🛒 Can shops open on Sunday?

With conditions

Quick answer

In principle every shop must take one weekly rest day, but there are many exceptions — so in practice quite a few shops open on Sunday. Under the still-current Law of 10 November 2006, a trader must observe a weekly rest day: an uninterrupted 24-hour period starting Sunday at 5 or 13:00 (it need not always be Sunday, but the same day for at least 3 months). There are many exceptions: night shops, tourist zones and seaside resorts, fuel-station shops, station and airport shops, hospital shops and newsagents. A municipality can also allow up to 15 derogation days per year. Important: whether a shop may open (rest-day law) is distinct from whether it may employ staff (the Labour Act of 16 March 1971 bans Sunday work, with staff after noon on Sunday forbidden). A reform abolishing the mandatory closing day and extending hours to 21:00 passed the Chamber committee in June 2026, but as of 5 July 2026 it is not yet voted and not yet in force.

📋 The rules

Every shop must take one weekly rest day of 24 hours (Law of 10 November 2006)
Closed by default before 5:00 and after 20:00 (after 21:00 on Fridays and days before a public holiday)
Exceptions: night shops, tourist zones, fuel stations, stations/airports, hospitals, newsagents
The municipality can allow up to 15 derogation days per year (collective, for all traders)
Opening (rest-day law) ≠ employing staff: employees may not work Sunday after noon (Labour Act 1971)
Coming: a reform (closing day abolished, open until 21:00) — not yet voted/in force in July 2026

🔓 Exceptions

Night shops (18:00–07:00, max 150 m², food/household goods), tourist zones and seaside resorts
A small shop without staff (run by the owner or family) falls outside the Sunday-work ban
The municipality may grant up to 15 derogation days a year — collectively, for all traders at once

⚠️ Penalties & fines

A breach of the opening-hours act can bring criminal fines, and the mayor can simply order a shop that breaks the law or the municipal regulation to close — which hurts more than the fine itself. The biggest blind spot, though, is on the staffing side: employing people unlawfully on a Sunday breaches the Social Criminal Code, with administrative or criminal fines calculated per worker involved. A trader who opens on Sunday because he may, but keeps four employees working after 12:00, therefore multiplies the fine by four.

📎 Official sources

Last verified: 2026-07-12

❓ Frequently asked

Can a shop open on Sunday?

In principle every shop must take a weekly rest day, but it need not be the Sunday, and the exceptions are many (night shops, tourist zones, petrol stations). The municipality can also grant up to 15 derogation days a year.

Can my staff work on Sunday?

Sunday work is banned in principle (Labour Act of 16 March 1971), with sectoral exceptions. Even where the shop may open, having staff work after 12:00 on Sunday stays banned: opening and employing are two separate questions.

Can I open on Sunday as a self-employed trader without staff?

A small shop without staff, run by the owner or his family, falls outside the Sunday-work ban. The duty to take a weekly rest day still stands, but you may choose which day that is, as long as it is an uninterrupted 24-hour period.

What does the announced reform change?

The reform wants to abolish the mandatory closing day and extend opening hours to 21:00. It cleared the Chamber committee in June 2026, but as of 5 July 2026 it has not been finally voted and is not yet in force.

What does a shop risk if it breaks the rules?

Criminal fines, and the mayor can have the shop closed. Unlawful Sunday employment is punished under the Social Criminal Code, with fines calculated per worker involved — and the closure often hurts more than the fine.

🔎 Common searches

What people search to land here:

“shop sunday open belgium”
“weekly rest day shop”
“sunday work ban staff”
“derogation days sunday municipality”
“retail opening hours reform 2026”
“self-employed no staff sunday open”