Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.
Data collection on seasonal workers statistics based on Article 26 of Directive 2014/36/EU on the conditions of entry and stay of third-country nationals for the purpose of employment as seasonal workers.
The following datasets are collected under this framework:
Authorisations for the purpose of seasonal work by status, length of validity, economic sector and citizenship (migr_ressw1_1);
Authorisations issued for the purpose of seasonal work by economic sector, sex and citizenship (migr_ressw2).
Directive 2014/36/EU was transposed at national level on 07 May 2020.
3.2. Classification system
Similar breakdowns as Eurostat.
See table 3.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
3.3. Coverage - sector
Migration and asylum – Residence permits statistics, Seasonal Workers.
3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions
Same definitions as Eurostat.
See table 3.4. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
3.5. Statistical unit
As requested in technical guidelines, number of permits/authorisation/ notification (and not the number of single individuals). As a consequence, the double counting of the same person is allowed.
3.6. Statistical population
See table 3.6. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
3.7. Reference area
Belgium.
3.8. Coverage - Time
See table 3.8. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
3.9. Base period
Not applicable.
Number of authorisations for seasonal work.
Calendar year.
6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements
The FPS (Federal Public Service) Home Affairs and its Statistics Unit (located in the DG Immigration Office) was officially designated as Other national statistical authorities (see 1/ “ List of National statistical institutes (NSI) and other national authorities” in the list of links to public documents and 2/ “Letter sent by Statbel to Eurostat to designate the FPS Home Affairs as ONA” in the list of internal documents available on request) in charge of AMM (Asylum and Managed Migration) data collection in line with the mission of FPS Home Affairs.
The Immigration Office is the main actor in charge of the implementation of the legislation related to migration at national level, i.e. “Law of 15th December 1980 on access to the territory, residence, establishment and removal of aliens”. Concerning residence permits, the Immigration Office is responsible for the examination of applications for authorisation to stay (introduced abroad or in Belgium), changes of status, acquisition of long-term residence status and ending/withdrawal of stays.
In the specific case of seasonal workers, the Immigration Office is responsible for the examination of visas. It is also responsible for the part of the decision related to the stay and incorporates the part of the decision related to work in single permits. More information are accessible on the website of the Immigration Office (Saisonnier | IBZ).
The Federal Public Service Home Affairs was officially designated as Other national statistical authoritiy (Other-national-statistical-authorities) and was nominated as responsible for the transmission of residence permits' statistics including statistics on seasonal workers.
Statbel, the Belgian statistical office, formalized this by communicating the name of the Statistical Service of the Immigration Office as another producer of European statistics, in particular concerning statistics relating to Asylum and Migration. By this statute of producer of European statistical data, the statistical service of the Immigration Office must therefore be considered as one of the “other Belgian statistical authorities” as defined in Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 on European statistics.
7.1. Confidentiality - policy
Information on the existence of a national policy for (not) releasing data before a certain time after the end of reference period has passed:
All statistical data are published within the regulatory deadlines. No national policy prevents us from publishing statistics before this deadline. Statistics are published when their quality is considered sufficient.
Required confidentiality by law and signed legal confidentiality commitments by survey staff:
All the officials of the Immigration Office have signed a declaration aimed at protecting the confidentiality of data.
Potential micro-data access for research purposes by external users and confidentiality provisions applied:
Access to micro-data is possible while respecting the general data protection regulation (regulation 2016/679). More information on the procedure implemented in this context can be requested from the Data Protection Officer of the Immigration Office. The contact details are available on the website of the Immigration Office:
These statistics are also available on Eurostat website/database.
Specific statistics on seasonal workers are currently published once a year within 6 months after the end of the reference year.
However, at national level, a monthly publication on single permits includes limited information on seasonal workers. More elements on seasonal workers are available in the monthly national level publication on visas.
10.1. Dissemination format - News release
No press releases on the topic of statistics on seasonal workers.
10.2. Dissemination format - Publications
Annual statistics on seasonal workers are accessible from 2022 reference year on the website of Eurostat and on the website of the Immigration Office.
In addition, at national level, statistics on visas issued to seasonal workers are available on the website of the Immigration Office in the monthly publication on visa statistcs.
10.3. Dissemination format - online database
No Belgian online database directly accessible to the public. The statistics are available on the Eurostat website.
Some specific elements are available on the Website of the immigration Office:
This must be agreed upon when signing the memorandum of understanding to access the microdata.
10.5. Dissemination format - other
The metadata are complete and accessible online.
10.5.1. Metadata - consultations
Not applicable.
10.6. Documentation on methodology
This document gives some explanations on the methodology used to produce the Seasonal workers statistics.
