After several weeks of talks, Walloon government ministers agreed over the weekend on a budget that projects a €1,351 billion deficit in 2027, higher than the €1,124 billion target set at the start of the legislative term.
The agreed budget plan, however, covers three years and maintains an overall goal of closing the budget deficit completely by 2029.
Regional Minister-President Adrien Dolimont (MR) said the three-year approach was intended to set a new course for the region, focusing on putting Wallonia’s finances on a sustainable footing, increasing citizens’ purchasing power and investing in the region’s transformation.
A key priority for Dolimont is boosting household purchasing power, with the region setting aside €205 million for a "job bonus", modelled on a scheme in place in Flanders since 2022.
The job bonus aims to raise the pay of lower-wage workers so that working is always more financially rewarding than receiving unemployment benefits.
From 2028, the annual job bonus payment will go to about 900,000 people, according to Walloon Employment Minister Pierre-Yves Jeholet (MR). Workers on the lowest incomes will be eligible for up to €500 a year, while those earning €5,000 gross will receive €50, the upper-income limit for regional support.
Existing measures such as the Walloon family allowance system linked to births and adoptions will remain intact.
Road tax will be cut from 1 April next year, with reductions varying by engine size. Additional reductions will be given to single-parent families and owners of classic cars.
Inheritance and gift taxes will also be reformed. For direct heirs, the first €75,000 of each beneficiary’s net inheritance will be exempt from inheritance tax. Only amounts above that threshold will be taxed, at current rates.
For other heirs, including siblings, nieces and nephews, and unrelated beneficiaries, the highest rates will be reduced so that none exceeds 50%. The reduction in property gift tax approved in December 2024 will remain in force.
The government also plans to gradually increase support for services that help thousands of elderly people remain at home each day, including home-help workers, informal carers, day centres and respite care. Funding will rise by €10 million in 2027, €20 million in 2028 and €30 million in 2029.
Conversely, public funding for care homes and nursing homes will be cut by 2% in 2027, 2028, and 2029. The government will also require public social welfare centres to merge with municipalities, with the integration to be completed by 1 January 2031 in municipalities with fewer than 25,000 residents.
Solidarity Minister Yves Coppieters (Les Engagés) said this would lay the first foundation for an autonomy guarantee without asking citizens to contribute additional money.
Measures to boost investment and growth
To support investment and growth, the government has also approved an infrastructure plan it claims is worth more than €3.5 billion over seven years.
The programme covers road maintenance, bridge and tunnel renovation, waterway upgrades, compliance works on electrical cabins linked to road and waterway networks, and the creation of stormwater basins.
Further funding has been earmarked for indirect carbon cost compensation, research into white hydrogen, digital sovereignty and artificial intelligence, research, the circular economy and sustainable housing renovation.
Additional savings will be found to balance the budget by 2029, including limiting indexation for some grants and withdrawing regional funding and subsidies from Walloon airports.
Taken together, the measures are expected to produce a budget balance of minus €1,351 billion in 2027, minus €855 million in 2028 and plus €15 million in 2029.
Wallonia's Socialist opposition (PS) decried the budget as hitting residents' purchasing power, calling it "a smokescreen concealing an avalanche of bad news for the purchasing power of the Walloons."
PS notes that "everything that costs the Walloons money will come into effect in 2027," whilst the only measure that takes some of the pressure off – the job bonus – will not come into force until 2028.
