Maternity leave for self-employed women in Belgium: 15 weeks, what benefit and which choices?

How many weeks of maternity leave does a self-employed woman get?

For leave starting on 1 July 2026 or later, a self-employed woman has up to 15 weeks (16 for a multiple birth). 3 are compulsory: 1 week before the expected date of birth and 2 after. The other 12 are optional and can be placed freely.

What counts is the date the leave starts, not the date of birth. Leave that begins at the end of June 2026 stays under the old 12-week scheme, even if the baby arrives in July.

Optional weeks can also be taken part-time: one full-time week equals two part-time weeks, up to 24 weeks (26 for twins). During those weeks you may work half-time at most. It often suits those who cannot close in one go, such as a shopkeeper or a therapist with patients every week.

What benefit does the health insurance fund pay during the leave?

The maternity benefit for self-employed women is a weekly flat rate, regardless of income: €917.33 for each of the first 4 weeks, then €839.82 from week 5 (amounts at 1 September 2026). A part-time week is paid at half the flat rate.

For 15 full-time weeks the total comes to €12,907.34. The flat rate is indexed during the year: the fund applies the amount in force on the date of each week. For a self-employed woman whose weekly income is well above that rate, the real issue is cash flow: the exempted contributions and a reserve built up during pregnancy matter as much as the benefit.

Compared with the old 12-week scheme, which paid €10,387.88 at the same rates, the 3 extra weeks add €2,519.46 of benefit, since they are all paid at the lower rate. That amount is the exact price of 105 service vouchers, in weeks as well as in euros.

Extra weeks or service vouchers: how to choose?

Since 1 July 2026, the free service vouchers of the maternity assistance scheme are paid for in weeks of leave. Without vouchers you keep all 12 optional weeks; each batch of 35 vouchers costs one, down to 9 optional weeks for 105 vouchers. One service voucher pays for one hour of domestic help.

Your social insurance fund asks for your choice after the birth and issues a certificate stating the number chosen, which you pass on to your health insurance fund. If you want the 3 extra weeks, the choice becomes final on the first day of the first extra week at the latest.

What are the conditions and how do you apply?

Maternity leave follows the rules of benefit insurance: be a member of a health insurance fund, have completed a 6-month qualifying period (or be exempt), be up to date with social contributions and stop all work, except part-time. You apply to your health insurance fund, with a medical certificate giving the expected date of birth.

You state the number of optional weeks, full-time or part-time, and their dates. You can still change your choice, provided you tell the fund in advance. A single unpaid quarter of contributions can block the benefit: check your position with the social contributions simulator well before the due date.

On contributions, a birth from 1 January 2026 exempts the mother from contributions for the 2 quarters after the quarter of the birth, with no loss of pension rights. Other reliefs are set out on the page on contribution exemptions. A self-employed co-parent has separate rights: see birth leave.

• During pregnancy: medical certificate and leave application to the health insurance fund.
• After the birth: choose the number of service vouchers with your social insurance fund, then pass the certificate to the health insurance fund.
• Throughout the leave: no professional activity at all, except during weeks taken part-time.

Further reading

The pages on this site that explore each of the points covered here in more depth.

• Birth leave for a self-employed father or co-parentThe co-parent's 20 days, the flat-rate allowance and the service voucher option.
• Contribution exemptions and reductionsMaternity, hardship, incapacity: the reliefs on INASTI contributions.
• Social and private protection for the self-employedWhat the health insurance fund, INASTI and private insurance cover.
• Incapacity for work for the self-employedSick leave outside maternity leave: benefits and conditions.
• Social contributions simulatorCheck your contributions before the leave, a condition of the benefit.

Frequently asked questions