Social housing fraud: Belgium is tracking down Moroccans

Limburg, the province bordering the Netherlands and Germany, takes the lion’s share with 309 cases of detected fraud. A sad record that highlights the extent of the problem and the urgency of corrective measures, notes the Belgian press.

Since March 2021, the Flemish government has decided to take the bull by the horns by launching a large-scale control operation in collaboration with a specialized company. In total, 941 investigations were carried out, resulting in the discovery of 482 proven cases of fraud, a staggering rate of 51.2%. In Morocco, for example, 157 people were unmasked.

Faced with this situation, the Flemish authorities intend to maintain the pressure. Fraudsters are exposed to heavy penalties, ranging from the reimbursement of unduly received rents to outright eviction from their social housing.

"It is essential to restore equity and ensure that social housing is allocated to those who really need it," stresses Flemish Housing Minister Matthias Diependaele (N-VA). "That’s why we are determined to track down fraudsters and punish them severely."

While each case is unique, some examples are striking in their audacity. In Turkey, a social housing tenant was caught with a plot of land and a house worth 396,000 euros. Another was forced to repay the sum of 60,929.63 euros for the purchase of real estate abroad made ten years earlier.

In total, 2.7 million euros in social reductions have already been claimed, an average of 11,204 euros per file. A considerable amount that testifies, according to the authorities, to the damage suffered by the community and calls for increased vigilance.

Faced with the ingenuity of the fraudsters, who do not hesitate to quickly resell their real estate to escape sanctions, the Flemish government has decided to retaliate. From now on, the investigations will go back up to two years, making it possible to uncover the most elaborate stratagems.

"We will not tolerate any attempt to divert the system," stresses Minister Diependaele. "By intensifying our efforts and toughening the sanctions, we will send a clear message to all those who are considering fraud: social justice is not negotiable."