A unique and complex HR landscape

“Belgian employment law is already complicated for Belgian companies, but for Germans it’s a complete maze,” says Kris Peeters, Finance & HR Director at AHK debelux. Historically layered rules, complex holiday entitlement calculations, evolving legislation… The questions kept coming, and the volume kept growing. Especially once AHK debelux decided to move beyond serving businesses with just a few employees and start attracting larger members.

From a local SME office to International Employment

For a long time, AHK debelux had a partnership with SD Worx’s local Brussels office for their own payroll and the occasional HR query. But 2025 proved to be a turning point. After a few conversations, it became clear that a different scale of service was needed. So, AHK debelux moved to SD Worx International Employment. The difference? Speed, language and scale. Thanks to a subscription model with pre-allocated hours, AHK debelux no longer has to wait around for quotes. The partnership also enables AHK debelux to combine its strong local and cross-border expertise with SD Worx’s leading payroll and HR know-how. What’s more, the collaboration creates clear added value for companies by offering reliable, compliant and customer-oriented payroll services across borders. 

Thanks to this combination AHK debelux can provide a full package service to small- and medium-sized companies. The SD Worx consultant for AHK debelux speaks fluent German, French, English, Spanish and Dutch, saving valuable translation time. Annual figures And for Paper & Tea, their first larger member with 20 employees on payroll, she effectively became part of the team to guide the entire onboarding process. “Without SD Worx, we would not have brought Paper & Tea on board,” says Kris.

Beyond execution: knowledge, network and technology.

SD Worx’s services now extend well beyond payroll and tax or legal support. The team handles A1 certificates, registers clients with the relevant authorities and supports all necessary steps to enable German companies to employ staff in Belgium. Where required, SD Worx also provides outplacement services. The legal knowledge platform provides legal updates and information on joint industrial committees. What’s more: at AHK debelux’s request, SD Worx even hosted German-language webinars for more than a hundred members. On the technology front, SD Worx Payroll & HR gives members access to all their payroll documents via an online environment, putting an end to the back-and-forth over email. Looking ahead, the two parties are exploring a pilot project with our new payroll software, enabling real-time payroll updates and forecasting. 

A look to the future

The ambition goes well beyond Belgium. Talks are underway with SD Worx’s German division to extend the partnership in the other direction: supporting Belgian companies looking to move into Germany. And it doesn’t have to stop there. With around 150 German chambers of commerce worldwide and SD Worx’s expanding European footprint, there is no shortage of opportunities on the horizon.