The Belgian Ministry of the Interior, responsible for issuing the official Belgian press card, has fallen behind in printing the new cards for the 2017-2021 period.
The Ministry has informed us that therefore, by a ministerial circular, the validity of the old 2012-2016 card will be extended until 28 February 2017.
However, the ministry will start the process of making the press cards as early as next week. Therefore they may already be available before the end of December, so that journalists who need them for the renewal of their residence permit will be able to present a press card valid for the whole of 2017.
The API secretariat will inform you as soon as your card is available and will inform you of the opening dates of the API office in order to facilitate the distribution of the cards.
If you have not yet applied for the renewal of your Belgian press card, you should do that as soon as possible through the API secretariat.
The validity of the SNCB/NMBS rail card will also be extended until 28 February 2017. The train staff will be informed: you will not have to go through any special formalities yourself.
