L-Card and Nationality Rules for Minor Children in Belgium

I have reviewed historical topics regarding the L-card for minors—one not born in Belgium and the other born in Belgium to a non-EU parent—but I couldn’t find any similar cases. That’s why I’m creating this new topic to see if anyone has had a similar experience.

Here is my situation:

I moved to Belgium on a work permit in September 2019 and received my residence card in October 2019. I applied for family reunification for my wife and daughter, who joined me in August 2020 and received their residence cards in September 2020. My wife was issued a card valid for one year, while my daughter received a card with the same expiration date as mine (two years).

When their cards expired, my wife was issued a three-year residence card, expiring on the same date as mine this year. My daughter was issued a two-year card, which expired in October 2024. I contacted the commune to renew my children’s cards because we had a baby here in Antwerp in 2022. However, due to backlogs at the commune, their cards were recently renewed and issued for only six months, expiring in August 2025—the same date as my wife’s card.

Since I had already been in Belgium for five years, I applied for the L-card in October 2024. On January 3, 2025, I received a response from the Antwerp commune, along with the bijlage 16 and bijlage 16bis documents, and I was given an appointment in June 2025 to process and get my L-card.

When renewing my children’s cards recently, I asked if I could apply for their L-cards once I receive mine, as they are my dependents and I believed the same rules would apply to them. However, the staff member attending to me said no, explaining that a new rule now requires children to spend five years in Belgium before they can apply for an L-card. This contradicts what I’ve read online regarding minors, including those born in Belgium.

I understand that my wife may need to wait five years to process her L-card since she is no longer my dependent and has started working, but what about my children?

My questions are:

    Is it true that my children must wait five years before applying for an L-card?

    If I receive my L-card in June, I plan to apply for nationality afterward. Will my children still have to wait five years before I can apply for their nationality?

    One of my children will complete five years in Belgium in 2025, while the one born here will complete five years in 2027. Does this mean I could obtain nationality, but my children would need to wait that long for theirs?

This situation is a bit confusing, and I’m unsure what steps to take. If anyone has had a similar experience, I would appreciate your insights.