Updated in October 2026.

How to get mutuelle reimbursements in Belgium

In Belgium, the compulsory health insurance runs through a health insurance fund, called mutuelle in French and ziekenfonds in Dutch. Many expats lose money simply because a step was missed. Here is the logic.

First, join a mutuelle

Once you are registered at your commune and you work, study or are covered as a family member, you join a mutuelle of your choice, or the public fund (CAAMI in French, HZIV in Dutch).

Without that membership, your doctor visits are not refunded, even if you pay social security contributions.

How refunds work

• Most doctors now send an electronic certificate directly to your mutuelle, and the refund arrives on your bank account
• If you receive a paper certificate of care, you send it to your mutuelle yourself, by post or in its letterbox
• At the pharmacy, you pay the reduced price directly when you show your identity or residence card
• Physiotherapy is refunded only with a doctor's prescription

The refunds expats often miss

• Paper certificates kept in a drawer and never sent
• A bank account that was never given to the mutuelle
• Physiotherapy sessions started without a prescription
• Claims sent too late. Refunds must be claimed within two years after the end of the month of the care

Good habits

• Give your bank account to your mutuelle as soon as you join
• Use the mutuelle app or online account to follow your refunds
• Keep every paper certificate and send them together each month

Hospital insurance is a separate, optional product. We do not give advice on insurance products.

This guide gives general information, not legal advice. Rules and fees can differ between communes, so always check your commune's website.

Practical guides

• Commune registration in Belgium
• Moving to Belgium, your checklist