End of your contract with UNamur
At the end of your contract, you will receive certain documents from the Remuneration Unit:
- A certificate showing the amount of vacation pay you have received.
- A certificate of unemployment (form C4). This is issued on the last working day of your period of employment. It is intended for the ONEM (Office national du chômage en Belgique).
The "C4" form will be given to you by the Cellule des Rémunérations on the last working day of your contract. Please contact the department to make an appointment to deal with this matter: cellule.remuneration@unamur.be.
In order to retain your rights to any future unemployment benefits in your country of origin, you must go to the ONEM offices in Namur to request a form called U1. You need to bring the following documents with you:
- form C4
- identity card + double-sided copy
- appendix 8 + copy
If your file is in order, form U1 is issued immediately. You can also request this form by e-mail, in which case you will receive it by post.
You will need to find out about any other procedures required by law in the country where you will subsequently reside.
Additional year after a doctorate or post-doctorate
If you meet certain conditions, it is possible to stay in Belgium for a maximum of 12 months in order to find a job or start a business.
- If you were a doctoral student: https://dofi.ibz.be/fr/themes/third-country-nationals/study/annee-de-recherche-apres-lachevement-des-etudes
- If you were a post-doctoral student: https://dofi.ibz.be/fr/themes/ressortissants-dun-pays-tiers/travail/chercheurs
Departure
When you leave Belgium, you must inform:
- The commune.
- The bank.
- The mutual insurance company
- The other companies you are in contact with.
In the event that you are certain to return to Namur quickly, you can keep your bank account and possibly your health insurance, but you must inform the commune.
To be sure that your mail will follow you to your new address, the Post Office organizes a specific service: Do My Move
Hôtel de ville
Documents to provide:
- Residence permit.
- Passport or national identity card.
- 1 passport photo.
- Your residential address in the destination country.
You will be given two documents: a Model 8 (explaining that you are ceasing your registration in the city) and another proving that you were in good standing during your stay. Please note that the document is only valid for 8 days!
Banking
You can arrange with the bank to close your bank account later, from abroad. Never forget that, even if you no longer use your bank account, you're still paying for it!
In the event that you have emptied your account without closing it, the bank will have continued to deduct bank charges. You will then owe these fees to the bank before you can open an account with the same bank again, or even prevented from opening an account with another bank.
Mutuelle
Ask them to cancel your cover on the date you leave Belgium (not the day you announce your departure): you must be covered until the end of your stay!
If you forget to unsubscribe and return to Belgium, you will be liable for the contribution for the entire period since your departure. To avoid having to pay this amount, you'll need to prove that you were outside Belgium (for example, by the entry and exit stamps on your passport).
Pre-departure tax return
For more information, visit this page.
VAT refund for export of goods
How and when to obtain a VAT refund on the export of goods? Learn more
Unemployment
The information provided below is very general. As many cases are unique and the legislation is very specific and changes regularly, it is best to contact:
- if you are staying in Belgium - a trade union or CAPAC;
- if you are returning to your home country, the relevant organization.
In Belgium, you are entitled to unemployment benefits if you meet certain conditions, including the following:
- you are registered in the Belgian national register;
- you have worked as an employee.
PhD and post-doctoral fellows pay social security contributions that enable them to access social security for healthcare. Pension and unemployment are not covered, which means they are not entitled to unemployment benefits.
Please consult the following sites: https://www.euraxess.be/belgium/information-assistance/unemployment - https://www.socialsecurity.be/CMS/en/coming_to_belgium/index.html
Find a job
If you wish to remain at UNamur, please contact your promoter, who may have useful information to share with you.
You can also check out possible vacancies at the following addresses:
Pension
For more information, visit the Euraxess website.