Only “students” can perform student work
A student is someone who is enrolled in regular education, is at least 15 years old, and has completed the first two years of secondary education. Recently, it also became possible for a 15-year-old student to do a student job with “light work” without meeting the study requirement. More information can be found in this article.
You remain a student for the RSZ until 30 September of the year in which you definitively graduate or stop your studies.
In our thematic dossier you will find all explanations about who you can recruit as a student.
A written student contract
A written student contract is not only mandatory, but also necessary to benefit from the reduced social security contributions. The contract must be drawn up before the start of the employment and may be concluded for a maximum of 12 uninterrupted months. Multiple contracts of shorter duration, whether spread over several years or not, are allowed.
For all information about the specifics of this contract, you can consult our fact sheet on the student contract on Lex4You.
On Lex4You you will also find a model contract for students.
A Dimona declaration at the latest upon commencement of the work
From the moment your student starts employment, you must make a Dimona declaration.
Moreover, you can only benefit from the reduced social security contributions if you make a timely Dimona-STU declaration. Timely means at the latest at the moment of taking up employment.
If you make the Dimona declaration too late, the hours worked are deemed to fall outside the contingent, and the ordinary social security contributions will be withheld. Through this Dimona declaration, you can reserve the still available hours of the student contingent of 650 hours.
When the student contract runs over several quarters, you must make a declaration each quarter. For more information about the Dimona obligation for students, be sure to consult our fact sheet on social security aspects for students on Lex4You.
How do you check the number of days the student has already worked?
As an employer, you can check the number of remaining days for the calendar year via the application Student@work. This way, you do not have to wait until you make the Dimona declaration to know whether the maximum allowed hours have been exceeded.
You can also ask your student to provide you with a certificate that shows their hours balance. This certificate contains an access code to the application, which gives you an overview of the most recent situation of the student regarding the number of hours worked.
A contingent of 650 hours per year
As an employer, since 2025 you can benefit from the favourable RSZ rate when your student works a maximum of 650 hours per calendar year.
The reduced contributions still amount to 8.13%, of which:
- 5.42% is borne by the employer (to be increased by 0.01% for the Asbestos Fund) and
- 2.71% is borne by the student
Moreover, no advance tax levy is due on the first 650 hours.
Paying a correct wage
Do you pay your student sufficiently? What is a correct wage depends on the sector (joint committee) under which your company is classified.
Check it in our article "What must you pay your student?".
The labour regulation
Have you handed over the company’s labour regulation to the student? You must provide the student with a copy of your labour regulation before the start of the employment. They must sign a receipt for this.
The industrial accident insurance
You must insure your student against industrial accidents, just like the other workers. If you do not employ any other workers, do not forget to take out industrial accident insurance.
A prior consultation of the prevention advisor
Students must be subject to general medical monitoring if that applies to the other workers in that function.
In addition to general health monitoring, there is special medical monitoring that takes into account certain characteristics specific to young people. For that reason, certain young people must always undergo a prior examination (including minor students).
When you employ a student, you must carry out a specific risk analysis to determine whether there are activities that pose a greater risk for young people than for other workers.
Also remember that it is prohibited to assign students certain tasks (for example, tasks involving exposure to harmful substances, use of dangerous machines) and to employ them at certain workplaces.
For more information, you can always consult your prevention advisor or consult our thematic dossier on student safety.
What does Securex do for you?
If you have questions about student work, do not hesitate to contact your Legal advisor via myHr@securex.be
Securex can also assist you with drafting the student contract, determining the correct student wage, and with the Dimona declaration.
