Itinerant trade

What is an itinerant activity?

An itinerant activity is the sale, offer for sale and display with a view to sale of products and services to the consumer by a trader outside his or her establishment(s) registered with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises or by any other person who does not have such an establishment.

This legislation therefore applies to any person, whether or not he or she is a trader, who carries out such sales. It covers not only the sale of products, but also the sale of services. However, it does not concern:

sales to professionals for professional purposes;
services provided by professionals whose profession is subject to ethical rules approved by the government.

Do you need to have an authorisation or fulfil specific conditions to carry out itinerant sales?

Yes, an authorisation or specific conditions may be required from the vendor depending on his or her status (trader, association, private individual), the type of sale (commercial or not) and the place of sale (e.g. public road or home party).

The exercise of activities is subject to conditions:

it requires authorisation to perform itinerant activities;
it is only allowed in certain places and an additional authorisation is sometimes required depending on the location (e.g. the permission of the municipality to exercise activities on municipal markets and the public domain);
it may be subject to time restrictions (mainly at the consumer’s home);
not all products and services may be sold on an itinerant basis.

Organisation of itinerant activities

The municipalities have an important role to play in organising itinerant and fairground activities. They must have a municipal regulation governing the organisation of these activities at public markets and fairgrounds, as well as their organisation in the public domain outside public markets and fairgrounds. The organisation of private markets and fairgrounds arising from a private initiative are subject to prior authorisation by the municipality.

Authorisation for itinerant activities

In order to minimise the risk of forgery, the authorisation of itinerant activities has been issued on an electronic carrier since 01/04/2013 and no longer delivered on a paper carrier (the paper authorisations have not been valid since 01/04/2014).

The authorisation of itinerant activities is required for every person carrying out an itinerant activity:

the natural person working for his or her own account;
the person responsible for the day-to-day management of a company or association;
the appointees of these persons, companies or associations.

How long is it valid?

It is valid for the entire duration of the activity.

Where is it obtained?

It is obtained from a recognised enterprise counter.

What are the various types of authorisations to perform itinerant activities?

Authorisation as employer

- this is issued in the name of the employer – natural person – or of the company carrying out the itinerant activity; in the latter case, it is allocated via the person responsible for day-to-day management;
- it allows the activity to be performed:
  - either in all places, except at the consumer’s home;
  - or in all places, including at the consumer’s home.

Authorisation as appointee B:

- it is issued in the name of a person and allows the activity to be carried out in all places, including at the consumer’s home.

Authorisation as appointee A:

- it is issued in the name of the company, natural person or company and can therefore be exchanged between the appointees;
- it allows the activity to be carried out in all places, except at the consumer’s home.

Obtaining the authorisation is subject to the following conditions:

the applicant must be a national of a country of the European Economic Area (EU enlarged to include Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein) or enjoy one of the professional card exemptions;
the activity via an authorisation as appointee A is also allowed for nationals from outside the European Economic Area who are the holders of a professional card or a work permit, depending on whether they carry out this activity as a self-employed person or as an employee;
for the authorisation as an employer, the applicant must satisfy the knowledge of business management;
to perform the activity at the consumer’s home, the applicant must submit a certificate of good moral conduct or be authorised by the public prosecutor.

What does an authorisation to carry out itinerant activities cost?

EUR 150 if you are an employer;
EUR 100 if you are an appointee.

Where can you carry out an itinerant activity?

In order to protect consumers, itinerant trade is only permitted in certain places:

public markets;
private markets allowed by the municipality;
the public domain;
private spaces adjacent to the public highway and commercial parking spaces, provided the prior consent of the municipality and the owner of the place has been obtained;
railway station, airport and metro halls;
shopping galleries;
fairs, only for itinerant activities related to fairground gastronomy;
hotels, restaurants and cafés, but only for the sale of flowers.

Also during certain events:

flea markets authorised by the municipality;
cultural and sporting events, when the products sold are related to the subject of the event or are products for use in snacks and light meals.

Is the practice of itinerant trade subject to a time limit?

The sale to the consumer’s home is only allowed between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.

For which products and services is itinerant selling allowed?

All products and services except:

weapons and ammunition, except for weapons for decorative purposes in the context of certain events or at antique and flea markets;
medicines and products/services that seek to improve health, including medicinal herbs and their constituents.

At the consumer’s home, only the following are allowed:

sales of products and services with a total value of less than EUR 250;
sales of products and services that exceed this amount if they are on the list of products relating to basic needs or the well-being of people and are limited to the sale of one single appliance or service per sale and do not exceed EUR 700 for the latter category.

These sales involve, among other things, an extension of the cooling-off period for consumers.

Is the practice of an itinerant activity subject to other conditions?

As a result of concerns about consumer information and protection, the trader or the latter’s appointees must identify themselves during the sale:

either by an identification board on a stall or vehicle;
or by showing the authorisation before commencing the sale activity at the consumer’s home.

Sales in the context of events to promote local trade or life in the municipality

Les ventes dans le cadre des manifestations de promotion du commerce local ou de la vie communale

Events to promote local trade:

often known by the name of “braderie”;
are organised by the municipality or with the consent of the municipality and are intended to promote the trade of a neighbourhood, shopping gallery or municipality;
bring together traders from the zone of promotion and usually itinerant traders as well as other professionals such as traders, craftspeople, farmers, producers from Belgium and other countries, invited and authorised by the municipality.

