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Since 31 December 2020, anyone returning to Belgium after a stay of at least 48 hours in a red zone must quarantine. Some of your employees may therefore not be able to resume work if they have taken advantage of the Christmas period to take a few days' holiday abroad.
The Minister for Employment has also recently confirmed that the employee, who is quarantined as a result of returning from a holiday in a red zone, will not be able to receive a temporary unemployment benefit due to force majeure "COVID-19".
The Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs (https://diplomatie.belgium.be/en) updates the list of countries/regions in the red, orange or green zones on a daily basis.
What do these colour codes actually mean?
Travel is possible. Hygiene measures and physical distancing rules remain applicable.
It should be noted that the majority of European countries are currently classified as a red zone…
On their return to Belgium after a stay abroad and regardless of the colour of the area assigned to the country of destination, your employees must complete the Passenger Locator Form within 48 hours before his or her arrival in Belgium, in the following two situations:
They must also complete a self-assessment questionnaire on the conditions of their travel and/or stay abroad.
If, following examination of the Passenger Locator Form and of the self-assessment questionnaire, any of your employees are considered to be a “high-risk contact” (which should generally be the case if they are returning from a red zone), they must get a test and comply with a seven-day quarantine.
Important note!
Since 31 December 2020, anyone who returns after a stay of at least 48 hours in a red zone is considered a "high-risk contact". These persons must be tested on the 1st and 7th day of their return to Belgium and they are also subject to a quarantine period, which will only be lifted in the event of a negative test result on the 7th day.
However, there are strict exceptions to the mandatory quarantine following a return from a red zone, in particular for:
The quarantined employee must immediately inform you of this. If you so request, he must also present you with a quarantine certificate.
However, if it is possible for your quarantined employee to perform his work by, for example, using teleworking, he will continue to receive his usual wages payable by you.
On the other hand, if your employee is unable to perform his work due to his quarantine, two cases must be distinguished:
Sources: FPS Foreign Affairs; Ministerial Order of 28 October 2020 on emergency measures to limit the spread of coronavirus COVID-19, Belgian Official Gazette 28 October 2020; https://www.info-coronavirus.be/en/quarantine-isolation/ ; ONEM FAQ ; https://www.belgium.be.
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