Freelancers in Belgium are not availing of social benefits even when they know they exist, statistics published on Friday suggest.
A record-breaking 9,484 self-employed people in Belgium received childbirth allowances in 2024. A further 890 applied for informal care allowances such as career breaks to care for a sick relative – another chart-topping statistic.
These figures emerge from data collected by the National Institute for Social Security for the Self-Employed (Inasti) and shared by HR service provider Acerta on Friday.
Despite the rise in the number of freelancers claiming the allowances they have a right to, figures show that many freelancers are unaware of their entitlement to various social benefits. Many are aware of them but choose not to claim them.
60% afraid of reputational damage
Acerta conducted a survey of 540 freelancers, and the findings revealed that only 39% have a good understanding of their entitlements in case of incapacity to work.
Four in ten self-employed women are unaware of their right to maternity leave. In addition, 17% know are aware of their right to leave but do not know how to claim it.
Even claim rates among those who do possess a good knowledge of the system are low. Six in ten respondents said they do not apply for social benefits for fear of doing damage to their professional reputation, losing clients or income and administrative hassle.
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"Self-employed people often put themselves last because the customer is king," said Mieke Bruyninckx of Acerta. "For example, not every self-employed young mother is willing to stop her activities for at least three weeks. But their mental well-being sometimes suffers as a result."
Bruyninckx noted that one benefit with a high takeup rate is the post-childbirth service voucher. Young, self-employed mothers are automatically notified that they have a right to 105 vouchers. The vouchers can be spent on household help such as ironing, cleaning and cooking.