Events to promote life in the municipality:

are organised by the municipality or with the authorisation of the municipality;
are intended to get to know the municipality and its potential and usually take place in a context of celebrations;
for example, enhance municipality twinning events;
welcome local traders, sometimes at stands outside their establishment, but also other invited Belgian and foreign professionals, authorised by the municipality.

Professionals who take part in these two types of event do not need to be authorised to carry out itinerant activities, but do have to be able to prove their capacity as a trader, craftsperson, farmer, cultivator, etc. and identify themselves with a sign during the event.

Trade, craft or agricultural trade fairs and exhibitions

The purpose of these events is to publicise the economic activities of one or more sectors or of a particular region.
They must satisfy the following criteria:

the objective is promotional, even if sales are allowed there;
the event must be announced publicly;
the event must remain exceptional and temporary;
the event is reserved for traders from the sector or region in question and those who ensure the reception of visitors (hotels, restaurants and cafés, hosts/hostesses, etc.).

Professionals participating in these events are exempt from the authorisation to carry out an itinerant activity, but must identify themselves with a sign during the manifestation.

Sales by a merchant from a stall in front of his or her shop

do not require authorisation to carry out itinerant activities, but if this is situated on the public highway permission from the municipality is required;
the products and services offered must be of the same type as those usually sold in the store.

Sales by a trader in the establishment of a different trader

these are sales where the dealer-host can expand his or her offer for his or her customers;
the sale must take place during normal and customary opening hours;
the products and services offered must complement each other (for example, the work done by a hearing aids specialist at an optician’s);
the sale must be of a temporary or periodic and additional nature;
the host trader must identify himself or herself;
this sale does not require authorisation to carry out itinerant activities.

Sales as part of a promotion by a trader, a craftsperson, a farmer, a producer, etc., outside his or her establishment

this concerns, for example, wine tastings held by a wine trader that take place in a location that is more suitable for this than his or her own establishment;
sales must be promotional in nature, exceptional and temporary;
the products and services offered must be of the same type as those sold at the vendor’s establishment;
the activity must be notified in advance to the Minister for the Self-Employed at least thirty days before the start of the sales. The notification must contain the elements justifying these sales and allow their validity to be investigated;
the sales do not require an authorisation to carry out itinerant activities.

Sales at the consumer’s home at the latter’s express request

For these sales, no authorisation to engage in itinerant activities is required if:

the consumer has explicitly and in advance requested the vendor’s visit to negotiate the sale of the product or service;
this question is neither the result of a telephone proposal by the vendor nor is an answer to an operation whereby the vendor contacts customers systematically and en masse.

« home-party »

These sales require no authorisation to perform itinerant activities if the following conditions are met:

the vendor complies with the VAT regulations;
the sales must take place in the inhabited part of a person’s home, which is used exclusively for private purposes;
the sales take place in one time and on one day;
the sales must be reported in advance and personally to the persons for whom they are intended, stating the products and services offered.

Direct sales of products by farmers or horticulturalists, breeders at the production site

This concerns, for example, the sale of farm products at a farm.
These sales require no authorisation to carry out itinerant activities.

Sales without commercial purposes

Flea markets and other similar events

These events often bring together private and professional vendors:

they allow private persons to sell their goods that they have neither purchased, produced or manufactured with the purpose of selling them;
the number of participations of a private individual in flea markets is not limited, but must remain occasional. Outside this framework, the private person becomes a trader, possibly operating a secondary occupation, and must fulfil all obligations specific to the status;
these sales must be organised or authorised by the municipality;
the professionals must have an authorisation to perform itinerant activities.

The events that are open to private individuals can also exceed the framework of a flea market and relate to different products.
They often conform to a local tradition: pumpkin festival, sale of surplus young pigeons from spring nests.

Sales with a human, social, cultural, educational or sports purpose, defending nature, the animal world or promoting crafts or local products

Who can sell?

Any person, organisation or association de jure or de facto who wishes to support one of the above-mentioned objectives.

Do these sales require authorisation?

The legislation distinguishes three categories of operators:

youth associations recognised and subsidised by the competent authorities.
They may freely sell, providing they remain within the scope of the regulations;
associations or institutions that may receive tax-deductible gifts, as certified by Federal Public Service Finance:
They only have to declare their sales three days in advance;
other persons and associations that do not belong to both of the above-mentioned categories must have prior authorisation.

To whom must the statements be submitted and where must the authorisations be requested?

lif the sale is limited to one single municipality:
at the municipality where the sale takes place;
if the sale exceeds the scope of one single municipality:
at the competent regional department.

What specific conditions must be met?

the sales must remain occasional;
the sales must avoid competition with trading companies;
in order to verify compliance with this condition, the declarations or requests to obtain an authorisation must contain an estimate of the products or services offered for sale.

How can consumers ensure that the vendor is allowed to sell?

The vendor must identify himself or herself in such a way that there can be no doubt about the purpose of the action and the identity of the person responsible for doing it.

Is the destination of the money received checked?

Yes, proof of the destination of the retrieved funds must be submitted by the operators to the administration that granted the authorisation. For youth associations and those certified by FPS Finance, the control is carried out by the authority that certified them.