Service cheques: frequently asked questions
How does it all work with Randstad?
Who can use the service cheque system?
which tasks can a Randstad household help perform via the service cheques?
Using service cheques
How do I order service cheques?
Digital service cheques: quick and easy
Validity of service cheques
Questions about employment of the household help
The cooperation starts… and now?
Tax advantages and costs pro hour
More info?
How does it all work with Ranstad?
Are the Service Cheques a legal way of working?
Because the household help enters into an official employment relationship with Randstad Service Cheques, this is not
black market activity. On the contrary, everything is arranged and paid for properly and punctually.
How do you regularise the employment status of a household help?
Do you want to give your household help more job security and help him/her obtain employment status? We have a
formal open-ended contract ready for use. Contact us on the free number 0800 30 130.
Is the household help entitled to social benefits?
As well as his/her pay, every household help receives an allowance for washing work clothing, an allowance for travel
between home and work (including travel between two customers), holiday pay, end-of-year bonus, sick pay and
leave of absence. Moreover, he or she accumulates pension entitlement. Randstad Service Cheques also pays for ten
statutory public holidays and the work accident insurance contribution.
Is anything special done about safety?
Everyone has the right to a safe working environment. With us, household helps get the chance to attend training
with tips about safety, hygiene and ergonomics. In addition, each household help watches a DVD about safety, which
is followed by a test. The DVD was compiled after analysing the hazards associated with working as a household help.
What kind of follow-up is arranged?
With a view to continuous improvement, an independent body conducts a satisfaction survey every two years
covering you, as the customer, and our household helps. Obviously, you don't have to wait for the survey in order to
let us know what you think or share any concerns you may have with us. We also send you an evaluation form on a
regular basis. If you wish, you can discuss your feedback directly with your household help - expressing your
appreciation directly gives pleasure and inspires enthusiasm! Your feedback forms part of the basis for an individual
evaluation meeting that our Service Cheques consultant holds every year with each household help.
Does the household help have work accident insurance?
Randstad Service Cheques takes out insurance for the household help to cover against accidents in the workplace or
while travelling between home and work.
Is civil liability insurance arranged?
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Randstad Service Cheques is insured for material damage. You will be reimbursed for damage over the value of €250
subject to acceptance of the claim by our insurance company and on the basis of the value of the item at the time of
the accident.
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Who can use the service cheque system?
Any individual (physical person) who is resident in Belgium.
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Which tasks can a Randstad household help perform via the service cheques?
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Cleaning
window cleaning
washing and ironing
preparing meals
small occasional sewing jobs
small errands
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Using service cheques
Where can work be done?
Service cheques can only be used at private locations.
Cleaning professional premises (e.g. a doctor's surgery), a rented-out studio or commonly owned stairwell... is not
allowed.
The household help can work on a stepladder with a maximum of 2 steps (maximum working height = 2 metres).
Can I allow my sister to work for me using the service cheques system?
No, employment using service cheques is not possible for
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your family to the 2nd degree (parents, grandparents, children, grandchildren)
people in the same family (brothers, sisters, brothers in law, sisters in law)
people living at the same address
Can I give service cheques away to members of my family?
No, the service cheques are in the user's name and the employment must occur at the address stated on the service
cheque.
Can I use service cheques for the professional section of my home?
No, the service cheque is exclusively intended for the maintenance of your private home.
I live in an apartment block: can I use the service cheques to have the shared areas cleaned (e.g. the
communal stairwell)?
No, the service cheque is exclusively intended for the maintenance of your private home.
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Can I use the service cheques to have a room or studio I hire out cleaned?
No, the service cheque is exclusively intended for maintaining the private home where you live yourself. In this case,
the tenant can use service cheques in his or her own name.
Can I use the service cheques to have my second residence cleaned?
Yes, provided that it is located in Belgium and that you stay there personally (regardless of whether you go there
frequently or less frequently).
Can the Service Cheques also be used for childcare?
At present, Service Cheques may only be used for domestic work.
Are the service cheques valid for maintenance of my garden?
No, the service cheque is only intended for household tasks.
Does the service cheques system also work in the context of a personal assistance budget (PAB) ?
Yes, if you benefit from a personal assistance budget (PAB), you can also use this allocation to purchase service
cheques. The tasks you can pay for using service cheques are limited to household tasks.
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How do I order service cheques?
Where and how can I order service cheques?
You can only order service cheques from Sodexo, with whom you have to register in advance. This registration is
free. You can register online. After registration you receive confirmation from Sodexo and the personal user number
you need to order your service cheques.
How to order service cheques:
1. You pay € 9 per service cheques into one of the account numbers that you received from Sodexho on
confirmation of your registration
2. The minimum order for paper service cheques is 10. For digital cheques there is no minimal order.
3. You must state your personal user number in your notice of payment.
Important:
Sodexo will refuse your payment and send the amount back if:
 the minimum order is not respected
 the paid amount is incorrect (not a multiple of € 9)
 your personal user number is incomplete, incorrect or is not stated
Practical tip:
we advise you to start a standing order with your bank. This method makes life easier for you and prevents you from
forgetting an order.
