This is legal framework is specifically designed for foreign NGOs opening an ’operations centre’ in Belgium.

To qualify, the organisation must be a registered NGO in its country of origin.

Operations centre registration procedure

To register an NGO is required to submit:

  1. The Articles of Association in French or Dutch. (German is only possible if you register in the German speaking part of the country). The Ministry of Justice prefers that the Articles of Association be translated by a sworn translator although this is not explicit in the legislation.
  2. The address of ‘parent’ NGO a statement of its goals and activities and its address in Belgium.
  3. A document stating who is authorised to represent the organisation. This document should also include some details about what they are authorised to do on the NGOs behalf and whether they can do this alone or with others.

All the above mentioned documents must be lodged with the Commercial Court and published in the Official Journal.