Proposal for a COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING DECISION amending Implementing Decision (EU) 2020/1342 granting temporary support pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2020/672 to the Kingdom of Belgium to mitigate unemployment risks in the emergency following the COVID-19 outbreak
Date: 2021-03-29
Institutions: Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs, European Commission
Subjects: Belgium, EU loan, aid to undertakings, coronavirus disease, emergency aid, employment aid, epidemic, fight against unemployment, public expenditure, self-employed person

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   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 29.3.2021  COM(2021) 168 final 2021/0091 (NLE)  Proposal for a COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING DECISION amending Implementing Decision (EU) 2020/1342 granting temporary support pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2020/672 to the Kingdom of Belgium to mitigate unemployment risks in the emergency following the COVID-19 outbreak  
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

• 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

Reasons for and objectives of the proposal 

Council Regulation (EU) 2020/672 (“SURE Regulation”) lays down the legal framework for 
providing  Union  financial  assistance  to  Member  States,  which  are  experiencing,  or  are 
seriously threatened with, a severe economic disturbance caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. 
Support  under  SURE  serves  for  the  financing,  primarily,  of  short-time  work  schemes  or 
similar measures aimed at protecting employees and the self‐ employed and thus reducing the 
incidence of unemployment and loss of income, as well as for the financing, as an ancillary, 
of some health-related measures, in particular in the workplace. 

On  25  September  2020,  the  Council  granted  financial  assistance  to  Belgium  with  a  view  to 
complementing  its  national  efforts  to  address  the  impact  of  the  COVID-19  outbreak  and 
respond  to  the  socioeconomic  consequences  of  the  outbreak  for  workers  and  the  self-
employed. 

On  11  March  2021,  Belgium  made  a  new  request  for  Union  financial  assistance  under  the 
SURE Regulation.  

In accordance with Article 6(2) of the SURE Regulation, the Commission has consulted the 
Belgian authorities to verify the sudden and severe increase in actual and planned expenditure 
directly related to Belgian labour market measures and health-related measures and caused by 
the  COVID-19  pandemic.  In  particular,  the  increased  expenditure  for  which  additional 
financial  assistance  is  requested  pertain  to  a  combination  of  a  new  measure  and  existing 
measures referred to in Council Implementing Decision (EU) 2020/1342: 

a number of regional and community income support schemes provide income support to the 
self-employed, one-person companies  and other types of employees, who do not qualify  for 
other kinds of income support. In particular, the compensation premia for companies and for 
entrepreneurs  and a new measure consisting of emergency support to entrepreneurs and  one 
person  companies  for  the  Brussels  Capital  Region,  the  nuisance,  compensation  and  support 
premia  (and  its  three  subsequent  extensions)  for  the  Flemish  Region  and  the  Flemish 
Community and the compensation premium for business closure (and its two extensions) for 
the  Walloon  Region  provide  generalised  one-off  and  sector  specific  support  for  companies 
and self-employed that needed to close their activities due to COVID-19 or faced a substantial 
reduction in turnover. Other measures (the compensation premium for intermittent workers in 
the Brussels Capital Region, the nurseries subvention and the cultural operators subvention in 
the  French  Community,  the  training  activities  in  Wallonia)  target  the  self-employed  and 
workers with no access to the temporary unemployment scheme in specific sectors (cultural 
and care sector, training activities).  

Belgium provided the Commission with the relevant information.  

Taking into account the available evidence, the Commission proposes to the Council to adopt 
an  Implementing  Decision  to  grant  financial  assistance  to  Belgium  under  the  SURE 
Regulation in support of the measures above. 

• 

Consistency with existing policy provisions in the policy area 

The present proposal is fully consistent with Council Regulation (EU) 2020/672, under which 
the proposal is made. 

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The present proposal comes in addition to another Union law instrument to provide support to 
Member States in case of emergencies, namely Council Regulation (EC) No 2012/2002 of 11 
November 2002 establishing the European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF) (“Regulation (EC) 
No 2012/2002”). Regulation (EU) 2020/461 of the European Parliament and of the Council, 
which amends that instrument to  extend its scope to  cover major public  health emergencies 
and to define specific operations eligible for financing, was adopted on 30 March.   

