What is the mobility budget?

They can use the mobility budget for one of the following options:

🚗♻️ Pillar 1: Environmentally friendly company car

🚲🏠 Pillar 2: Sustainable means of transport and housing costs

💶📈 Pillar 3: If the budget is not fully used in pillar 1 or 2, the employee can receive the remaining amount in cash, reduced by a special employee contribution of 38.07%.

💡 The importance of the mobility budget is multifaceted for Belgian employers. On the one hand, it helps address environmental challenges by promoting greener modes of transport. On the other hand, it provides employees with more flexibility, increasing their satisfaction and engagement. Moreover, it can also generate significant tax advantages for the company.

Who is eligible for the mobility budget?

Employer

Employer active for more than 36 months: only if, during an uninterrupted period of at least 36 months, you have provided one or more company cars to your employees.
Employer active for less than 36 months: this minimum period does not apply, provided that at the time of introducing the mobility budget, you make one or more company cars available to one or more employees.

Employee

Any employee can apply for a mobility budget, provided that at the time of the request, they either have a company car or are entitled to one.

How to calculate the mobility budget?

Introduction of the mobility budget

If the employer meets the conditions mentioned above, they can start the procedure to introduce the mobility budget.

The introduction of the mobility budget requires:

• a clear internal policy,
• transparent communication to employees,
• and equal treatment of people in comparable situations.

Application: Once the mobility budget has been introduced by the employer, employees can request it in writing. The employer is not obliged to accept the request but must justify their decision. They must also communicate the calculation method of the mobility budget. If the employee chooses this option and the employer’s decision is positive, a supplement to the employment contract must be drawn up specifying the calculation method of the mobility budget.

Calculation of the mobility budget

The calculation of the mobility budget is based on:

• the employer’s annual gross cost of the company car,
• fiscal and parafiscal charges,
• company-related car expenses according to company policy

The “total cost of ownership” (TCO) is therefore the starting point for calculating the mobility budget. This includes:

• the monthly lease or rental price of the car,
• fuel costs,
• insurance,
• the CO2 solidarity contribution,
• non-deductible VAT,
• corporate tax on non-deductible car costs,
• etc.

The Royal Decree of 10 September 2023 provides two formulas for calculating the TCO:

• based on actual costs;
• based on lump-sum values.

⚠️ Attention: The mobility budget is subject to the following minimum and maximum amounts:

• minimum amount: €3,000 per calendar year;
• maximum amount: 1/5 of the employee’s total annual gross salary, with an absolute maximum of €16,000 per calendar year.

Example

Let’s take the example of an employee with a gross monthly salary of €3,000 and an identical employer cost in both cases. Instead of choosing a company car, he decides to allocate this budget to pillar 2 of the mobility budget, namely housing costs. This is possible because the employee lives within 10 km of his workplace.

We can see below the impact of the mobility budget compared to the company car:

Gross salary €3,000
Social security (RSZ): -€392.00
Work bonus: +€51.00
Benefit in kind company car: +€111.00

Taxable income €2,770
Withholding tax: -€516.00

Net salary subtotal €2,254
Special social security contribution: -€19.00
Benefit in kind: -€111.00

Net salary €2,123

⚠️ The employee’s net salary depends on their personal situation.

Gross salary €3,000
Social security (RSZ): -€392.00
Work bonus: +€51.00

Taxable income €2,659
Withholding tax: -€468.00

Net salary subtotal €2,190
Mobility budget (pillar 2): +€600.00
Special social security contribution: -€19.00

Net salary €2,771

⚠️ The employee’s net salary depends on their personal situation.

In this case, the employee has decided to allocate their mobility budget to the repayment of their rent.
This way, they obtain an additional €600 per month.

About RewardFlex

💡RewardFlex is a convenient tool that allows you to manage all mobility benefits for your employees in one place. You can easily create a personalized mobility plan, including public transport subscriptions and travel expense reimbursements. With this platform, you have full control to design and manage a flexible and tailored mobility budget — all from one central tool.

Would you like to introduce a mobility budget with Monizze’s RewardFlex? Click here.