🎆 Can I set off fireworks in Belgium?

With conditions

Quick answer

Buying is regulated, firing is the trap. Private individuals may buy F1 fireworks from 12 and F2 from 16 (F3/F4 are banned for consumers). But setting them off is regional and municipal: Flanders has had a default ban since 2019 — only an explicit municipal exception allows it (often just New Year's Eve at set hours); the Brussels Region bans private fireworks de facto; in Wallonia each municipality decides. Breaching it = a GAS fine up to €350 (€175 for minors) or criminal prosecution where damage follows. Always check your municipality's police regulation — and mind the animals: silent fireworks are gaining ground.

📋 The rules

Buying: F1 from 12, F2 from 16; F3/F4 banned for consumers
Flanders: firing banned by default — municipal exceptions possible
Brussels: de facto ban; Wallonia: municipal
Even when allowed: safety distances, often New Year's Eve only
Transport and storage limited (kg caps per person)

🔓 Exceptions

Professional displays with permits (events)
Municipal New Year exceptions: check the local police regulation
Silent fireworks are still fireworks: the same municipal permission is required

⚠️ Penalties & fines

Firing without permission: a GAS fine up to €350, or up to €175 if you are a minor — the exact tariff sits in your municipality's police regulation. If it goes wrong, criminal prosecution follows, and fire damage or injuries land on your personal liability: that bill dwarfs the fine. Holding banned F3/F4 fireworks is criminal, with seizure of the stock. And even with a municipal exception, firing outside the permitted hours or without the safety distances is still a breach. Silent fireworks need exactly the same permission.

📎 Official sources

Last verified: 2026-07-12

❓ Frequently asked

May I fire on New Year's Eve?

Only if your municipality granted an exception to the Flemish default ban, often limited to a few hours. Without that exception it is banned on 31 December too — check the police regulation.

From what age may I buy?

F1 (sparklers, fountains) from 12 and F2 (consumer fireworks) from 16. F3 and F4 are never allowed for consumers: holding them is criminal, and the stock is seized. Firing them is a separate, municipal question.

What do I risk?

A GAS fine up to €350 (€175 for minors), with the tariff set by your municipality. If someone is injured or a fire starts, criminal prosecution and the damage bill come on top. Fire damage lands on your personal liability.

What about Brussels and Wallonia?

In the Brussels Region private fireworks are de facto banned. In Wallonia each municipality decides for itself: consult the règlement communal of the place where you plan to fire. Buying stays allowed; firing does not.

My municipality allows it — may I do anything then?

No: even with an exception, safety distances apply and the hours are usually strict, often New Year's Eve only. Outside those conditions you are still in breach and the GAS fine still applies.

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