The number of applications for Belgian nationality has halved since the registration fee rose from €150 to €1,000 a year ago, according to data provided by the Ministry of Finance to Belga.
This fee, which is now index-linked, rose to €1,030 in January 2026.
The price rise was part of what the Federal Government called the country's "strictest asylum and migration policy ever".
It is now one of the costliest citizenships in the EU, only behind Austria, Ireland and the Netherlands, as The Brussels Times previously reported.
Before the reform announced in July 2025, around 4,000 payments of this fee were recorded each month (a monthly average of 4,015 in 2024).
Since the reform came into force, the average has fallen to just under 2,000 (1,944 between August 2025 and the end of July 2026).
In the first six months of 2026, 12,241 payments were recorded. There were 24,066 over the same period in 2024, the last calendar year before the reform.
The Belgian passport. Credit: Belga/Jonas Hamers
The data also reveals a rush before the deadline. The draft bill had originally announced that the reform would come into force on 1 July 2025: in June, 10,988 payments were recorded, nearly triple the number of an ordinary month.
There were still 5,956 in July. The drop was then sharp in August 2025, the first month under the new rate, with 1,297 payments.
More money
Revenue, however, more than doubled. As the rate had increased nearly sevenfold, this rise more than offset the fall in the number of applications.
The state coffers received €7.2 million in 2024 (7,207,500), €15.8 million in 2025 (15,797,900), and had already reached €14.1 million by 27 July 2026 (14,061,260).
These figures constitute the first direct indicator of the measure’s impact. The registration fee is paid at the time the application is submitted and is not refunded in the event of a refusal.
A spokesperson for the Justice Ministry told The Brussels Times earlier this month that between 1 January and 17 July inclusive, the number of people who acquired the nationality stood at 18,337.
This figure showed a provisional drop compared to last year, but the reality is more nuanced, according to the Ministry of Finance.
Queen Mathilde of Belgium and King Philippe of Belgium meet citizens. Credit: Belga / Nicolas Maeterlinck
"These figures represent the number of people for whom a certificate of nationality was issued and who have consequently become Belgian citizens. They do not reflect the number of applications submitted," spokesperson Sharon Beavis said.
The Ministry of Justice further confirmed to Belga that the number of people who have actually become Belgian citizens by declaration is also falling, but more slowly, as it takes time for applications to be finalised.
Nevertheless, only 18,337 applications have been approved since 1 January 2026, compared with 46,265 approved in 2025 – a reduction of around 25% in the daily rate, according to the Ministry for Justice.