• 

Consistency with other Union policies 

The proposal is part of a range of measures developed in response to the current COVID-19 
pandemic  such  as  the  “Coronavirus  Response  Investment  Initiative”,  and  it  complements 
other  instruments  that  support  employment  such  as  the  European  Social  Fund  and  the 
European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI)/InvestEU. By making use of borrowing and 
lending in this particular case of the COVID-19 outbreak for supporting Member States, this 
proposal  acts  as  a  second  line  of  defence  to  finance  short-time  work  schemes  and  similar 
measures,  helping  protect  jobs  and  thus  employees  and  self-employed  against  the  risk  of 
unemployment.  

2. 

• 

LEGAL BASIS, SUBSIDIARITY AND PROPORTIONALITY 

Legal basis 

The legal basis for this instrument is Council Regulation (EU) 2020/672.   

• 

Subsidiarity (for non-exclusive competence)  

The  proposal  follows  a  Member  State  request  and  shows  European  solidarity  by  providing 
Union financial assistance in the form of temporary loans to a Member State affected by the 
COVID-19  outbreak.  As  a  second  line  of  defence,  such  financial  assistance  supports  the 
government’s increased public expenditure on a temporary basis in respect of short-time work 
schemes  and  similar  measures  to  help  them  protect  jobs  and  thus  employees  and  self-
employed against the risk of unemployment and loss of income. 

Such  support  will  help  the  population  affected  and  helps  to  mitigate  the  direct  societal  and 
economic impact caused by the present COVID-19 crisis.  

• 

Proportionality 

The proposal respects the proportionality principle. It does not go beyond what is necessary to 
achieve the objectives sought by the instrument.  

3. 

• 

RESULTS 
CONSULTATIONS AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS 

EX-POST 

EVALUATIONS, 

OF 

STAKEHOLDER 

Stakeholder consultations 

Due to the urgency to prepare the proposal so that it can be adopted in a timely manner by the 
Council, a stakeholder consultation could not be carried out. 

• 

Impact assessment 

Due to the urgent nature of the proposal, no impact assessment was carried out. 

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4. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS 

The  Commission  should  be  able  to  contract  borrowings  on  the  financial  markets  with  the 
purpose  of  on-lending  them  to  the  Member  State  requesting  financial  assistance  under  the 
SURE instrument.  

In  addition  to  the  provision  of  Member  State  guarantees,  other  safeguards  are  built  into  the 
framework in order to ensure the financial solidity of the scheme: 

 

 

A rigorous and conservative approach to financial management; 

A  construction  of  the  portfolio  of  loans  that  limits  concentration  risk,  annual 
exposure and excessive exposure to individual Member States whilst ensuring 
sufficient resources could be granted to Member States most in need; and 

 

Possibilities to roll over debt. 

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2021/0091 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING DECISION 

amending Implementing Decision (EU) 2020/1342 granting temporary support pursuant 
to Regulation (EU) 2020/672 to the Kingdom of Belgium to mitigate unemployment risks 
in the emergency following the COVID-19 outbreak 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, 

Having regard to Council Regulation (EU) 2020/672 of 19 May 2020 on the establishment of 
a  European  instrument  for  temporary  support  to  mitigate  unemployment  risks  in  an 
emergency (SURE) following the COVID-19 outbreak1, and in particular Article 6(1) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

On 25 September 2020, the Council granted financial assistance to Belgium taking the 
form  of  a  loan  amounting  to  a  maximum  of  EUR  7 803 380 000  with  a  maximum 
average maturity of 15  years, following Belgium’s request  of 7 August  2020, with  a 
view  to  complementing  its  national  efforts  to  address  the  impact  of  the  COVID-19 
outbreak and respond to the socio-economic consequences of the outbreak for workers 
and the self-employed.  

The  loan  was  to  finance  the  short-time  work  schemes,  similar  measures  and  health-
related  measures  adopted  by  Belgium,  as  referred  to  in  Council  Implementing 
Decision (EU) 2020/13422.  

The COVID-19 outbreak continues to immobilise a substantial part of the labour force 
in Belgium. This has led to a still sudden and severe increase in public expenditure by 
Belgium  in  respect  of  a  new  measure,  namely  a  new  support  scheme  to  small 
businesses in the Brussels Capital Region, and other existing regional measures, some 
of  them  extended,  as  referred  to  in  Article  3(d)(i)  to  (iv)  of  Implementing  Decision 
(EU) 2020/1342.  

