Service vouchers: the gap between Regions has never been so wide
In two years, the system has changed nature. Flanders scrapped the tax benefit on 1 January 2025, Brussels followed on 1 January 2026, and only Wallonia still has a reduction. The result: an hour of cleaning now costs €9.70 in Wallonia and €11.40 in Brussels, a gap of nearly 18%. Here are the three regimes, and what they really cost.
Service vouchers pay for domestic help at home with a cheque partly funded by the Region. The system stayed stable for twenty years. In eighteen months, it has changed twice — and not in the same direction depending on where you live.
The comparison, at a glance
| Wallonia | Brussels | Flanders | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voucher price | €10.60 (1-175) €11.60 (176-400) €12.60 (401-500) | €11.40 (1-300) €14.00 (301-500) | €10.00 (1-400) €11.00 (401-500) |
| Since | 1 July 2026 | 1 January 2026 | 1 January 2025 |
| Quota / person | 500/year | 500/year | 500/year |
| Tax benefit | €0.90/voucher on 150 vouchers | abolished | abolished |
| Net cost of one hour | €9.70 | €11.40 | €10.00 |
| Validity | 8 months | 6 months | 12 months |
The gap between Wallonia and Brussels reaches €1.70 an hour. For a household that books four hours a week, that comes to around €350 a year, for strictly the same service.
Wallonia: the only Region that keeps a benefit
The price went up by 20 cents per band on 1 July 2026. The minimum order is ten vouchers in paper form, so €106, or a single voucher in electronic form.
The reduction is €0.90 per service voucher, on each of the first 150 vouchers bought during the year. It is a fixed amount: it does not follow the face value of the voucher, so it will not move if the price rises again. Cap: €135 per year and per person.
Each member of a couple, married or cohabiting, gets it individually on their own 150 vouchers — provided each has a separate user number. Two user numbers are therefore worth up to €270 a year.
An important point for modest incomes: if the reduction cannot be applied because there is not enough tax, it is converted into a refundable tax credit and the amount is paid out to the taxpayer. The Pluxee tax certificate is available on 1 March of the following year.
Beyond the 150th voucher, the net cost goes back up to €10.60, then €11.60 and finally €12.60. The scheme also provides for six-monthly indexation of prices: the gap with Flanders could narrow.
Brussels: the harshest increase
Brussels stacked all three moves: the price goes up by one euro, the tax benefit disappears, and the cap on the administrative fees charged by accredited companies is lifted. Those fees only have to stay “reasonable”.
⚠️ The real cost can exceed €11.40 an hour in Brussels. We do not put a figure on administrative fees: they are market prices, specific to each accredited company, with no official source. Ask for them explicitly before you sign, they are no longer regulated.
Vouchers bought in 2025 keep their regime: a 15% reduction on the first 172 vouchers per person. They can still be used in 2026, within their six-month validity period. The certificates issued in 2027 will no longer carry any tax benefit.
Flanders: the first to cut
Flanders led the way on 1 January 2025: the price went from €9 to €10, and the tax benefit was scrapped. The last income year giving a right to a deduction is 2024 income.
The price for the user did not change on 1 January 2026: that year's indexation applied only to the regional contribution paid to companies, not to the purchase price. That is why, with €10 and zero benefit, Flanders is still cheaper today than Brussels.
The system has been 100% digital since 1 June 2025. And since 1 June 2026, expired vouchers are refunded automatically, provided the account number on the profile is correct — this only applies to vouchers issued from 1 June 2025 onwards. For those expiring before 1 June 2026, the refund had to be requested before expiry.
What you can ask for, and what is excluded
“Everyday shopping” covers day-to-day needs: post office, bakery, chemist. Explicitly excluded are purchases of furniture, appliances and audiovisual equipment, hot meals and the regular delivery of newspapers. To transport a person with a recognised disability, the vehicle must be adapted and hold a certificate from the FPS Mobility and Transport.
Validity and refunds
In all three Regions, the issuer is Pluxee, which took over from Sodexo in 2024. It issues, manages, distributes and refunds the vouchers.
Verdict
The service voucher is still clearly cheaper than declared help outside the system, and that remains its main attraction. But the tax argument, pushed for years, has disappeared for two Belgians out of three.
In practice: in Wallonia, it still makes sense for a couple to open two user accounts and to aim for the first 150 vouchers each — that is where the whole benefit sits. In Flanders, the sum has become simple: €10 an hour, no tax arithmetic. In Brussels, the advertised price is no longer the final price, since administrative fees are no longer regulated: that is the first question to ask the accredited company, before the price of the voucher itself.