very available but costly. - Aug 2014
Those who use domestic help pay around 10 euros an hour. There is some sort of service you can sign up for in your commune where you can hire someone for around 7 or so euros and hour. - Jul 2014
Domestic help is certainly available but not cheap. Typical cost is 10 Euros per hour but household help needs to be sponsored by the employee. Otherwise, you can use the local "titre-services" system and go through a local agency. Cost for 2014 is 9 Euros per hour but unless you know someone who works with a particular agency already or is willing to sign up, the agency will send you a person you don't know. This is the Belgian government system for making domestic workers legal. You pay 9 Euros per hour but the government subsidizes and the employee makes a lot more than 9 Euros plus they get benefits. - Apr 2014
Costs average 10 euro/hour. You can lower your costs by using a "titre de service" agency. About 20% of the cost is subsidized by the government to encourage use of this option which keeps workers in the official market. - Jan 2014
Lots of people have cleaners, many are Filipino. Cleaning fees are comparable to D.C. Prices. - Jan 2014
N/A - Oct 2012
Easy to get, cheap compared with Britain. - May 2012
About 12 Euros per hour for a house cleaning services. - Jan 2012
cleaning lady available for 7.5 euros /hour through local agencies, at 10-12 euros an hour through word of mouth in Embassy - Nov 2011
We hire maids through a local system that is government supported to help people find jobs. The cost is 7.50 euros per hour. - Aug 2011
We pay 10 euro an hour. Which seems to be about the going rate. Do not know about bringing in a nanny. But know people who have had difficulty if they are not diplomats. - Jul 2011
There's an established network, and its best to find someone by word of mouth. About €10 per hour, though. - Jun 2011
EUR 8-12/hour + transport costs for a Filipina. - Jun 2010
About 10-12 euro/hour. - Jun 2010
See above. - Mar 2010
There seems to be a shortage of qualified help in Brussels. It is the most expensive place for domestic help I have ever seen! - Jul 2009