The COVID-19 outbreak and the extraordinary measures implemented by Belgium in 
2020  and  2021  to  contain  the  outbreak  and  its  socio-economic  and  health-related 
impact  had  and  still  have  a  dramatic  impact  on  public  finances.  According  to  the 
Commission's  2020  autumn  forecast,  Belgium  was  expected  to  have  a  general 
government deficit and debt of 11.2% and 117.7% of gross domestic product (GDP) 
respectively  by  the  end  of  2020.  In  2021,  Belgium’s  general  government  deficit  and 
debt are forecast to stand at 7.1% and 117.8% of GDP respectively. According to the 
Commission’s  2021  winter  interim  forecast,  Belgium’s  GDP  is  projected  to  increase 
by 3.9% in 2021. 

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OJ L 159, 20.5.2020, p. 1. 
Council Implementing Decision (EU) 2020/1342 of 25 September 2020 on granting temporary support 
under  Regulation  (EU)  2020/672  to  the  Kingdom  of  Belgium  to  mitigate  unemployment  risks  in  the 
emergency following the COVID-19 outbreak, OJ L 314, 29.9.2020, p. 4–9.  

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(5) 

(6) 

On 11 March 2021, Belgium requested further financial assistance from the Union in 
an  amount  of  EUR  394 150 000  with  a  view  to  continue  complementing  its  national 
efforts undertaken in 2020 and 2021 to address the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak 
and respond to the socioeconomic consequences of the outbreak for workers and the 
self-employed. In particular it concerns the measures set out in recitals 6 to 7.  

It concerns a request for support for an extension of existing regional and community 
income support schemes referred to in Article 3(d)(i) to (iv) of Implementing Decision 
(EU)  2020/1342  of  the  Brussels  Capital  Region,  the  Flemish  Region  and  Flemish 
Community, the Walloon Region and the French Community:  

‘Arrêté du Gouvernement  de la Région  de  Bruxelles-Capitale de pouvoirs spéciaux 
n°  2020/019  du  23  avril  2020/Bijzondere  machtenbesluit  van  de  Brusselse 
Hoofdstedelijke Regering nr. 2020/019 van 23 april 20203’;  

‘Arrêté du Gouvernement  de la Région  de  Bruxelles-Capitale de pouvoirs spéciaux 
n°  2020/030  du  28  mai  2020/Bijzondere  machtenbesluit  nr.  2020/030  van  de 
Brusselse  Hoofdstedelijke  Regering  van  28  mei  20204’,  as  extended  by  ‘Arrêté  du 
Gouvernement de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale du 15 octobre 2020 relatif à une 
aide aux secteurs de l'événementiel, du monde de la nuit, du tourisme et de la culture 
dans  le  cadre  de  la  crise  sanitaire  du  COVID-19/Besluit  van  de  Brusselse 
Hoofdstedelijke  Regering  van  15  oktober  2020  betreffende  steun  aan  de 
evenementen-,  uitgaans-,  toeristische  en  culturele  sector  in  het  kader  van  de 
gezondheidscrisis  COVID-19’  and  ‘Arrêté  du  Gouvernement  de  la  Région  de 
Bruxelles-Capitale du 12 novembre 2020 relatif à une aide aux entreprises débits de 
boissons et restaurants dans le cadre de la crise sanitaire du COVID-19 /Besluit van 
de Brusselse Hoofdstedelijke Regering van 12 november 2020 betreffende steun aan 
de eet- en drankgelegenhedenondernemingen in  het  kader van de  gezondheidscrisis 
COVID-19’.  The  two  extended  schemes  provide  compensation  premia  to  the  self-
employed  and  one-person  businesses  in  sectors  that  were  forced  to  close  in  the 
context of the pandemic;  

‘Notification de la réunion du conseil des ministres du gouvernement de la région de 
Bruxelles-Capitale  du  jeudi  14  mai  2020/Betekening  van  de  vergadering  van  de 
Ministerraad  van  de  Brusselse  Hoofdstedelijke  Regering  van  donderdag  14  mei 
2020, as transposed in ‘Arrêté du Gouvernement de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale 
du  24  juillet  2020  instaurant  une  aide  exceptionnelle  pour  les  travailleurs 
intermittents de la culture/Besluit van de Brusselse Hoofdstedelijke Regering van 24 
juli 2020 houdende invoering van uitzonderlijke steun voor de cultuurwerkers’5’;  

