It’s been in the works for a while now but it has finally become reality: a new version of the mobility budget is here! On 20 October 2021, it was approved by the Finance Committee of the Parliament. On 25 November, the final step was taken: the vote in the plenary session of the Parliament. The renewed mobility budget came into effect on 1 January 2022.
But what is it all about? An overview of what’s new!
🗓 Datum van inwerkingtreding
- 1 January 2022
⏳ Waiting times
- No more waiting times for employees! 🥳 It is no longer necessary to have a company car for a year before you can start using the mobility budget. All employees who qualify for a company car (including those who receive a promotion) can immediately benefit from the mobility budget. A major simplification that everyone is asking for!
- Note that employees who are not entitled to a company car cannot use the legal mobility budget.
💰 Amount of the mobility budget
- The minimum annual mobility budget is set at €3,000
- The maximum annual mobility budget is set at €16,000 or 20% of the employee’s gross annual salary
- The government will provide a Mobility Budget Calculator. This is a method to calculate the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership), allowing to calculate the mobility budget on a fixed basis. This is a huge advantage for employers, as the TCO calculation was often complex.
- An employer may decide to deduct the professional use of the company car from the calculation of the mobility budget. Provided that he compensates (in addition to the mobility budget) all business trips that will be made by the employee.
- Current budgets: employers who already grant a mobility budget before the date of publication of the law in the Belgisch Staatsblad/Moniteur Belge on 3 December 2021 have until 1 January 2023 to adjust their mobility budgets to these new limits!
Changes in pillar 1
- From 1 January 2026, pillar 1 cars must be carbon-free.
- The "mobility account" that employees can use to track their mobility expenses will have to include tracking of their pillar 1 expenses for more transparency.
- The government also provides for a flat rate method of calculating Pillar 1 expenses, if the employer chooses not to record the actual expenses.
Changes in pillar 2
- Bicycles and similar soft mobility vehicles: garage expenses, protective equipment and visibility equipment (for the driver and passenger) are added to the list of authorised expenses for soft mobility.
- Housing costs: the radius around the workplace for deducting housing costs is increased from 5 km to 10 km for all employees!
- Housing costs: homeowners can now deduct the monthly interest AND capital repayments on their loans from their budget.
- Public transport subscriptions are extended to the worker's family members and are no longer exclusively dedicated to commuting.
- Parking costs related to the use of public transport (e.g. parking at the train station to take the train) are added to the list of allowed expenses.
- The allowances for movements on foot and with locomotion equipment can be paid to the employee from their Mobility Budget.
- Expenses for shared mobility (Poppy, Lime...) and car rental with driver (Uber, Husk...) must be carbon free as of 2026.
As a reminder, the Mbrella platform allows you to manage your Mobility Budget from A to Z, in the three pillars. What's more, Mbrella is free for all SMEs in Belgium!
Click here to create your free account!