A Significant Reform Of The Social Penal Code Is Anticipated

A new draft Act has recently been submitted to the Belgian Parliament that aims to amend the Social Penal Code which lists the infringements of labour and social security law that are punishable and the related penalties. The new draft Act is very ambitious, as it contemplates being the biggest reform of the Social Penal Code since the latter's enactment. The draft Act proposes a set of measures, including (i) increased fines for penalty levels 3 and 4, (ii) more stringent punishment for the more serious infringements but less severe penalties for employers' honest 'administrative mistakes', (iii) the introduction of a new penalty and new aggravating circumstances, (iv) the introduction of a legal definition of what is to be understood by 'social dumping', etc.