Antwerp Probes Foreign Assets of Living Wage Recipients

Antwerp – City authorities in Antwerp are seeking greater oversight over foreign assets held by individuals receiving a living wage. The move, initially reported by Knack, is being verified independently by Eurotoday.

The Antwerp municipal administration, under the leadership of Alderman Nathalie van Baren (N-VA), is attempting to determine whether individuals claiming minimum income benefits possess undeclared property or income abroad. Current regulations significantly limit social workers’ access to foreign financial data, making investigations challenging.

Van Baren maintains that benefits should be withdrawn whenever recipients are found to be systematically concealing assets. Although the city attempted to introduce comprehensive financial checks in 2017, the initiative was deemed illegal over privacy concerns. The administration is now aiming to create lawful procedures to assess foreign asset holdings on a case-by-case basis, pending approval from the federal government.

Back in 2017, Fons Duchateau (N-VA), then head of the Public Centre for Social Welfare (OCMW), advocated for stricter checks, but the proposal was blocked by then-Minister Denis Ducarme (MR) due to concerns over professional confidentiality. Now, Van Baren seeks to revive similar efforts to prevent public assistance from being used to fund foreign property ventures.

While each case is being assessed individually, the city acknowledges exceptions, such as ownership of inherited foreign properties. However, intentional fraud could result in repayment demands and benefit withdrawal.

“It is important that we do not simply offer a living wage to someone who rents out apartments abroad,”

Van Baren emphasizes the necessity to distinguish between deliberate concealment and legitimate asset ownership.

“We also have to investigate the reasons for ownership, because someone from Ukraine can of course also have a house there. So we have to look at each case individually.”

The objective, she added, is to penalize cases of deliberate fraud or non-disclosure.

“We must then stop the minimum income and recover the wrongly paid out support,”

Continues the OCMW chairperson.

“The measures are also examined on a case-by-case basis.”

Van Baren expects up to 1,700 individuals will apply for assistance in the coming years. Addressing whether the city could be forced to halt these checks again, as happened in 2019, she declined to give specifics.

“I will soon be meeting with the responsible minister Anneleen Van Bossuyt (N-VA). There, we will explain the practical side of our plans, taking into account legal objections that existed in the past.”

The city insists that investigating living wage claims via professional agencies is feasible.

“Because of that term ‘private detectives’ from the past, it seems as if we are going to follow people,”

Van Baren clarifies.

“The intention is actually just to be able to consult public documents from abroad.”

The city awaits Minister Van Bossuyt’s approval to move forward.

Left-wing opposition party PVDA, however, criticizes the initiative.

“Social research is a task of the OCM