In the Summer Agreement of July 2025, the federal government announced a number of important reforms within labour law. Three measures stand out: the introduction of a maximum notice period, the return of a form of probation period, and the introduction of the right to restart. Below we explain the main changes and their impact.
1. Introduction of a maximum notice period
Today, the duration of the notice period is determined based on:
the seniority of the employee;
the time of commencement of employment (with distinction before/after 1 January 2014);
the party that initiates the dismissal.
For employees who resign themselves, there is already a maximum of 13 weeks, but for dismissal by the employer, there is currently no upper limit. As a result, notice periods, and thus costs, can increase significantly for employees with long seniority.
This will change from 1 June 2026.
For employment contracts that are concluded from 1 June 2026, the law provides that the notice period for dismissal by the employer:
will continue to evolve progressively based on seniority, but
will be capped at a maximum of 52 weeks.
This maximum is reached from 17 years of seniority. From that moment on, the notice period remains stable, even though seniority continues to increase. Specifically, this means that an employee with more than 17 years of seniority cannot have a longer notice period than 52 weeks upon dismissal.
In addition, on 21 May 2026, a draft law was approved that introduces a uniform notice period of one week during the first six months of an indefinite employment contract, regardless of who initiates the dismissal. Especially between the fourth and sixth month, the notice periods are significantly shortened:
2. Reintroduction of the probation period
With the new regulations, a form of probation period is being reintroduced, although this clearly differs from the scheme that was abolished in 2014. The new probation period closely aligns with the uniform notice period during the first six months: both employee and employer can terminate the employment contract with one week’s notice.
The counter-notice is also aligned with this: for less than six months of seniority, it will also be one week.
The exact date of entry into force of this new regulation is yet to be confirmed. The measure will only apply to employment contracts that start from this date.
3. Introduction of the right to restart
Since 1 March 2026, a new mechanism has been in place that can temporarily grant employees who voluntarily resign access to unemployment benefits. This system, the trampoline premium or the right to restart, constitutes an important exception to the classic principle that unemployment benefits are only granted in cases of involuntary unemployment.
The right to restart can only be used once in a career and is only accessible when all the conditions below are cumulatively met:
a professional history of at least 3,120 working or equivalent days (approximately 10 years of employment);
the employment contract is terminated after 28 February 2026;
the employee registers as a job seeker within 8 days after the notice period and submits an application to the RVA within 30 days to convert the exclusion due to voluntary resignation into a limited right to benefits.
The unemployment benefit lasts a maximum of six months and is equal to a regular unemployment benefit. The duration can be extended by another six months if the employee starts and successfully completes training for a shortage occupation within the first three months.
4. Impact of the new rules
The introduction of a legal upper limit on notice periods is expected to bring more predictability to future dismissal costs. At the same time, it remains important to emphasise that existing employment contracts still fall under the current, sometimes significantly high, severance payments.
In addition, the uniform notice period of one week during the first six months offers more flexibility in the start-up phase of employment. Both employers and employees can therefore adjust more quickly when it becomes clear that a collaboration is not proceeding optimally.
An additional important impact concerns the possibility of obtaining (temporary) entitlement to unemployment benefits through the right to restart in the event of a termination by mutual agreement under certain conditions. Until now, a termination by mutual agreement has always been equated with voluntary unemployment, which excluded unemployment benefits. The new system can therefore provide an extra incentive to consider a mutual agreement for termination in certain situations.
The Social Team continues to monitor the legislation and is ready for any questions you may have.