On 22 June the federal parliament of Belgium approved a bill to change anti-discrimination legislation. It amends three acts: the 1981 act to combat certain actions inspired by racism or xenophobia, the 2007 act to combat certain forms of discrimination, and the 2007 act to combat discrimination between women and men.

The amendments introduced via this bill are expected to have a positive effect on immigrants and people of immigrant descent. In 2020 Unia - a public, independent organisation fighting discrimination and promoting equal opportunities in Belgium - recorded a continuous increase in claims concerning racist discrimination, and in 2022 saw 735 cases of discrimination based on "racial" criteria, most of which concerned housing and access to goods and services.

The goal of the amendments brought by the new bill is the renewal of legal tools to fight discrimination. This is achieved by modernising terminology to reflect current contexts, recognising multiple discriminations and broadening their definitions, improving the ability of interest groups to take legal action, and tripling the amount of damages available. In addition, these amounts will be adjusted annually based on the national cost-of-living wage indexation.

According to Secretary of State Marie-Colline Leroy (Ecolo), these changes reflect a desire to harmonise legal standards for protection against discrimination in Belgium. They respond to a number of European obligations (notably effective and dissuasive sanctions), a United Nations convention, and recommendations formulated by the Belgian Commission for the Evaluation of Federal Laws to Combat Discrimination.

Multiple discrimination is now recognised through 2 categories: cumulative discrimination and intersectional discrimination. The new legal framework also introduces discrimination by association, and discrimination based on a presumed criterion. The Unia website provides practical explanations of these changes.

Additionally, the presiding judge in cases of discrimination may now order positive measures to prevent the recurrence of similar discriminatory acts.