Unless otherwise stated, the national methodology complies with technical guidelines published at EU level.
10.6.1. Metadata completeness - rate
Not applicable.
10.7. Quality management - documentation
This document gives some explanations on the quality assessment used to produce the Seasonal workers statistics.
Unless otherwise stated, the national methodology complies with technical guidelines published at EU level.
11.1. Quality assurance
Compilation of data is performed following the guidelines and instructions provided by Eurostat at EU level and Statbel at national level.
The principles of the Code of Practice, together with the general principles of quality management, form a common quality framework for the European Statistical System. These principles were followed when developing these specific statistics.
The Consultation Committee, where the federal government (including the Federal Public Service Home Affairs) and the governments of the Regions and Communities are represented, approved on Wednesday 31 May 2017 the Belgian Commitment on Confidence in Statistics as required by Regulation n°223/2009 on European Statistics.
The last peer review in the framework of the European Statistical System took place in 2021. Results are accessible on the following website.
Quality guidelines are currently developed by Statbel and Belgian ONAs to complement EU guidelines.
Consistency validation checks are performed at all stages of the process.
11.2. Quality management - assessment
Quality management is currently considered as good for all datasets.
12.1. Relevance - User Needs
The statistics collected are used in official publications and by a wide range of users at national, European and International level.
These statistics are used by national administrations, academic researchers and civil society groups working on a wide range of topics including the integration of immigrants, the development and monitoring of national immigration procedures, and the projection of the future population and labour force.
At European level, the main users of these statistics are Eurostat and DG Home. These statistics are used in several publications of the Commission, as well as in the preparation of regular reports, policy proposals and analysis. The statistics also provide an input to the European Migration Network (EMN) studies and reports that address specific issues of current policy importance.
At national level, the following national institutions and administration entities can be mentioned in this context: Immigration Office, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cabinet Ministers, Federal Migration Centre, regional administrations, academic researchers...
12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction
No survey was conducted on satisfaction related to this specific topic.
12.3. Completeness
The required disaggregation for all datasets is complete.
See table 12.3. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
12.3.1. Data completeness - rate
Not applicable.
13.1. Accuracy - overall
The accuracy of these statistics is generally considered to be good.
Some inconsistencies were identified between reasons to stay registered in different database in the case of the group. It might result in an underestimation of the population.
13.2. Sampling error
Not applicable.
13.2.1. Sampling error - indicators
Not applicable.
13.3. Non-sampling error
Not applicable.
13.3.1. Coverage error
Due to the important undercoverage / misidentification of the group in the different databases and the very poor resulting quality, 2020 and 2021 statistics were not transmitted.
Following a modification of some practices in terms of registration and inclusion of more precise categories related to the group, the level of coverage is considered as sufficient from 2022 reference year.
There are no discrepancies between the Eurostat and national target population.
The average delay in registering administrative events in the register is zero days from the day these events occurred.
13.3.1.1. Over-coverage - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.1.2. Common units - proportion
Not applicable.
13.3.2. Measurement error
Data collected in the Population Register, the database on visas, the database of the Immigration Office, the database on Single Permits are confronted each year to measure error. Since important divergences were observed for this group in some databses, the results are produced by combining all data sources.
13.3.3. Non response error
Not applicable.
13.3.3.1. Unit non-response - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.3.2. Item non-response - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.4. Processing error
Not applicable
13.3.5. Model assumption error
Not applicable.
14.1. Timeliness
Number of days (on average) after the end of the reference period at which the country is able to report the first/preliminary data, at the earliest : 120 days.
Reasons for possible long production of the first/preliminary data and plans to improve the situation : late registration, limited number of persons/experts who can produce / validate the results and discrepancies between registrations in the different systems.
Number of days (on average) after the end of the reference period at which the country is able to report the final data, at the earliest : Approximately 150 days.
Reasons for possible long production of the final data and plans to improve the situation : limited number of persons/experts who can produce / validate the results and discrepancies between registrations in the different systems.
14.1.1. Time lag - first result
Not applicable.
14.1.2. Time lag - final result
Not applicable.
14.2. Punctuality
Statistics on seasonal workers are delivered on time.
See table 14.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
14.2.1. Punctuality - delivery and publication
Not applicable.
15.1. Comparability - geographical
Statistics are comparable from a methodological point of view over the national territory : data are registered in the same database and statistical processing is uniform.
However, the analysis must take into account the divergence of policies at regional level (a large part of this topic falls under the competencies of the regional administrations).
15.1.1. Asymmetry for mirror flow statistics - coefficient
Not applicable.
15.2. Comparability - over time
See table 15.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
15.2.1. Length of comparable time series
Not applicable.
