At a detention hearing in Belgium, a judge of the council chamber (raadkamer) decides behind closed doors whether detention continues after an arrest warrant. The first hearing falls within five days of the warrant being executed. A new hearing follows after one month, and later every two months. The family waits outside; the lawyer is your point of contact.
What happens at the council chamber hearing?
The council chamber checks whether the arrest warrant is lawful and decides whether detention is still needed, and in what form.
The judge first hears the public prosecutor (procureur des Konings). Then the suspect and his lawyer speak.
The council chamber can do three things:
- keep the detention, in prison or under electronic monitoring;
- release the suspect under conditions or on payment of a security deposit (borgsom);
- release the suspect without conditions.
There is no separate bail hearing in Belgium. The security deposit is one of the options the council chamber weighs at this same hearing.
If the council chamber keeps the detention, it must give reasons based on the concrete circumstances of the case.
Who is in the room, and who is not
In the room are the judge, the court clerk (griffier), the public prosecutor, the suspect and his lawyer. The family may not attend the hearing.
The hearing is not public. That protects the investigation and the presumption of innocence.
For the family this often means waiting in the corridor of the courthouse.
Your family member is usually brought from the prison to the hearing.
It is normal that you see little. Your lawyer can tell you after the hearing how it went.
The rhythm: five days, one month, two months
After the arrest warrant, a fixed rhythm of hearings follows for as long as the detention lasts and the investigation runs.
| Hearing | When | Valid until the next hearing |
|---|---|---|
| First hearing | Within five days of the arrest warrant being executed | One month |
| Second and third decision | Each time before the end of that month | One month |
| From the fourth decision | Each time before the end of the term | Two months |
At each hearing the council chamber can decide again whether detention is still necessary.
We wrote earlier about the two-month rule in the two-month extension only after the fourth appearance.
How a detention hearing in Belgium goes, step by step
Every hearing follows the same four steps, from the notice to the decision.
Step 1: The notice
At least 24 hours before the hearing, the suspect and his lawyer are told the place, day and time.
Step 2: Access to the file
Before the first hearing the file is open to the suspect and his lawyer on the last working day; before later hearings, for two days.
That is short. A lawyer must read the file quickly and discuss it with the suspect.
Step 3: The hearing
The prosecutor gives his position, then the lawyer pleads. The suspect can also say something himself.
The hearing in Flanders is in Dutch. A suspect who does not understand Dutch can ask for an interpreter.
Step 4: The decision and formal service
The council chamber decides, and the decision is formally served (betekend) on the suspect. From that service, his time limit for an appeal runs.
What the family can do before the hearing
The family helps most by giving the lawyer, in time, details that make a release under conditions credible.
Think of:
- a fixed address in Belgium where your family member can live;
- proof of work, studies or a concrete job offer;
- the name of a doctor or service that can start counselling or treatment;
- practical details about children or people who depend on him.
Such details say something about the risk of flight or reoffending. Those are among the risks the judge looks at.
For an expat family, ties to Belgium matter here: a lease, a Belgian employer, children at school.
Give these details to the lawyer, not to the judge. Do not contact witnesses either.
Appeal to the indictment chamber
A decision of the council chamber can be appealed within 24 hours to the indictment chamber (kamer van inbeschuldigingstelling), a chamber of the court of appeal (hof van beroep).
That appeal is open to the suspect and to the public prosecutor. For the prosecutor the time limit runs from the decision, for the suspect from the formal service.
The indictment chamber must decide within 15 days of the appeal. If it does not, the suspect is released.
If the council chamber releases your family member and the prosecutor appeals, your family member as a rule stays in detention until that ruling.
An appeal does not always make sense. It can also lengthen the procedure, so discuss it with your lawyer.
Which law applies? The hearings of the council chamber follow the Pre-trial Detention Act of 20 July 1990 (Wet voorlopige hechtenis), which still applies next to the new Criminal Code.
Frequently asked questions
Who sits in the council chamber?
A judge of the court of first instance (rechtbank van eerste aanleg), assisted by a court clerk. It is not the investigating judge who issued the arrest warrant.
Can the hearing ever be public?
Yes, at the suspect’s request, after a longer detention: after six months for offences up to penalty level 4, otherwise after a year. The judge can refuse only on legal grounds. The levels are explained in our post on the penalty levels of the new Criminal Code.
What happens if the council chamber orders release?
Your family member is released, possibly under conditions. The prosecutor can appeal within 24 hours. That is why the release sometimes does not happen at once.
Does my family member have to speak at the hearing?
He may, but he does not have to. What he says is best discussed with his lawyer beforehand.
Contact our office about the council chamber
The council chamber decides on the basis of the file and what is said at the hearing. Good preparation with the right details counts.
Our office assists suspects in criminal cases in Antwerp.
Call our office on working days on +32 476 22 04 02, or send us a message through the contact form.
