Temporary Housing

Military Personnel 

It is mandatory to report to the Housing Services Office within 48 hours of arrival to base.

Military families arriving to U.S. Army Garrison Benelux-Brussels are entitled temporary lodging under the provisions outlined in the Department of Defense Financial Management Regulation 7000.14-R and Army in Europe Regulation 37-4. A Temporary Lodging Allowance is paid to the service member and is based on the number and age of family members and whether the lodging has kitchen facilities or not. If you stay in accommodations with a kitchen facility, you will only receive half your per diem of the meals portion. If you are staying in a friend’s house (even with a kitchen), you will receive full meals per diem (not half). TLA normally covers expenses for your room and provides a set rate for food and incidental expenses. It's designed to offset the cost of temporary accommodation while you're trying to find a permanent place to live. It is not intended for personal enrichment.

Since TLA is not paid in advance, you should have sufficient funds to cover your living expenses for the first few weeks after you arrive. During your TLA period, you are required to look at a minimum of seven dwellings during each 15-day period. Failure to do so will result in non-payment of your allowance. The same applies to houses being turned down without a justified reason. Your use of TLA, and your efforts to find permanent accommodations, will be carefully scrutinized.

Per diem – The maximum period of TLA payments is 60 days. Current per diem rates can be found on the DOD website. In the Outside CONUS section on the right, select Belgium in the query box/dropdown. Look under Brussels for your per diem rates. Please note that the listed rates are at 100% and the amount is designated in U.S. dollars. The 100% per diem is for a service member and the oldest dependent (usually the spouse). Add 35% of the rate for each dependent 12 years of age or older and 25% of the rate for each dependent under 12 years of age.

Please note that TLA over 60 days requires USAG Benelux garrison commander approval, and a request for TLA extension will have to be submitted. Please note that submitting a TLA extension request does not mean approval! Generally, only situations beyond your control will be considered (such as household goods or loaner furniture cannot be delivered).

Civilian Personnel

Civilian personnel receive their allowance directly from the Civilian Personnel Advisory Center. Please check with your CPAC for your entitlements.

For the most current housing information, please consult the Army Housing website.

Brussels, Belgium has no government guest housing or transient facilities. In order to facilitate your move, the HSO has established agreements with five hotels/apartment-hotels in the vicinity of the USAG Benelux-Brussels and NATO. The apartment-hotel has kitchen facilities. Service members may also stay with friends and will still be given full meal per diem even if the home has a kitchen. Most accommodations are conveniently located throughout the area. Please note that not all accommodations accept pets; be sure to check with the HSO or with the hotel directly if you make your own reservations. If you want to benefit from the contracted accommodations, please contact HSO. HSO will not assume responsibility for the payment of invoices resulting from reservations made by persons other than HSO staff. Reservations made by you or your sponsor require out-of-pocket payment. However, you may request reimbursement up to the applicable per diem rate. The government only reimburses lodging costs. However, you are also entitled to per diem for meals, which is a lump-sum payment. All other expenses, such as telephone calls and the use of mini-bars, are at personal expense. The government and/or HSO are not responsible for damages caused by the service member, his/her dependents, guests or pets.

All permanent military personnel on official permanent change of station orders are eligible to stay at one of the contracted facilities. Per DOD FMR 7000.14-R, the maximum stay is limited to 60 days for arrivals and 10 days for departures. Please note that these are not automatic entitlements and that noncompliance with the requirements outlined in the DOD FMR may result in termination of TLA.

Civilian personnel receive their allowance for temporary quarters directly from the CPAC. Therefore, they have to arrange for their own temporary lodging accommodations and cannot make use of the blanket purchase agreements. However, sometimes your HSO can assist you in finding a hotel.

Availability/Location

Brussels, Belgium does not have government guest housing or transient facilities. In order to facilitate your move, the HSO has established five BPAs with four local hotels and one apartment-hotel in the vicinity of the USAG Benelux-Brussels and NATO. One has kitchen facilities and are conveniently located throughout the area. Service members may also stay with friends and will receive full meals per diem even if the home has a kitchen.

Eligibility

All permanent military personnel on official PCS orders with a fund citation are entitled to temporary housing. The maximum duration is limited to applicable regulations of 60 days for arrival and 10 days for departure. Civilian personnel receive their allowance for temporary quarters directly from CPAC. Therefore, they have to arrange for their own temporary lodging accommodations and cannot make use of the BPA agreements. However, your HSO can assist you in finding a hotel with a government preferential rate.

Military personnel

The purpose of the BPA is to get a government preferential rate and to avoid out-of-pocket expenses for lodging, as the bill is sent directly to HSO. Please note that the government only pays for lodging. Other expenses, such as the use of the mini bar, telephone calls and meals, are personal expenses and are not reimbursed on a contract basis. If you wish to make use of these facilities through the BPA, you must provide a copy of your orders to the USAG Benelux-Brussels HSO. Without orders, no reservations will be made. The HSO is the sole point of contact for making reservations. You cannot make your own reservations and ask the hotel to send the bill to the HSO. Any reservations made by the service member will be at personal expense. In this case, you will have to bring a paid invoice to the HSO and request reimbursement. Please note that reimbursements will only be paid up to the maximum applicable per diem. A fixed meal portion is reimbursed in accordance with the applicable per diem rates as noted on the DOD website. If you stay with a friend, you will receive no lodging per diem, but you will receive the full meals allowance even if the home has a kitchen.

Pets

Two of the three contracted hotels take pets but may charge an additional cleaning fee for pets. If you decide to stay in a hotel of your own choice, please check directly with the hotel about their pet regulations.

Registration

In order to make use of the BPA, you must submit a copy of your orders to the HSO. Additionally, exact arrival date, number of family members, age and gender of dependents, and number of pets must be provided. This information may be provided by fax or emailed to the Brussels HSO.

Transportation

Transportation to/from your hotel is usually provided by your sponsor. Public transportation is also available. Most hotels will provide transportation to/from the airport to your hotel and, in some cases, to your duty station.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Notify your TLA Office in time about when you intend to move out of the contracted hotel. A minimum notice must be given to contracted hotels, and non-respect of this notice will result in out of pocket expenses! You will receive specific pertinent hotel information during your TLA briefing. Additionally, any absence of you or one of your family members from the hotel must be reported to the TLA Office.