Holiday allowance

Did you work as an employee or appointed civil servant? You will annually receive your holiday allowance together with your pension in May if you meet all conditions.

The first condition is that you have to receive a pension in May. If you do not receive a pension in May, you are not entitled to the holiday allowance.

The other conditions and the amount of the holiday allowance differ, depending on the scheme in which you worked:

• Am I entitled to a holiday allowance next to my pension as an employee?
• Am I entitled to a holiday allowance next to my civil service pension?
• Am I entitled to a holiday allowance when I receive a pension both as an employee and as a civil servant?
• Am I entitled to a holiday allowance next to my pension as a self-employed worker?
• Am I, as the next of kin, entitled to the holiday allowance of a deceased pensioner?

Am I entitled to a holiday allowance next to my pension as an employee?

• Am I entitled to a holiday allowance?
• How much is the holiday allowance?
• When will the holiday allowance be paid?
  
  

Am I, as a retired employee, entitled to a holiday allowance?

In the 1^st year in which you receive your pension as an employee, you do not receive a holiday allowance.

Exception: did you only receive a replacement income due to illness, disability, unemployment or unemployment with company supplement during the entire calendar year preceding your pension? If so, you are entitled to a holiday allowance in the 1st year of your retirement on the condition that:

• you did not work a single day in said year;
• you did not hold the statute of career interruption, time credit or care credit in said year;
• your social benefit stemmed from an activity as an employee.

From the 2^nd year of your retirement, you will receive a holiday allowance.

If you are receiving a transitional allowance, you are not entitled to a holiday allowance.

How much holiday allowance will I receive as a retired employee?

Retired employees receive a set amount for the holiday allowance. The amount depends on the type of pension you receive in May:

• 1 524,04 EUR gross (from 01.03.2026 at the index figure 183,17) if you receive a household rate pension;
• 1 219,23 EUR gross (from 01.03.2026 at the index figure 183,17) if you receive a pension as a single person or a survivor's pension.

The amounts of the holiday allowance can change because of a:

• wage indexation;
• welfare adjustment;
• amendment of a law.

There are two limitations to the holiday allowance:

1. in the 2^nd year of your pension, the amount of your holiday allowance is proportional to the number of months during which you received your pension during the 1st year.

   The start year of your pension as an employee determines whether you receive a partial or full holiday allowance.

   Example

   • Paul's pension starts in April 2025.
   • He received no social benefits in 2025:
     • May 2027: 9/12 holiday allowance;
     • May 2028: full holiday allowance.
       
       
2. your holiday allowance may not exceed your pension of May. If it does exceed your pension, the Pensions Service will limit your holiday allowance to the gross amount of your pension.

   The FPS will limit your holiday allowance to the amount of your pension as an employee, plus a raise of 47,141910 %. The total sum (limited holiday allowance + raise) may never exceed the full holiday allowance.

   Scenario 1

   The retirement pension as an employee at the household rate amounts to 545,48 EUR in May 2026. We limit the holiday allowance to 545,48 EUR.

   Because we limit the holiday allowance, we award a raise of 47,141910 % in May 2026. In this case, this amounts to 257,15 EUR (47,141910 % of 545, 48 EUR). The total holiday allowance thus amounts to 545,48 EUR + 257,15 EUR = 802,63 EUR.

   The total amount of 802,63 EUR falls below 1 524,04 EUR (full holiday allowance) and therefore it need not be limited.

   Scenario 2

   The retirement pension as an employee at the household rate amounts to 1 050 EUR in May 2026. We limit the holiday allowance to 1 050 EUR.

   Because we limit the holiday allowance, we award a raise of 47,141910 % in May 2026. In this case, this amounts to 494,99 EUR (47,141910 % of 1 050 EUR). The sum of the limited holiday allowance (1 050 EUR) and the raise (494,99 EUR) thus amounts to 1 544,99 EUR. The sum of 1 544,99 EUR exceeds the 1 524,04 EUR of the holiday allowance. Therefore, it has to be limited to 1 524,04 EUR.

You are de facto or legally separated and you receive a portion of the retirement pension? In this case, you and your (ex-)spouse both receive a portion of the holiday allowance. The proportion is the same as the one for the pension you receive.

Net amount of the holiday allowance for retired employees

The payroll tax can be deducted from your holiday allowance as a retired employee. The percentage of the payroll tax depends on:

• the total taxable amount of your pension;
• the type of pension you receive: as a single person or at the household rate.

In 2026, the following wage scales apply:

Pension as a single person

 

Household rate pension

 

When will I, as a retired employee, receive my holiday allowance?

If you are entitled to a holiday allowance, you will receive it together with your pension in May.

In case of attachment or recovery of your pension, the creditor can request to have a portion or the entirety of the holiday allowance deducted.

Am I entitled to a holiday allowance next to my civil service pension?

• Am I entitled to the holiday allowance and the supplementary increment?
• How much are the holiday allowance and the supplementary increment?
• When will the holiday allowance and the supplementary increment be paid?
  
  

Am I, as a retired civil servant, entitled to the holiday allowance and the supplementary increment?