15.3. Coherence - cross domain
Consistency between data in the different databases (database on single permits, database of the Immigration Office, database on visas and population register) is controlled at individual levels.
Coherence of statistics between seasonal workers and other statistics related to work migration is ensured.
15.3.1. Coherence - sub annual and annual statistics
Annual statistics are equal to the sum of monthly statistics.
15.3.2. Coherence - National Accounts
Not applicable.
15.4. Coherence - internal
Issued permits, renewals and withdrawals are coming from the same source. No issue in terms of coherence was detected.
Statistics on seasonal workers are based on administrative data. Their production does not require any special costs or burden in terms of data collection.
17.1. Data revision - policy
Data is revised only if an error occurred.
17.2. Data revision - practice
Data are corrected or revised exceptionally:
error of transmission (wrong reference period, errors in data compilation…),
methodological improvements or introduction of new data sources.
See table 17.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
17.2.1. Data revision - average size
Not applicable.
18.1. Source data
The main data sources for producing these statistics are :
The database on issued visa,
The application used by the Immigration Office and Regional authorities to examine applications for single permits (“Guichet Unique” in French and “Uniek Loket” in Dutch),
The database of the Immigration Office ("Evibel") and
The National Register ("Registre national" in French and “Rijksregister” in Dutch, a Central Population Register).
See table 17.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
18.2. Frequency of data collection
Data is collected monthly and is consolidated annually.
18.3. Data collection
Data are extracted on a daily basis from the difference sources and integrated by the IT department of the Federal Public Services Home Affairs into a Data Warehouse.
18.4. Data validation
The following controls are performed:
checking of totals consistency
checking of magnitude of changes over time
visual validation
checking the data integrity over each processing step
checking if the double counting cases are excluded
checking the consistency between issued first permits, renewals and withdrawals
checking the consistency between annual and monthly statistics
analyse the statistics reported by other countries
checking the consistency between statistics transmitted to Eurostat and statistics published at national level
validating statistics against expectations and domain intelligence,
back check of data in the data sources.
18.5. Data compilation
Data is processed by the Immigration Office of Belgium, according to the rules for validation and control of the technical guidelines by Eurostat.
Data collection on seasonal workers statistics based on Article 26 of Directive 2014/36/EU on the conditions of entry and stay of third-country nationals for the purpose of employment as seasonal workers.
The following datasets are collected under this framework:
Authorisations for the purpose of seasonal work by status, length of validity, economic sector and citizenship (migr_ressw1_1);
Authorisations issued for the purpose of seasonal work by economic sector, sex and citizenship (migr_ressw2).
Directive 2014/36/EU was transposed at national level on 07 May 2020.
25 June 2025
Same definitions as Eurostat.
See table 3.4. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
As requested in technical guidelines, number of permits/authorisation/ notification (and not the number of single individuals). As a consequence, the double counting of the same person is allowed.
See table 3.6. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
Belgium.
Calendar year.
The accuracy of these statistics is generally considered to be good.
Some inconsistencies were identified between reasons to stay registered in different database in the case of the group. It might result in an underestimation of the population.
Number of authorisations for seasonal work.
Data is processed by the Immigration Office of Belgium, according to the rules for validation and control of the technical guidelines by Eurostat.
The main data sources for producing these statistics are :
The database on issued visa,
The application used by the Immigration Office and Regional authorities to examine applications for single permits (“Guichet Unique” in French and “Uniek Loket” in Dutch),
The database of the Immigration Office ("Evibel") and
The National Register ("Registre national" in French and “Rijksregister” in Dutch, a Central Population Register).
See table 17.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
Specific statistics on seasonal workers are currently published once a year within 6 months after the end of the reference year.
However, at national level, a monthly publication on single permits includes limited information on seasonal workers. More elements on seasonal workers are available in the monthly national level publication on visas.
Number of days (on average) after the end of the reference period at which the country is able to report the first/preliminary data, at the earliest : 120 days.
Reasons for possible long production of the first/preliminary data and plans to improve the situation : late registration, limited number of persons/experts who can produce / validate the results and discrepancies between registrations in the different systems.
Number of days (on average) after the end of the reference period at which the country is able to report the final data, at the earliest : Approximately 150 days.
Reasons for possible long production of the final data and plans to improve the situation : limited number of persons/experts who can produce / validate the results and discrepancies between registrations in the different systems.
Statistics are comparable from a methodological point of view over the national territory : data are registered in the same database and statistical processing is uniform.
However, the analysis must take into account the divergence of policies at regional level (a large part of this topic falls under the competencies of the regional administrations).
See table 15.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables on Seasonal Workers’.
