Understand · Payroll glossary
What is time credit?
Updated on
Time credit lets a private sector employee reduce or interrupt their work for a period, with an allowance from the National Employment Office (NEO) in some cases. In 2026: €361.39 (gross monthly allowance for end-of-career time credit at 1/5, single worker, as of 1 March 2026). In Dutch: tijdskrediet.
Definition of time credit
With a reason (caring for a child or a sick relative, training), you can stop completely, switch to half-time or four-fifths, and receive allowances for a limited period. You usually need 24 months’ seniority with the employer.
End-of-career time credit lets you switch to half-time or four-fifths from age 60, subject to career conditions, with an allowance.
The key figure in 2026
Source: Crédit-temps : terminer sa carrière en douceur (12 May 2026, updated on 11 June 2026): NEO amounts as of 1 March 2026, Mutualité chrétienne (En Marche) (secondary source). Value in force on 1 October 2026.
Worked example
At 60, switching to four-fifths at the end of your career on a salary of €3,000 gross: €1,949.62 in net salary, plus an allowance of €361.39 gross a month, on which the NEO withholds tax (17.15% or 35%, depending on your family situation).
In Dutch: tijdskrediet
In a Dutch-language contract or letter from the employer or the NEO, time credit is called ‘tijdskrediet’; in French-language ones, ‘crédit-temps’. On Indexo’s English pages: time credit.
Dutch term taken from: Partena Professional (secondary source).
Not to be confused with…
- Parental leave: a right per child under 12, with its own allowance: €1,058.86 gross a month full-time as of 1 March 2026.
- Part-time work: a timetable shorter than full-time, with pay and rights in proportion; since 1 June 2026, it must be at least 1/10 of a full-time job.
Calculate it for your situation
End-of-career or reason-based time credit: 2026 conditions, NEO allowance and net pay.
Related terms
- Part-time workContract, working time and career · in Dutch: deeltijdse werknemer
- Statutory pensionContract, working time and career · in Dutch: wettelijk pensioen
Sources
Parameters in force on 1 October 2026. Each parameter links to its source, the official one where it exists; a secondary source is flagged as such.
- Crédit-temps : terminer sa carrière en douceur (12 May 2026, updated on 11 June 2026): NEO amounts as of 1 March 2026, Mutualité chrétienne (En Marche) (secondary source).
- Moins d’allocations de crédit-temps et pour les congés thématiques dès le 1er février 2023 (Royal Decree of 26 January 2023), Securex (secondary source). Cross-checked with: CGSLB/ACLVB (17 February 2023).
- Congé parental 2026 : combien l’ONEm vous verse par mois (NEO scale indexed as of 1 March 2026), Aureus Social (secondary source). Cross-checked with: official NEO scale indexed as of 1 May 2024 (€1,017.77), with two indexations of 2% since.
- Tijdskrediet eindeloopbaan, Partena Professional (secondary source).