Belgian prince Laurent loses battle to receive benefits on top of six-figure royal allowance

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A Belgian prince has lost a legal battle to claim social security benefits on top of his six-figure royal allowance.

Prince Laurent, 61, who is the youngest brother of King Philippe, received €388,000 (£295,850) from state funds last year.

However, without social security coverage he is not able to claim reimbursement for certain medical expenses or sick pay if he is unable to work.

He argued he was partly self-employed, as well as his royal duties, he runs an animal welfare charity and explained he was acting out of “principle”, not for the money.

“When a migrant comes here, he registers, he has a right to [social security],” Laurent told Belgian broadcaster RTBF.

Princess Claire and Prince Laurent attending annual mass in the church of Notre-Dame de Laeken in Brussels (EPA)

“I may be a migrant too, but one whose family established the state in place.”

But a Brussels court found on Monday his duties were more akin to those in the civil service, where workers receive specific benefits but there is no overarching security system.

Laurent’s lawyer, Oliver Rijckaert, told Belgian newspaper Le Soir that social security is “granted by Belgian law to all residents, from the most deprived to the richest.”

His lawyer added that most of his allowance is spent on his assistant’s salary and travel expenses.

Laurent and his British wife, Claire Coombs, have three children who are now in their 20s.

However, he says he is concerned for his family’s well-being because the royal allowance will be cut completely when he dies.

Laurent took legal action against the Belgian state after his application for social security was refused. A first hearing was held in November 2024.

In 2018, his annual state allowance was cut by 15 per cent after he met foreign dignitaries as a Chinese embassy reception without federal government approval.

He has also been given several speeding fines and was criticised for attending meetings in Libya when the late Muammar Gaddafi was still in power.