Appeals by the Brussels-North and Brussels-West police zones against the police law

The Constitutional Court has scheduled the hearing for the debates on the request for the suspension of Article 5 of the law of May 25, 2026, amending the law of December 7, 1998, organizing an integrated police service structured at two levels, for October 21, 2026, at 2 p.m. The official notice, published in the Belgian Official Gazette of September 28, 2026 (p. 52069) under reference [C − 2026/007028], specifies that the petitions for annulment and requests for suspension were introduced by the Brussels-North police zone and the Brussels-West police zone. The two cases, registered under numbers 8753 and 8755 of the Court’s docket, have been joined.

Two police zones contest Article 5

Through two petitions filed on September 16 and 18, 2026, on the Constitutional Court’s electronic platform, the two Brussels police zones are requesting the annulment and suspension of Article 5 of the law of May 25, 2026, “amending the law of December 7, 1998, organizing an integrated police service structured at two levels and various other provisions relating to police services.” The contested text was published in the Belgian Official Gazette on June 22, 2026.

The notice is prescribed by Article 74 of the special law of January 6, 1989, on the Constitutional Court, which requires the publication of petitions for annulment to allow interested third parties to come forward in the proceedings. Publication in the Belgian Official Gazette therefore constitutes the official act opening the adversarial phase before the jurisdiction.

Deadline for briefs until October 16

In application of Article 23 of the special law of January 6, 1989, the Court has set the following schedule:

• Hearing on the request for suspension: October 21, 2026, at 2 p.m.
• Last day to submit written observations: October 16, 2026.
• Required format: a brief, accompanied by any possible annexes.
• Transmission: by email to greffe@const-court.be, or filing on the eProConst platform available on the Court’s website.

Any person demonstrating an interest may thus intervene in the proceedings relating to the request for suspension, with the jurisdiction favoring the electronic route.

Joinder of cases and registry

The petitions from the two zones were registered under numbers 8753 and 8755 of the Constitutional Court’s docket and joined into a single proceeding. The notice published in the Belgian Official Gazette is signed by the registrar Nicolas Dupont.

The proceedings concern Article 5 of the law of May 25, 2026, the annulment of which is requested on the merits, while the request for suspension seeks an immediate effect. The joinder of the two cases means that the Court will jointly examine the arguments of the two petitioning police zones.

Scope for the zones and the municipalities

The outcome of this procedure directly concerns the police zones and municipalities, which finance and organize the local police. If the suspension were granted, Article 5 of the law of May 25, 2026 would be set aside during the examination of the petition for annulment; otherwise, the provision would remain applicable until the final judgment. Third parties demonstrating an interest have until October 16, 2026 to submit their written observations before the hearing on October 21, 2026.

Source: Belgian Official Gazette of September 28, 2026, notice of the Constitutional Court, reference [C − 2026/007028], cases no. 8753 and 8755, p. 52069.