Next to the holiday allowance, a supplementary increment on top of the holiday allowance also exists for retired civil servants (if you receive an extra 'guaranteed minimum' allowance).

Holiday allowance for retired civil servants

You are entitled to the holiday allowance if you, on 1 May of the calendar year, meet the following conditions:

• you are at least 60 years old;
• your retirement pension as a civil servant and any other domestic or foreign pensions or similar benefits total at most 2 922,35 EUR gross for the month of May;
• your pension was not reduced because the additional income you earned was too high.

You are receiving a survivor's pension? If so, you are entitled to the normal holiday allowance if you meet the following conditions on 1 May of the current year:

• you are at least 45 years old, except if you can prove that you are at least 66 % permanently unfit for work or if you have a dependent child that entitles you to child benefits;
• you did not remarry;
• your survivor's pension as a civil servant and any other domestic or foreign pensions or similar benefits total at most 2 337,88 EUR gross for the month of May;
• your pension was not reduced because the additional income you earned was too high or because you had a replacement income.

You receive an orphans' pension? Only a full orphan or a child that has been recognised as such can claim the normal holiday allowance if the following conditions are met:

• the pension as a civil servant and any other domestic or foreign pensions or similar benefits total at most 2 337,88 EUR gross for the month of May;
• his pension was not reduced because the additional income he earned was too high or because he accumulated it with a replacement income.

If you receive a transitional allowance, you are not entitled to a holiday allowance.

Supplementary increment next to the holiday allowance for retired civil servants

You are entitled to a supplementary increment on top of the holiday allowance if you, on 1 May:

• are at least 60 years old
• receive an extra 'guaranteed minimum' allowance.

You receive a supplementary increment next to the holiday allowance on top of your survivor's pension if:

• you are entitled to an extra guaranteed minimum allowance
  and
• this entitlement has not been suspended by exceeding the limits of the professional activity.

Are not entitled to the supplementary holiday allowance:

• persons who receive just a basic guaranteed minimum;
• orphans;
• divorcees;
• persons who receive a retirement pension for physical incapacity and whose average pay of the last 5 years exceeds 44 273,41 EUR.
  
  

How much are the holiday allowance and the supplementary increment for retired civil servants?

The sum of the holiday allowance and of the supplementary increment is limited to the total amount of all civil service pensions you receive in the course of the month of May. The limitation is first applied to the supplementary increment.

You are entitled to the holiday allowance at the household rate if your spouse meets the following conditions. He or she does not receive:

• an income from a professional activity;
• a retirement or survivor's pension, old-age pension, survivorship annuity or a similar benefit (exception: the total monthly amount falls below 112,26 EUR).
• a foreign or domestic replacement income.
  
  

 

For the holiday allowance as a retired civil servant, the gross amount equals the net amount. However, the holiday allowance is taxable and should be mentioned in section 211 of the pension sheet 281.11.

For a married retired civil servant, the amount of the supplementary increment on top of the holiday allowance that his spouse may receive, is also deducted.

When will the holiday allowance and the supplementary increment for retired civil servants be paid?

If you are entitled to the holiday allowance or the supplementary increment, you will receive this amount together with your pension in May.

In case of attachment or recovery of your pension, the creditor can request to have a portion of the holiday allowance deducted.

Holiday allowance if you receive a pension both as an employee and as a civil servant

• Am I entitled to a holiday allowance if I receive a pension both as an employee and as a civil servant?
• How much is the holiday allowance if I receive a pension both as an employee and as a civil servant?
• When will the holiday allowance be paid if I receive a pension both as an employee and as a civil servant?
  
  

Am I entitled to a holiday allowance if I receive a pension both as an employee and as a civil servant?

There is no specific rule to find out whether you are entitled to a holiday allowance if you receive a pension both as an employee and as a civil servant.

Find out whether you meet the conditions as a retired:

• employee
• civil servant
  
  

How much is the holiday allowance if I receive a pension both as an employee and as a civil servant?

The sum of the holiday allowance and of the supplementary increment for the civil service pension is limited to the total amount of all civil service pensions you receive in the course of the month of May. The limitation is first applied to the supplementary increment.

The amounts of the holiday allowance and of the supplementary increment for the civil service pension are respectively reduced by the amounts of the holiday allowance and of the supplementary increment that some pensioners also receive for another pension. For a married pensioner, the amount of the supplementary increment next to the holiday allowance his spouse may receive, is also deducted.

When will the holiday allowance be paid if I receive a pension both as an employee and as a civil servant?

Your holiday allowance and any increment are paid together with your pension in the month of May each year.

Holiday allowance for retired self-employed workers

Am I entitled to a holiday allowance next to my pension as a self-employed worker?

Retired self-employed workers are not entitled to the holiday allowance. If they meet the conditions, they may be entitled to:

• a welfare bonus as a self-employed workerOpens in a new window;
• a special allowanceOpens in a new window;
• a pension supplementOpens in a new window.
  
  

Am I entitled to the holiday allowance of a deceased pensioner?

Find out more about your entitlement to the holiday allowance as the next of kin on the page 'Who is entitled to the arrears'.