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Arrêté du Gouvernement de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale de pouvoirs spéciaux n° 2020/019 du 23 
avril 2020 modifiant l’arrêté de pouvoirs spéciaux n° 2020/013 du 7 avril 2020 relatif à une aide en vue 
de  l’indemnisation  des  entreprises  affectées  par  les  mesures  d’urgence  pour  limiter  la  propagation  du 
coronavirus  COVID-19/Bijzondere  machtenbesluit  van  de  Brusselse  Hoofdstedelijke  Regering  nr. 
2020/019 van 23 april 2020 tot  wijziging van  het bijzondere  machtenbesluit  nr. 2020/013 van 7 april 
2020  betreffende  de  steun  tot  vergoeding  van  de  ondernemingen  getroffen  door  de  dringende 
maatregelen om de verspreiding van het coronavirus COVID-19 te beperken. 
Arrêté du Gouvernement de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale de pouvoirs spéciaux n° 2020/030 du 28 
mai 2020 relatif à l’aide aux entreprises qui subissent une baisse d’activité en raison de la crise sanitaire 
du COVID-19/Bijzondere machtenbesluit nr. 2020/030 van de Brusselse Hoofdstedelijke Regering van 
28 mei 2020 betreffende de steun aan ondernemingen die een terugval van hun activiteit ondergaan als 
gevolg van de gezondheidscrisis COVID-19. 
Notification de la réunion du conseil des ministres du gouvernement de la région de Bruxelles-Capitale 
du jeudi 14  mai 2020, point 25/Betekening  van de vergadering  van de Ministerraad van de Brusselse 
Hoofdstedelijke  Regering  van  donderdag  14  mei  2020,  punt  25.  This  political  decision  has  been 

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‘Besluit van de Vlaamse Regering van 20 maart 20206’;  
‘Besluit van de Vlaamse Regering van 10 april 20207’; 
‘Besluit  van  de  Vlaamse  Regering  van  12  juni  20208  laying  down  a  “support 
premium”, as extended by ‘Besluit van de Vlaamse Regering van 23 oktober 2020’, 
'Besluit van de Vlaamse Regering van 7 augustus 2020’ and ‘Besluit van de Vlaamse 
Regering  van  13  november  2020’.  The  three  extended  schemes,  also  called 
respectively “Flemish Protection Mechanism 1,2 and 3” provide a support premium 
to business that are open but experience a decrease in turnover of at least 60% or had 
to close their business due to federal safety and security measures; 

‘Arrêté du Gouvernement de la Communauté française de pouvoirs spéciaux n° 4 du 
23  avril  20209’,  ‘Arrêté  du  Gouvernement  de  la  Communauté  française  du  7  avril 
202010’;  ‘Arrêté  ministériel  du  8  avril  2020  portant  exécution  de  l’arrêté  du 
Gouvernement wallon du 20 mars 202011’; ‘Arrêté du Gouvernement wallon du 19 
juin 202012’;  

The aforementioned measures pertain to schemes that provide income support to the 
self-employed,  one-person  companies,  and  other  types  of  employees  who  do  not 
qualify for other kinds of income support. In particular, the compensation premia for 
companies  and  for  entrepreneurs  in  the  Brussels  Capital  Region,  the  nuisance, 
compensation  and  support  premia  in  the  Flemish  Region  and  the  Flemish 
Community,  and  the  compensation  premium  for  business  closure  in  the  Walloon 
Region  provide  generalised  one-off  support  for  companies  and  the  self-employed 
which  needed  to  close  their  activities  due  to  COVID-19  or  faced  a  substantial 
reduction in turnover.  

