From 1 May 2026 every Belgian embassy and consulate worldwide is using a new visa-fee schedule that lifts the cost of a short-stay Schengen visa (type C) from €80 to €90 and a long-stay national visa (type D) from €180 to €200. Children between six and twelve now pay €45 instead of €40, while under-sixes remain exempt.
![Belgium raises Schengen and long-stay visa fees and abolishes cash payments at consulates]()
To help applicants absorb these changes, VisaHQ’s dedicated Belgium page (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) aggregates the latest fee tables, walks users through accepted e-payment methods and can even lodge complete Schengen or national visa packages on their behalf, making it a useful buffer for HR teams and individual travellers suddenly facing the new €90 and €200 price points.
The overhaul, published by the Federal Public Service (FPS) Foreign Affairs and confirmed on 3 May by ObservAlgerie, aligns Belgium with the upper end of the EU fee spectrum following the indexation formula agreed in 2024. Just as significant for corporate mobility teams is the gradual disappearance of cash counters. Dozens of high-volume posts—including Tokyo, New Delhi and Johannesburg—now accept only electronic payment and require proof of settlement before an appointment is confirmed. The policy will be rolled out to the entire network by December 2026, according to an internal circular seen by industry stakeholders. Higher tariffs will hit companies that routinely sponsor dependants or rotate project teams. A family of four moving to Brussels on single-permit status will now spend €630 on basic visa fees alone, before the separate federal immigration contribution (currently €217 per adult) and any regional surcharges. HR departments are being urged to update relocation cost models and advance expense floats to staff who do not yet hold corporate credit cards. The cash-free push dovetails with Belgium’s wider digital-by-default strategy. Work-permit applications have already migrated to the ‘Working in Belgium’ portal; visa applicants must now upload payment receipts into the same ecosystem, allowing consular officers to pre-validate files and cut counter time. Practically, travellers should check local payment options early—some posts accept only SEPA or card payments in euros—and build in extra lead time in markets where foreign-currency transfers can take several days.
To help applicants absorb these changes, VisaHQ’s dedicated Belgium page (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) aggregates the latest fee tables, walks users through accepted e-payment methods and can even lodge complete Schengen or national visa packages on their behalf, making it a useful buffer for HR teams and individual travellers suddenly facing the new €90 and €200 price points.
The overhaul, published by the Federal Public Service (FPS) Foreign Affairs and confirmed on 3 May by ObservAlgerie, aligns Belgium with the upper end of the EU fee spectrum following the indexation formula agreed in 2024. Just as significant for corporate mobility teams is the gradual disappearance of cash counters. Dozens of high-volume posts—including Tokyo, New Delhi and Johannesburg—now accept only electronic payment and require proof of settlement before an appointment is confirmed. The policy will be rolled out to the entire network by December 2026, according to an internal circular seen by industry stakeholders. Higher tariffs will hit companies that routinely sponsor dependants or rotate project teams. A family of four moving to Brussels on single-permit status will now spend €630 on basic visa fees alone, before the separate federal immigration contribution (currently €217 per adult) and any regional surcharges. HR departments are being urged to update relocation cost models and advance expense floats to staff who do not yet hold corporate credit cards. The cash-free push dovetails with Belgium’s wider digital-by-default strategy. Work-permit applications have already migrated to the ‘Working in Belgium’ portal; visa applicants must now upload payment receipts into the same ecosystem, allowing consular officers to pre-validate files and cut counter time. Practically, travellers should check local payment options early—some posts accept only SEPA or card payments in euros—and build in extra lead time in markets where foreign-currency transfers can take several days.
