BELWAL registration: declaring your holiday home in Wallonia (2026)

What is BELWAL and why is it compulsory?

Anyone renting out a holiday home in Wallonia is required to register with the Walloon regional register for tourist accommodation. After registration the host receives a unique registration number, the so-called BELWAL number (sometimes also called the BELWAL code or Belgian-Walloon registration number). You have to mention that number on all listings, booking platforms and communication with guests. The requirement follows from European regulation 2024/1028, which is in force in Wallonia.

The European regulation obliges the member states and regions to set up a registration system for short-term rentals. The aim is transparency: authorities want to know how many holiday homes are active, how they are taxed and whether they meet the local rules. For hosts that means, in concrete terms: no registration number on your listing is an offence.

What changed in 2026?

Until before 2026, hosts in Wallonia could work with an older recognition or notification. Under the new regime, which came into force after the final transposition of the European regulation into Walloon law, those earlier documents are no longer sufficient. Hosts who had declared their property before the introduction of the BELWAL rules had to renew or supplement their registration to obtain a valid BELWAL number.

The transition period for existing hosts ended in 2026. Anyone who kept renting out after that without a valid registration number risks a fine or the removal of their listing from platforms that actively check for the presence of the number.

Where and how do you register?

Registration goes through the portal of Tourisme Wallonie, the official Walloon tourism authority. On that portal you find the current procedure, the required documents and an overview of the rules per type of accommodation.

The exact steps can change, so check the official website for the most up-to-date information. As a general principle: you submit an application with the details of the property (address, type, capacity), the contact details of the host and any supporting documents. After processing you receive the BELWAL number.

For several properties you submit a separate registration per property. Every unique address needs its own BELWAL number.

Where do you have to mention the BELWAL number?

The registration number has to be visible everywhere you offer the property:

• Your own website or personal listing page
• Booking platforms such as Airbnb, Booking.com and other short-stay sites
• Social media if you actively promote the property there
• Printed communication and brochures

Platforms are increasingly required to check the number or request it before a listing goes live. Airbnb and Booking.com already actively ask for the registration number in Wallonia when creating a new listing.

What if you do not have a BELWAL number yet?

If your property is in Wallonia and you do not yet have a valid BELWAL number, then you have a clear priority. Submit a registration as soon as possible through the Tourisme Wallonie portal. Renting out in the meantime is technically in breach of the rules.

Some municipalities in Wallonia also have their own notification requirement alongside the regional registration. It is wise to check with your municipality whether any local additional obligations apply.

The difference with the Flemish and Brussels rules

In Belgium the rules for tourist rental are arranged at regional level. Each region has its own system:

• Wallonia: BELWAL registration number through Tourisme Wallonie (EU 2024/1028)
• Flanders: registration through Toerisme Vlaanderen, a different number and procedure
• Brussels: its own registration system through the Brussels Region

If you rent out properties in different regions, you need a separate registration for each region. The numbers are not interchangeable.

Practical: your calendar and bookings in order

Besides the administrative registration, a well-kept availability calendar is a condition for renting out professionally. A central calendar that synchronises with the platforms you are on ensures that your availability is always correct and that you do not get double bookings.

Rentiplanner offers an availability calendar with which you manage your property in one place and synchronise automatically with Airbnb, Booking.com and other platforms through iCal. That way you have your administrative side sorted with the BELWAL number, and your operational side with an up-to-date calendar.

Ready to set up your availability calendar? Create a free account and your calendar is ready within a few minutes.