transposed into a legal act by Arrêté du Gouvernement de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale du 24 juillet 
2020 instaurant une aide exceptionnelle pour les travailleurs intermittents de la culture/Besluit van de 
Brusselse Hoofdstedelijke Regering van 24 juli 2020 houdende invoering van uitzonderlijke steun voor 
de cultuurwerkers. 
Besluit van de Vlaamse Regering van 20 maart 2020 tot toekenning van steun aan ondernemingen die 
verplicht  moeten  sluiten  ten  gevolge  van  de  maatregelen  genomen  door  de  Nationale  Veiligheidsraad 
vanaf 12 maart 2020 inzake het coronavirus. 
Besluit  van de Vlaamse Regering  van 10 april 2020 tot toekenning  van steun aan ondernemingen die 
een  omzetdaling  hebben  ten  gevolge  van  de  exploitatiebeperkingen  opgelegd  door  de  maatregelen 
genomen door de Nationale Veiligheidsraad vanaf 12 maart 2020 inzake het coronavirus. 
Besluit van de Vlaamse Regering van 12 juni 2020 tot toekenning van steun aan ondernemingen die een 
omzetdaling hebben ondanks de versoepelde coronavirusmaatregelen, tot wijziging van de artikelen 1, 9 
en  11  van  het  besluit  van  de  Vlaamse  Regering  van  10  april  2020  tot  toekenning  van  steun  aan 
ondernemingen die een omzetdaling hebben ten gevolge van de exploitatiebeperkingen opgelegd door 
de  maatregelen  genomen  door  de  Nationale  Veiligheidsraad  vanaf  12  maart  2020  inzake  het 
coronavirus, en tot wijziging van de artikelen 1, 6, 9 en 12 van het besluit van de Vlaamse Regering van 
20  maart  2020  tot  toekenning  van  steun  aan  ondernemingen  die  verplicht  moeten  sluiten  ten  gevolge 
van  de  maatregelen  genomen  door  de  Nationale  Veiligheidsraad  vanaf  12  maart  2020  inzake  het 
coronavirus. 
Arrêté du Gouvernement de la Communauté française de pouvoirs spéciaux n° 4 du 23 avril 2020 relatif 
au soutien du secteur culturel et du cinéma dans le cadre de la crise sanitaire du COVID-19. 
Arrêté  du  Gouvernement  de  la  Communauté  française  du  7  avril  2020  relatif  au  soutien  des  milieux 
d’accueil dans le cadre de la crise sanitaire du COVID-19. 
Arrêté  ministériel  du  8  avril  2020  portant  exécution  de  l’arrêté  du  Gouvernement  wallon  du  20  mars 
2020  relatif  à  l’octroi  d’indemnités  compensatoires  dans  le  cadre  des  mesures  contre  le  coronavirus 
COVID-19  and  Arrêté  du  Gouvernement  wallon  du  20  mars  2020  relatif  à  l’octroi  d’indemnités 
compensatoires dans le cadre des mesures contre le coronavirus COVID-19. 
Arrêté  du  Gouvernement  wallon  du  19  juin  2020  portant  des  dispositions  diverses  relatives  aux 
formateurs  et  au  subventionnement  des  activités  de  formation  des  centres  de  formation  du  réseau 
IFAPME. 

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(7) 

Where  the  measures  target  a  wider  range  of  beneficiaries,  only  the  amounts  for 
expenditure  related  to  the  support  of  the  self-employed  and  one-person  companies 
have  been  requested.  Other  measures  (the  compensation  premium  for  intermittent 
workers  in  the  Brussels  Capital  Region,  the  nurseries  subvention  and  the  cultural 
operators subvention in the French Community, the training activities in the Walloon 
Region,  and  the  cultural  operators  and  self-employed  subvention)  target  the  self-
employed  and  workers  with  no  access  to  the  temporary  unemployment  scheme  in 
specific sectors (cultural and care sector, training activities).  

Support  is  also  requested  for  a  new  measure  from  the  Brussels  Capital  Region.  It 
concerns  ‘Arrêté  du  Gouvernement  de  la  Région  de  Bruxelles-Capitale  concernant 
l’octroi  d’une  subvention  de  1.625.000,00  EUR  à  la  SA  Brusoc  dans  le  cadre  de 
l’octroi de micro-crédits de trésorerie pour les indépendants et les micro-entreprises en 
raison  de  la  crise  sanitaire  du  COVID-19/Toekenning  van  micro-kaskredieten  voor 
zelfstandigen  en  zko’s'.  In  particular,  the  measure  provides  micro  credits  to 
entrepreneurs  and one person companies in  Brussels  Capital.  Only the part of public 
expenditure related to the expected losses has been requested.  The amount requested 
for  expenditure  relates  only  to  the  support  of  the  self-employed  and  one-person 
companies. 