How long does the procedure last?
a) How soon is my registration with Sodexho confirmed?
Sodexo sends a registration confirmation by post within five working days of receipt of the application. If you indicate
an e-mail address or mobile phone number, you will receive a digital confirmation within two working days.
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b) How soon do I receive my service cheques?
Digital service cheques will be in your digital portfolio the same day that payment is received. You will be informed by
email or SMS. You will receive paper service cheques by post within three days of receipt of your payment.
What happens if I do not receive the service cheques?
If you do not receive the service cheques you must notify this to Sodexho with the designated form, at latest in the
month following the month of payment. A new order will be sent to you free of charge.
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Digital service cheques: quick and easy
Why are digital service cheques extremely convenient?
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There's no more need to fill in and prepare service cheques time after time
Your stock of cheques is topped up on the day itself after receipt of your payment
Service cheques which don't arrive in the post on time become a thing of the past
Your household help no longer has to go to a Randstad branch to hand in the service cheques
What you need?
A telephone and, preferably, a computer with an Internet connection.
How it works?
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Your household help receives a card with a personal code from Randstad Service Cheques, and uses your
phone to call a free 0800 number whenever she has finished a session of work for you. Among other details,
she reports the number of hours worked.
You have up to nine working days after the work has been done to confirm or dispute the details she has
reported by computer. After this period, automatic validation occurs.
If the hours reported by your household help do not tally with the contractual agreement, you have nine
working days to correct the hours. You should also report the adjusted hours total separately to your
Randstad Service Cheques consultant.
If you would like digital service cheques, here's what you do:
If you haven't registered yet:
You can register on www.dienstencheques-rva.be. During the registration, opt for digital service cheques.
If you are already registered:
Via internet:
On www.dienstencheques.rva.be you can adapt your profile in your personal customer zone and opt for digital service
cheques.
Do you still have a stock of paper service cheques?
A change of profile (from paper to digital) can be made at any time, regardless of how many paper service cheques
you still hold. The day after you have adapted your profile, you can arrange a bank transfer payment to Sodexho, and
the service cheques will be in your digital portfolio on the day itself once payment has been received. Suppose you
still have two paper cheques left and a stock of digital service cheques. Your household help works four hours. She
will take away the two remaining paper service cheques and register the other two hours via the free 0800 number.
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Tip:
let your Randstad Service Cheques consultant know that you have opted for digital service cheques, so that your
household help will also know in good time!
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Validity of service cheques
How long are the service cheques valid?
The cheques are valid for 8 months. You cannot exchange expired service cheques under any circumstances, or
request repayment for these.
Can I exchange valid service cheques or request reimbursement for these?
On exchange you pay Sodexo an administrative cost of € 0.25 per paper cheque. In the case of electronic cheques
this administrative cost is not charged, unless you wish to exchange your electronic cheques for paper cheques. Then
you also pay € 0.25/service cheque. At repayment of the cheques you have to take account of an administrative cost
of € 0.25/order.
For full details and the required documents it is best to look at the website www.dienstencheques-rva.be.
What happens in the case of loss, theft or non-receipt of cheques?
If the cheques are lost or stolen, you can request replacement of the cheques. You then pay € 0.25/service cheque. If
you request a repayment, you then pay € 0.25/order.
To obtain the full details and the required documents it is best to look at the website www.dienstencheques-rva.be.
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Questions about employment of the household help
How can I request household help?
You can request a household help via your Randstad office. It will pass on your vacancy to the service cheques
adviser. You receive a detailed information brochure. As soon as a suitable candidate is selected for you, the
Randstad service cheques adviser will contact you to make concrete arrangements. Or you can fill in a form online.
Can I choose the day when the household help comes?
You can forward your preferred days when handing in your vacancy. We will take the greatest possible account of
these. If we find a suitable candidate who nonetheless cannot work on these days at your home, we will contact you
by telephone.
How many hours can the household help work for me?
The minimum is 3 hours per session. You can choose between 1 x per week or every 2 weeks.
Can my household help work on public holidays?
In compliance with the legislation your household help cannot work on Sundays or official public holidays. In practice
this means that if your household help works every 2 weeks on a Tuesday, for example, work on Tuesday 1
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November will be cancelled and she will next visit you on Tuesday 15 November (and not on Tuesday 8
November).
At present I have a household help, but I would prefer to work with service cheques. Is my household
help eligible for this?
Yes, it is possible if your household help can be employed officially in Belgium (*). He or she must visit one of the
Randstad branches for a personal discussion. If the possibility is wanted, employment with other private individuals
can be arranged (in consultation with the household help).
* Since 1 May 2009, new EU citizens (Poland, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia,
Slovenia) have been able to work in Belgium without a work permit. Do you have a household help from one of these
countries? Give her/him an official contract!
How much does the household help earn?
