Language at commune

Peterjohn123 Contributor

Member since 19 August 2020

Peterjohn123Contributor16 August 2021 13:18:59

172

Hi guys,

I know that French/Dutch are officials languages in Belgium. However, I came here to study (international programs) and work (international company where English is a norm). Therefore my French is not good enough to communicate (learning).
But my commune Anderlecht, the foreign office refuse to communicate with me if I do not speak French although they know English. Is this obliged by law? I tried to speak in French a little but the guy was not patient at all. I understand a little French but the guy seems talk to me as if I am native French speaker. Its foreign office but I think they mean French is international language used by everyone everywhere on Earth. As I am paying tax so its not acceptable for me! I have not seen this in Ixelles commune as people try to speak in English or at least find any colleague to speak to me in English. That was really appreciate.

Hoddie Member

Member since 10 June 2021

HoddieMember19 August 2021 14:16:31

Some staff in Flanders (Dutch) areas are mandated to speak Flemish or they risk losing their job. We speak fluent French and English and we talk to them in English, and they reply in Flemish. We usually get by this way, but if we struggle they tend to start whispering to us in English.

I don't know if staff in Brussels are under the same regime, but they are not obligated to use anything other than the language of the region. As Brussels is technically dual Flemish/French, you could request to use either language, but French seems to be most common amongst civil servants.

I have previously sent email to Belgian government departments in English, and have received replies in English. You could try emailing Anderlecht. We've used Google Translate to compose email to our local commune before now - keep sentences short and to the point and it seems to work.

I suspect though that if you need to deal with someone face to face, and they absolutely refuse to speak English, you'll need to find a friend who does speak French or Dutch to go with you.