Brussels, the self-styled capital of Europe, woke up on 2 December to an unwanted milestone: 542 days without a regional government. The Guardian reports that the city’s 14-party parliament has been unable to form a coalition since the June 2024 election, eclipsing Belgium’s own 2010-2011 national deadlock.
While the stalemate makes for colourful political headlines, its practical impact is increasingly felt in the mobility ecosystem. Under caretaker rules the Brussels-Capital Region cannot approve new spending, meaning no fresh funds for sheltering irregular migrants, processing urban-planning permits or maintaining public-transport infrastructure that expats rely on daily. Business, academic and cultural leaders—nearly 200 of them—signed an open letter this week warning that “political inaction is now affecting our daily lives”, pointing to a growing budget gap and delayed social-housing projects.
![Record 542-day political vacuum in Brussels stalls budget for migrant services]()
The paralysis also clouds upcoming policy changes that employers await, such as indexation of regional salary thresholds for work permits and subsidies for low-emission company fleets. Until a government is sworn in, those measures are frozen, complicating 2026 assignment planning.
Multinational companies with large Brussels headcounts should monitor cash-flow pressures on local suppliers (including relocation agencies) that depend on regional tenders, and build extra time into any construction or visa-support projects that require regional sign-off. Some HR teams are already steering cross-border commuters towards Flanders or Wallonia, which have functioning administrations and faster processing of professional cards.
Diplomats worry that a prolonged freeze could undermine Belgium’s EU Council presidency in the first half of 2026 if regional services—security, transport, housing—remain underfunded. For now, expatriates may experience the consequences mostly as slower public-service responses and deferred infrastructure repairs, but the longer the void continues, the more pronounced the impact on mobility will become.
While the stalemate makes for colourful political headlines, its practical impact is increasingly felt in the mobility ecosystem. Under caretaker rules the Brussels-Capital Region cannot approve new spending, meaning no fresh funds for sheltering irregular migrants, processing urban-planning permits or maintaining public-transport infrastructure that expats rely on daily. Business, academic and cultural leaders—nearly 200 of them—signed an open letter this week warning that “political inaction is now affecting our daily lives”, pointing to a growing budget gap and delayed social-housing projects.
The paralysis also clouds upcoming policy changes that employers await, such as indexation of regional salary thresholds for work permits and subsidies for low-emission company fleets. Until a government is sworn in, those measures are frozen, complicating 2026 assignment planning.
Multinational companies with large Brussels headcounts should monitor cash-flow pressures on local suppliers (including relocation agencies) that depend on regional tenders, and build extra time into any construction or visa-support projects that require regional sign-off. Some HR teams are already steering cross-border commuters towards Flanders or Wallonia, which have functioning administrations and faster processing of professional cards.
Diplomats worry that a prolonged freeze could undermine Belgium’s EU Council presidency in the first half of 2026 if regional services—security, transport, housing—remain underfunded. For now, expatriates may experience the consequences mostly as slower public-service responses and deferred infrastructure repairs, but the longer the void continues, the more pronounced the impact on mobility will become.
