Belgium moves to temporary funding mechanism amid budget delay
Belgium’s Council of Ministers has approved the use of “provisional twelfths” to fund government operations during the first quarter of 2026. The system is based on this year's budget and includes a limited number of "strictly necessary" exceptions.
Provisional twelfths are a long-established mechanism employed when an annual budget has not been adopted in time. In order to guarantee the continuity of public services, Parliament temporarily suspends the principle of annuality and authorises monthly spending equivalent to one twelfth of the most recently approved budget.
Once the full budget has been adopted, any expenditure incurred under this provisional regime is deducted from it, effectively treating the twelfths as an advance.
For some time, it had been clear that the federal government would have to begin the new year with this arrangement, given that the 2026 budget would not be approved by Parliament before the end of the year. Budget minister Vincent Van Peteghem has now finalised the draft framework for the first quarter, which has been endorsed by the Council of Ministers.
The proposal still needs to be approved by the Chamber of Representatives. Once the Chamber has adopted the 2026 budget, the provisional twelfths will automatically cease to apply.
"We have set a clear and ambitious path for the coming years"
“With the newly agreed multi-annual budget, we have set a clear and ambitious path for the coming years. The provisional twelfths ensure that the government can continue to function seamlessly until Parliament formally approves the budget, while exercising maximum fiscal caution,” said Van Peteghem.
Alongside the basic mechanism, the government is proposing a small number of targeted exceptions to meet urgent and unavoidable needs. These include funding to reduce prison overcrowding, extra support for public welfare centres after unemployment benefits were tightened, and the release of commitment appropriations for important defence investments.
"These limited derogations allow essential expenditure to continue without prejudicing the decisions that will be made in the final budget," Van Peteghem said.
Prime minister Bart De Wever and Budget minister Vincent Van Peteghem © BELGA PHOTO EMILE WINDAL
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