BELGIUM- CANADA : agreement on social security - general information

Note: If you go to Québec, please consult the information page on Québec.

You are leaving Belgium and are going to live in Canada or you are leaving Canada and are going to live in Belgium.

Before leaving, you have to inquire of the competent institutions what formalities you should accomplish in order to preserve your social security benefits or in order to receive social security benefits.

Belgium has concluded a bilateral agreement on social security with Canada. This agreement may apply to your own situation, the situation of your family members and the situation of your survivors.

The agreement between Belgium and Canada regulates the applicability of the social security legislations of Belgium and Canada.
The agreement between Belgium and Canada applies to employed persons, self-employed persons and certain categories of civil servants.

Besides a number of exceptions that are mentioned in the agreement, such as in the case of posting, the Canadian social security legislation will apply to you if you work in Canada.

Besides a number of exceptions that are mentioned in the agreement, such as in the case of posting, the social security legislation of Belgium will apply to you if you work in Belgium.

However, you should know that the agreement only applies under certain conditions:

  1. In principle, you have to be on the territory of Belgium or Canada.
  2. In principle, you have to have the Canadian or the Belgian nationality or you have to be recognised as a refugee or a displaced person.

The agreement between Belgium and Canada guarantees that:

  • you will have the same rights and obligations in the country where you work as an employed citizen of this country;
  • periods of activity in both countries will be taken into account for the entitlement to social security benefits;
  • you will be able, under certain conditions, to receive social security benefits from your country of origin when you live in the other country;
  • your periods of activity in both countries will be totalised for your entitlement to social security benefits and for the calculation of the amount of these benefits, e.g. for the retirement pensions.
  • The agreement between Belgium and Canada contains detailed rules of application for the granting of the social security benefits.

The agreement between Belgium and Canada bears on the following benefits:

  • invalidity benefits
  • retirement pensions
  • survivor's pensions.

You will find more information on "find information", by selecting the criteria that apply to your situation.

Please find here the text of the agreement and the text of the administrative arrangement

Agreement on social security between Belgium and Canada

Administrative arrangement for the implementation of the Agreement on social security between Belgium and Canada