 (8)  Belgium fulfils the conditions for requesting financial assistance set out in Article 3 of 
Regulation  (EU)  2020/672.  Belgium  has  provided  the  Commission  with  appropriate 
evidence  that  the  actual  and  planned  public  expenditure  has  increased  by  EUR 
10 103 933 459 as  of 1 February 2020 due to  the national  measures  taken to  address 
the socio-economic effects of the COVID-19 outbreak. This constitutes a sudden and 
severe increase because it is related also to both a new measure and existing measures 
directly  related  to  short-time  work  schemes  and  similar  measures,  some  of  them 
extended, that cover a significant proportion of undertakings and of the labour force in 
Belgium. Belgium intends to finance EUR 1 906 403 459 of the increased amount of 
public expenditure through its own financing.  

(9) 

The Commission has consulted Belgium and verified the sudden and severe increase 
in  the  actual  and  planned  public  expenditure  directly  related  to  short-time  work 
schemes  and  similar  measures  referred  to  in  the  request  of  11  March  2021,  in 
accordance with Article 6 of Regulation (EU) 2020/672.  

 (10)  Financial assistance should  therefore be provided with  a view to  helping Belgium to 
address the socio-economic effects of the severe economic disturbance caused by the 
COVID-19  outbreak.  The  Commission  should  take  the  decisions  concerning 
maturities,  size  and  release  of  instalments  and  tranches  in  close  cooperation  with 
national authorities. 

(11)  Belgium  and  the  Commission  should  take  this  Decision  into  account  in  the  loan 

agreement referred to in Article 8(2) of Regulation (EU) 2020/672.  

(12)  This Decision should be without prejudice to the outcome of any procedures relating 
to  distortions  of  the  operation  of  the  internal  market  that  may  be  undertaken,  in 
particular  pursuant  to  Articles  107  and  108  of  the  Treaty.  It  does  not  override  the 
requirement  for  Member  States  to  notify  instances  of  potential  State  aid  to  the 
Commission under Article 108 of the Treaty. 

(13)  Belgium  should  inform  the  Commission  on  a  regular  basis  of  the  implementation  of 
the planned public expenditure, in order to enable the Commission to assess the extent 
to which Belgium has implemented that expenditure. 

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(14)  The  decision  to  provide  financial  assistance  has  been  reached  taking  into  account 
existing  and  expected  needs  of  Belgium,  as  well  as  requests  for  financial  assistance 
pursuant  to  Regulation  (EU)  2020/672  already  submitted  or  planned  to be  submitted 
by other Member States, while applying the principles of equal  treatment,  solidarity, 
proportionality and transparency,  

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:  

Implementing Decision (EU) 2020/1342 is amended as follows:  

Article 1 

(1) 

Article 2 is amended as follows: 

(a) 

paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:  

‘1.  The  Union  shall  make  available  to  Belgium  a  loan  amounting  to  a  maximum  of 
EUR 8 197 530 000. The loan shall have a maximum average maturity of 15 years.’; 

(b)  paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:  

‘4.  The  first  instalment  shall  be  released  subject  to  the  entry  into  force  of  the  loan 
agreement  provided  for  in  Article  8(2)  of  Regulation  (EU)  2020/672.  Any  further 
instalments shall be released in accordance with the terms of such loan agreement or, 
where relevant, be subject to the entry into force of an addendum to the latter, or an 
amended  loan agreement concluded between Belgium and the Commission.’; 

(2) 

Article 3 is replaced by the following:  

Belgium may finance the following measures: 

‘Article 3 

(a) 

‘chômage 

temporary  unemployment 

temporaire/tijdelijke 
scheme, 
the 
werkloosheid’ as provided for by the ‘Koninklijk besluit van 30 maart 2020 tot 
aanpassing van de procedures in het kader van tijdelijke werkloosheid omwille 
van  het  Covid-19-virus  en  tot  wijziging  van  artikel  10  van  het  koninklijk 
besluit van 6 mei 2019 tot wijziging van de artikelen 27, 51, 52bis, 58, 58/3 en 
63  van  het  koninklijk  besluit  van  25  november  1991  houdende  de 
werkloosheidsreglementering en tot invoeging van de artikelen 36sexies, 63bis 
en 124bis in hetzelfde besluit/Arrêté royal du 30 mars 2020 visant à adapter les 
procédures  dans  le  cadre  du  chômage  temporaire  dû  au  virus  Covid-19  et  à 
modifier l’article 10 de l’arrêté royal du 6 mai 2019 modifiant les articles 27, 
51,  52bis,  58,  58/3  et  63  de  l’arrêté  royal  du  25  novembre  1991  portant 
réglementation  du  chômage  et  insérant  les  articles  36sexies,  63bis  et  124bis 
dans le même arrêté’; 