The household help earns a good salary. This can increase depending on his or her experience. With Randstad
Service Cheques the household help also benefits from:
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holiday pay
allowance for travel between home and work (the customer)
allowance for travel between two customers
allowance for washing work clothing
ten paid statutory public holidays (in line with legislation)
end-of-year bonus
paid leave of absence (in line with legislation)
accumulation of rights (pension, unemployment benefit, etc.)
work accident insurance
sick pay (based on seniority)
But there’s more. Randstad Service Cheques is a model employer. We operate a personnel policy that’s tailored to the
needs of the household help.
Every household help benefits from:
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a free safety DVD
a range of benefits (link naar voordelensite)
free work clothing: apron or T-shirts, anti-slip shoes, household gloves
free training (cleaning, washing and ironing techniques)
coaching and guidance from our team of service cheque consultants
gifts to mark a wedding and/or birth
jubilee gifts
various benefits, discounts and prizes that can be won
satisfaction measurement
...and a fixed-term or open-ended contract with one of Belgium’s best employers.
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The cooperation starts... and now?
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As soon as we have a suitable candidate for you, we provide a contract as well as a direct debit order. Once
your signed contract is in our possession, the household help can start to work for you. You need to transmit
the direct debit order to your financial institution within 5 days.
Good communication is important for smooth cooperation. Inform the household help of your expectations,
tell her about possible dangers (e.g. steep stairs), let her know about the products that can or cannot be
used, etc. To do this you can use the free work planning and communication guide that you receive. You can
also indicate which tasks you want done occasionally. Keep the time allocation realistic.
Randstad Service Cheques provides all of its household helps with a free work apron, safety shoes,
household globes, first aid kit and a safety pass. It is important for the materials and products that you make
available free of charge to be in a good, safe state (a safe stepladder with a maximum of 2 steps, products
in original packaging with a label, appliances with safe leads, etc.).
If you opt for electronic service cheques, your household help calls the free 0800 number at the end of work
from your telephone. If you have paper service cheques you hand over a valid, dated and signed service
cheque per hour to the household help (the validity date is stated on each service cheque). The household
help hands the service cheques over to us. It is important for you to order service cheques on time so that
you can pay for hours at the time the work is done.
Is it a 'fixed' household help or a different person each week?
A weekly roster is compiled in consultation with the household help. This roster is kept insofar as possible. So you
usually have the same household help.
What happens if your household help is away?
We inform you when your household help is absent, e.g. due to holidays or illness. If you want a replacement you
can tell your services cheques consultant. We do our very best to replace your help, although we cannot guarantee
this. The guaranteed wage during an illness/accident is paid by Randstad Service Cheques (or the (mutual) insurance
company).
You plan to be away
Our household helps usually have a permanent contract. This means that it is necessary for the hours stated in your
agreement to apply throughout the year (including by providing access to the home if you are absent). The
exceptions are the 10 national paid holidays (and their replacement dates) and the periods when the household help
is ill or on holiday.
If (exceptionally) the planned hours cannot be worked, you can have them worked at another time during the
quarter, provided that your household help and your Randstad service cheques consultant agree. This prevents us
from having to charge you for unworked hours.
It means that if you plan to be away, it is also best to examine when your household help can work these hours.
Example:
If you are away in July (start of the 3rd quarter), you can make up hours in July, August or September. If you cannot
let a planned service date take place at the end of June (end of the 2nd quarter), you can only make up the hours
before this, i.e. in April, May or June.
Hours can be made up in various ways. For example, hours can be made up on 1 day or a larger number of hours
can be worked over a number of weeks.
For example, take 4 hours to be made up (hours originally planned on a Tuesday):
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the household help works 4 extra hours on a Thursday or works 8 hours instead of 4 on the following Tuesday
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the household help works for 5 hours on 4 successive Tuesdays instead of 4 hours.
Is there a waiting list?
Randstad Service Cheques employs a large number of household helps and has a wide range of candidates on offer
thanks to its extensive network of offices. The demand for household helps is greater in some regions than the supply
of suitable candidates. Randstad Service Cheques works on the basis of the available and selected candidates, not
with waiting lists. As soon as a household help is available, the local Randstad Service Cheques consultant will contact
you and a specific starting date will be agreed.
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The cooporations starts… and now?
How many cheques/hours approximately can I offset against tax?
Buying service cheques offers a tax benefit. You can deduct the purchase amount as a taxable expense. The
percentage of deduction depends on the region you live in.
You will receive a tax certificate that you must add to your tax declaration from Sodexo before 1 March of each year.
How much do you have to pay?
At the start of the cooperation you pay a one-off file cost of EUR 9.85. You pay EUR 9 per hour for a service cheque.
A 30% tax deduction applies to this amount. We charge a fixed a fixed administrative fee per worked week of EUR
2.56 (only the weeks when your household help actually works at your home). This is collected by direct debit.
So if you use a household help for 5 hours per week (and you can benefit from the tax deduction), the service cheque
costs you EUR 5.95 / hour net, including the administrative fee.
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More info?
A team of specialist consultants is ready to advise and assist you in each geographical area. If you want to find the
right contact for your local district, enter your postcode in the office page and you will get the right details
immediately. You can also call our free number 0800 30 130.
Register online
You can fill in the form and state your preferences. It will be automatically sent to the Randstad Service Cheques
office in your vicinity.
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