Appeal against the Flemish decree on study grants and extracurricular childcare

The Constitutional Court has been seized of an action for annulment and a request for the suspension of the decree of the Flemish Community of June 19, 2026, relating to study grants in higher education and the care of children in the bilingual region of Brussels-Capital. The notice, prescribed by Article 74 of the special law of January 6, 1989, is published in the Belgian Official Gazette of October 15, 2026, under reference C − 2026/007628 (p. 55449). The case is entered under number 8758 of the Court’s docket.

The action was initiated by a petition filed on September 22, 2026, on the Court’s electronic platform. The applicants are the non-profit organization “Vlaamse Vereniging van Studenten”, Talia Van Iseghem, Rizlain Ballahssane, and Agnes Gruloos. The notice is signed by the registrar Frank Meersschaut.

The contested text is the decree of June 19, 2026, “amending several decrees relating to the political domain of Education and Training, regarding study grants in higher education as well as nurseries and extracurricular care in the bilingual region of Brussels-Capital,” published in the Belgian Official Gazette of June 26, 2026. The action concerns both the merits and a request for suspension, processed according to an expedited procedure.

Calendar set by the Court

In application of Article 23 of the special law of January 6, 1989, on the Constitutional Court, the jurisdiction has set the following deadlines:

• Hearing dedicated to the debates on the request for suspension: November 18, 2026, at 3:30 PM.
• Last day of the deadline for filing written observations regarding the request for suspension: November 10, 2026.
• Procedural basis: Article 23 of the special law of January 6, 1989, the notice itself being prescribed by Article 74 of the same law.

Who may intervene and under what modalities

Any person demonstrating an interest may submit written observations regarding the request for suspension in the form of a memorandum. Two channels are provided:

• Filing on the eProConst platform, available on the Court’s website.
• Sending by email, with any attachments, to the address greffe@const-court.be.

Subject of the dispute

The contested decree amends several decrees in the political domain of Education and Training. It affects two distinct matters:

• Study grants in higher education.
• Nurseries and extracurricular care in the bilingual region of Brussels-Capital.

The publication of the notice in the Belgian Official Gazette opens the adversarial phase before the Constitutional Court. Interested third parties thus have a reasonable period to come forward before the examination of the request for suspension, the outcome of which determines the application of the decree during the remainder of the proceedings.

For the students, families, and extracurricular childcare operators concerned, the hearing on November 18, 2026, constitutes the next decisive appointment: it is on this date that the Court will examine whether the Flemish decree of June 19, 2026, should be suspended pending its decision on the petition for annulment.

Belgian Official Gazette of October 15, 2026, official notice of the Constitutional Court, ref. C − 2026/007628, p. 55449-55450.