(b) 

the  COVID-19-related  replacement  income  for  the  self-employed,  ‘crisis 
bridging rights’ as provided for by the ‘Loi du 23 mars 2020 modifiant la loi du 
22  décembre  2016  instaurant  un  droit  passerelle  en  faveur  des  travailleurs 
indépendants et introduisant les mesures temporaires dans le cadre du COVID-
19 en faveur des travailleurs indépendants/Wet van 23 maart 2020 tot wijziging 
invoering  van  een 
van  de  wet  van  22  december  2016  houdende 

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overbruggingsrecht ten gunste van zelfstandigen en tot invoering van tijdelijke 
maatregelen in het kader van COVID-19 ten gunste van zelfstandigen’; 

(c) 

the COVID-19 parental leave as provided for in the ‘Arrêté royal n° 23 du 13 
mai  2020  pris  en  exécution  de  l’article  5,  §  1,  5°,  de  la  loi  du  27  mars  2020 
accordant des pouvoirs au Roi afin de prendre des mesures dans la lutte contre 
la  propagation  du  coronavirus  COVID-19  (II)  visant  le  congé  parental 
corona/Koninklijk besluit nr. 23 van 13 mei 2020, tot uitvoering van artikel 5, 
§ 1, 5°, van de wet van 27 maart 2020 die machtiging verleent aan de Koning 
om maatregelen te nemen in de strijd tegen de verspreiding van het coronavirus 
COVID-19 (II) houdende het corona ouderschapsverlof’; 

(d) 

regional and community income support schemes, as follows:  

(i) for the Brussels Capital Region:  

– 

– 

– 

– 

a compensation premium for companies as provided for in the ‘Arrêté du 
Gouvernement de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale de pouvoirs spéciaux 
n°  2020/019  du  23  avril  2020/Bijzondere  machtenbesluit  van  de 
Brusselse Hoofdstedelijke Regering nr. 2020/019 van 23 april 2020’, for 
the  part  of  expenditure  related  to  the  support  of  the  self-employed  and 
one-person companies;  

nr. 

van 

2020/030 

a  compensation  premium  for  entrepreneurs  as  provided  for  in  the 
‘Bijzondere  machtenbesluit 
de  Brusselse 
Hoofdstedelijke Regering van 28 mei 2020/Arrêté du Gouvernement de 
la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale de pouvoirs spéciaux n° 2020/030 du 28 
mai 2020’, for the part of expenditure related to the support of the self-
employed  and  one-person  companies,  as  extended  by  ‘Arrêté  du 
Gouvernement  de  la  Région  de  Bruxelles-Capitale  du  15  octobre  2020 
relatif à une aide aux secteurs de l'événementiel, du monde de la nuit, du 
tourisme  et  de  la  culture  dans  le  cadre  de  la  crise  sanitaire  du  COVID-
19/Besluit  van  de  Brusselse  Hoofdstedelijke  Regering  van  15  oktober 
2020  betreffende  steun  aan  de  evenementen-,  uitgaans-,  toeristische  en 
culturele sector in het kader van de gezondheidscrisis COVID-19’ and as 
extended  by  ‘Arrêté  du  Gouvernement  de  la  Région  de  Bruxelles-
Capitale du 12 novembre 2020 relatif à une aide aux entreprises débits de 
boissons et restaurants dans le cadre de la crise sanitaire du COVID-19/ 
Besluit  van  de  Brusselse  Hoofdstedelijke  Regering  van  12  november 
2020 betreffende steun aan de eet- en drankgelegenhedenondernemingen 
in het kader van de gezondheidscrisis COVID-19’;  

a compensation premium for intermittent workers, as provided for in the 
‘Arrêté  du  Gouvernement  de  la  Région  de  Bruxelles-Capitale  du  24 
juillet  2020  instaurant  une  aide  exceptionnelle  pour  les  travailleurs 
intermittents  de  la  culture/Besluit  van  de  Brusselse  Hoofdstedelijke 
Regering  van  24  juli  2020  houdende  invoering  van  uitzonderlijke  steun 
voor de cultuurwerkers’; 

an  emergency  support  scheme  to  entrepreneurs  and  one  person 
companies as provided for by ‘Arrêté du Gouvernement de la Région de 
Bruxelles-Capitale concernant l’octroi d’une subvention de 1.625.000,00 
EUR  à  la  SA  Brusoc  dans  le  cadre  de  l’octroi  de  micro-crédits  de 
trésorerie  pour  les  indépendants  et  les  micro-entreprises  en  raison  de  la 

