NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Belgium facts

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National ID

All Belgians that are 12 and above are issued a national identification card. Belgians 15 and above are required to always carry it with them unless they are within a 200 meter range of their homes. (Foreigners too must at all times be able to provide identification, either a passport, or an ID issued by the Belgian Government) German identity document sample An identity document is a piece of documentation designed to prove the identity of the person carrying it. ... The title page of European Union passports bears the name European Union, then the name of the issuing country, in the languages of all EU countries. ...

Belgians aren't required to show their IDs unless dealing with:

Particular Governmental Agencies
The police
Authorised bus and train personnel

The card holds the following information:

Photograph
Names of the holder
Nationality: Belgian
Date and place of birth
Sex
Signature
ID card number
Period of validity

If the holder wishes, the following info will also be mentioned on the card:

Marital status
State register number (each individual is issued unique number for administration purposes)

In the future, the ID will be replaced with a chip card with more information stored inside the chip. The address of the holder won't be printed on the card either. The ID card may be used as a form of identification when travelling within the EU. For most other countries outside the EU, a Belgian citizen must ask for a passport. An integrated circuit (IC) is a thin chip consisting of at least two interconnected semiconductor devices, mainly transistors, as well as passive components like resistors. ...

Driving

In Belgium, you drive on the right side of the road.
With a few specific exceptions, seatbelts are required for all passengers.
Cars 4 years of age and older are required to be checked every year to make sure they are roadworthy.
Number plates are insurance + driver specific. As long as you remain the main driver, and you keep the same insurance company, you keep your number plate.
Number plate is white background with red numbers and letters, except for motorcycle plates which have black numbers and letters on a yellow background. Usually a three-letter combination followed by a three number combination: "AAA 111" (there are still many "old" number plates in use: one letter/four numbers or two letters/three numbers in various combinations)

Speed Limits (unless stated otherwise)

Highways: 120 km/h (75 miles/h)
Regional roads: 90 km/h (56 miles/h)
Within City Limits: 50 km/h (31 miles/h)
Slow zones: 30 km/h (19 miles/h)

Fines usually start at 11 km/h above speed limit. When caught, the offender can choose to settle and pay the fine or dispute the offence before a court. If however, the offender is travelling 40 km/h or higher than what is allowed, the offenders driving license will immediately be revoked for at least two weeks. The offender will also be required to go to court and cannot settle beforehand. (the 40 km/h rule is under good weather conditions. It's less under bad weather conditions.) As of 1 January 2003 there will theoretically be zero-tolerance regarding speed offences. January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Alcohol limit when driving:

0.5 per thousand

Smoking

Any form of advertising or sponsoring of cigarette brands are banned.

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Education

There are two main school systems in Belgium: State-owned schools and state-free schools. Most of the state-free schools are catholic oriented and are also subsidised by the government.

Pre-school

Free schooling is provided to every child from the age of 2 years 6 months. In most schools the child can start in school as soon as they reach this age, so class size for the youngest children grows during the year. The school year runs from 1 September to 30 June, but each class typically has children who were all born in the same calendar year. September 1 is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years). ... June 30 is the 181st day of the year (182nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 184 days remaining, and the last day of June. ...

Primary School

Consists of six forms and the subjects given are generally the same at all schools. Compulsory schooling starts at age 6. Most schools are either provided by the local commune, and are therefore secular, or are church-sponsored schools, mainly catholic. Education is rather traditional, concentrating on reading, writing and arithmetic. There are also many private schools set up to serve various international communities in Belgium, mainly around the larger cities.

Class size is usually below 20, although this is growing due to financial pressures on the school system. In commune schools it is compulsory to learn a 2nd language (French or Dutch depending on the location of the school) from the age of 8, although many schools start earlier.

Secondary School

Students can choose what "direction" they want to follow depending on their skill level and interests. Secondary school is divided into four general types. Each type consists of a set of different directions that may vary from school to school. The general types are as follows:

General Secondary Education: Most subjects are very general and theoretical and form the basis for higher education. Once students have completed all six years, it is expected that they will continue studying (e.g.: university). Otherwise the acquired diploma would be considered useless if they were to try to enter the job market.
Technical Secondary Education: Subjects are more technical and practical. Usually lasts six years. Once students have completed all six years, they are generally considered ready for the job market in whatever speciality they chose. They may also choose to continue studying to have more theoretical background.
Job education: Very practical and very job specific. Six years plus seventh specialisation year.
Art Education: Less known and mostly artistic subjects given

After secondary school, graduates can choose to continue studying. They have two choices: Higher Education or University. Unlike primary and secondary, it's not free. Students will probably have to pay between € 70.00 and € 650.00 per year depending on their situation (The rest is government subsidised).

Higher Education

Since the adoption of the Bologna process in most European countries, the higher education system in Belgium follows the Bachelor/Master system: The purpose of the Bologna process is to create the European higher education area by harmonising academic degree standards and quality assurance standards throughout Europe for each faculty and its developement (faculty_development). ...

Bachelor's degree: 3 years
Master's degree: 1 or 2 years

In Belgium, both Universities and Colleges are allowed to teach Bachelor and Master classes, either practical or theoretical. A bachelors degree is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course or major that generally lasts three or four years. ... A masters degree is an academic degree usually awarded for completion of a postgraduate or graduate course of one to three years in duration. ... A professor giving a lecture at the Helsinki University of Technology A university is an institution of higher education and of research, which grants academic degrees. ... A college (Latin collegium) can be the name of any group of colleagues; originally it meant a group of people living together under a common set of rules (con-, together + leg-, law). As a consequence members of colleges were originally styled fellows and still are in some places. ...

Prior to the adoption of the Bologna process, the Belgian higher education system had two degrees:

Graduate degree (Dutch: graduaat, French: graduat): A 3-year long course in a college. Mostly practical.
Licentiate degree (Dutch: licentiaat, French: licentiat): A 4 or 5-year long course in a University. Mostly theoretical.

The licentiate degree was split up in two other degrees:

Candidate diploma (Dutch: kandidaat, French: candidat): The first 2 years at a University
Licentiate diploma (Dutch: licentiaat, French: licentiat): The last 2 or 3 years at a University.

Because the licentiate degree was split up in two cycles, a licentiate degree was usually called a 2-cycle education, and a graduate degree was called a 1-cycle education.

A University education was not considered finished until the licentiate diploma is obtained. Occasionally it was possible to switch specializations after obtaining the candidate diploma. For example, a student with a mathematics candidate diploma was often allowed to start in the third year of computer science class. Sometimes a graduate diploma was also accepted as an equivalent to a candidate diploma, allowing for 2 or 3 more years of education at a University.

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