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crise  sanitaire  du  COVID-19/Toekenning  van  micro-kaskredieten  voor 
zelfstandigen  en  zko’s’  for  the  the  part  of  public  expenditure  related  to 
the expected losses on loans granted to the self-employed and one-person 
companies.  

(ii) for the Flemish Region and the Flemish Community: 

– 

– 

– 

a nuisance premium as provided for in ‘Besluit van de Vlaamse Regering 
van 20 maart 2020’, for the part of expenditure related to the support of 
the self-employed and one-person companies;  

a  compensation  premium  as  provided  for  in  ‘Besluit  van  de  Vlaamse 
Regering  van  10  april  2020’,  for  the  part  of  expenditure  related  to  the 
support of the self-employed and one-person companies;  

a support premium as provided for in ‘Besluit van de Vlaamse Regering 
van 12 juni 2020’, for the part of expenditure related to the support of the 
self-employed and one-person companies, as extended by ‘Besluit van de 
Vlaamse  Regering  van  23  oktober  2020’,  Besluit  van  de  Vlaamse 
Regering  van  7  augustus  2020’  and  ‘Besluit  van  de  Vlaamse  Regering 
van 13 november 2020’ (Flemish Protection Scheme 1, 2, 3).  

(iii) for the French Community:  

– 

– 

a  cultural  operators  subvention  as  provided  for 
in  ‘Arrêté  du 
Gouvernement de la Communauté française de pouvoirs spéciaux n° 4 du 
23 avril 2020’;  

nurseries  subvention  as  provided  for  in  ‘Arrêté  du  Gouvernement  de  la 
Communauté  française  du  7  avril  2020’,  for  the  part  of  expenditure 
related to the support of the self-employed and one-person companies; 

(iv) for the Walloon Region:  

– 

– 

a compensation premium for business closure as provided for in ‘Arrêté 
l’arrêté  du 
ministériel  du  8  avril  2020  portant  exécution  de 
Gouvernement  wallon  du  20  mars  2020’,  for  the  part  of  expenditure 
related to the support of the self-employed and one-person companies; 

training activities as provided for in ‘Arrêté du Gouvernement wallon du 
19 juin 2020’;  

(v) for the German-speaking Community:  

– 

– 

a  cultural  operators  and  self-employed  subvention  as  provided  for  in 
‘Parlament der Deutschsprachigen Gemeinschaft, Corona-Krisendekret  I 
vom 6. April 2020’, Article 7, for the part of expenditure relating to loans 
being converted into grants;  

a  touristic  operators  subvention  as  provided  for  in  ‘Parlament  der 
Deutschsprachigen  Gemeinschaft,  CoronaKrisendekret  III  vom  20.  Juli 
2020’, Article 4, for the part of expenditure related to the support of the 
selfemployed and one-person companies;  

(e) 

health related measures in the German-speaking Community as provided for in 
‘Parlament  der  Deutschsprachigen  Gemeinschaft,  Corona-Krisendekret  I  vom 
6. April 2020’, Article 7.  

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(3) 

Article 4 is replaced by the following:  

1. 

2. 

‘Article 4 

Belgium  shall  inform  the  Commission  by  30  March  2021,  and  every  six 
months  thereafter  of  the  implementation  of  the  planned  public  expenditure 
until that planned public expenditure has been fully implemented.  

Where  measures  referred  to  in  Article  3  are  based  on  planned  public 
expenditure  and  have  been  subject  to  an  Implementing  Decision  amending 
Implementing  Decision 
the 
Commission  within  6  months  after  the  date  of  adoption  of  that  decision,  and 
every  6  months  thereafter  of  the  implementation  of  the  planned  public 
expenditure until that planned public expenditure has been fully implemented.’ 
. 

(EU)  2020/1342,  Belgium  shall 

inform 

This Decision is addressed to the Kingdom of Belgium. 

Article 2 

Done at Brussels, 

For the Council 
The President 

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