The cleaning sector was the first to move from CIAW to full entry-and-exit CIAO, here’s how the €30,000 threshold, multi-site obligations, and 2026 enforcement actually play out.
If you run a cleaning business in Belgium, the regulatory game changed in 2025, and the implications are still being absorbed across the sector. Cleaning was the first industry to graduate from straightforward Check in at Work (CIAW) to full Check in and Out at Work (CIAO), which means every worker must register both an entry and an exit time, on every site, every day, once the contract value crosses €30,000. The result is a sector that is now far more app-dependent than its peers, with manual paper logs effectively obsolete. This guide unpacks the cleaning sector’s specific obligations under the Check in at Work framework, walks through what entry-and-exit means in practice for multi-site operations, and outlines what 2026 enforcement looks like on the ground. It is written for the people running cleaning operations who want a clear, practical compliance baseline.
Quick Navigation
- The €30,000 threshold and what triggers CIAO
- Entry and exit, what changes in practice
- Multi-site operations and the per-site rule
- Cleaning sector quick-reference table
- Common compliance pitfalls in cleaning
- Implementation checklist
- What’s expected in 2027 and beyond
- Managing CIAW with technology
- Frequently Asked Questions
The €30,000 threshold and what triggers CIAO
The threshold for the cleaning sector is €30,000 in contract value. Once that line is crossed, all cleaning work performed under the contract falls into the Check in and Out at Work (CIAO) regime, meaning every worker must register both arrival and departure on every site.
Two important nuances:
- The threshold applies per contract, not per visit. A two-year cleaning contract with cumulative value above €30,000 is in scope from day one, even if a single shift is short.
- Where multiple cleaning contracts are bundled under a master facility-services agreement, the master value is what counts.
The legal framework is published on the Belgian Social Security portal and detailed in the NSSO official guidance. The sector federation views are aligned with regulator interpretation.
| ⚠️ Important regulatory warning: Unlike construction, the cleaning sector requires both entry and exit times. A registration that records arrival but not departure is incomplete and treated as missing during an NSSO inspection. Belgian CIAO non-compliance can trigger administrative and criminal sanctions per offence, refer to the NSSO Check in at Work guidance for current amounts. The Belgian Data Protection Authority also enforces how this entry/exit data is captured and retained. |
Entry and exit, what changes in practice
The move from CIAW to CIAO is much more than an extra tap on the screen. It changes how cleaning operations need to be organised.
❌ One paper sign-in sheet at the start of the shift, completed by the team lead
✅ Each individual worker registering personally, both on arrival and on departure
❌ A single daily entry covering “all cleaning staff on site”
✅ Per-worker, per-site, per-shift entry and exit timestamps submitted to the NSSO
❌ Bulk hours uploaded at end of month
✅ Continuous data flow into the NSSO submission endpoint, plus integration with payroll
Operationally, this means a cleaning crew that historically signed one paper log per site now needs each worker to interact with a CIAW/CIAO app, a site pole, or an NFC tag, twice per shift. The most successful 2025–2026 rollouts paired the app with a small NFC tag at each cleaning entrance so the entry/exit step takes under three seconds per worker.
Multi-site operations and the per-site rule
Cleaning companies typically run dozens of sites simultaneously, schools, offices, retail locations, hospitals. CIAO applies per site, not per company:
- Each site needs its own configuration: address, geofence, foreman or site lead.
- Workers who cover multiple sites in one shift register entry and exit at each.
- For very short stops (a 20-minute office clean), entry-and-exit still applies.
This is where multi-site cleaning operators feel the cost of bad tooling most acutely. A platform that handles site-switching, automatic geofence detection, and hardware-level connectivity (NFC tags or site poles with their own SIM, for sites in basements or industrial halls) removes the friction without relying on each worker’s phone signal. Suivo’s CIAO solution is built for this scale, with batch onboarding for sites and workers and a single dashboard view across all locations.
For mixed operations, a facility services company that also handles light construction, transport, or asset management, pair CIAO with the time tracking module and, where relevant, vehicle tracking so a single platform covers every regulatory regime.
Cleaning sector quick-reference table
| Scenario | In scope? | Type of registration | Notes |
| Single-office clean, contract > €30,000 | ✅ Yes | CIAO entry and exit | Per worker, per shift |
| Multi-site contract, total > €30,000 | ✅ Yes | CIAO entry and exit per site | Master contract counts |
| One-off clean, single visit < €30,000 | ❌ Generally not | n/a | Document the assessment |
| Subcontracted cleaning under a facility contract | ✅ Yes | CIAO | Chain liability applies |
| Cleaning of construction site canteen / ancillary | ✅ Yes | CIAO if cleaning contract > threshold | Pair with site’s CIAW |
| Window-cleaning specialist on rotating schedule | ✅ Yes if annual contract > €30,000 | CIAO entry and exit | Per-site geofencing |
Always verify in writing with the contracting party; thresholds reference the contract value, not the single-shift cost.
Common compliance pitfalls in cleaning
- Assuming small contracts stay below threshold. Most multi-year cleaning contracts cross €30,000 by month six. Calculate the cumulative annualised value before answering.
- Recording only entry. A common error in the first year of CIAO, the exit step gets skipped at the end of a tired shift. Configure automatic exit reminders.
- Sharing one device between workers. Each worker must register personally. Sharing one phone or one badge across the crew is a violation, even if all the workers are on the same payroll.
- Treating cleaning of construction-site canteens as construction. It is cleaning, and falls under CIAO; co-ordinate with the main contractor so the worker doesn’t get double-registered.
- Skipping documentation for clearly exempt jobs. Even a small one-off clean below €30,000 benefits from a one-line written note explaining why CIAO didn’t apply.
For the most common cleaning-sector disputes during NSSO inspections, see the Suivo CIAW FAQ.
Implementation checklist
☐ Map every active cleaning contract against the €30,000 threshold; flag annualised values.
☐ Configure each site in the CIAO platform with full address, geofence, and site lead.
☐ Onboard every cleaning worker individually with their own login and identity (NISS or BIS).
☐ For posted workers, verify the Limosa declaration before issuing a CIAO account.
☐ Place small NFC or QR tags at each site entrance for fast registration.
☐ Configure automatic exit reminders so end-of-shift sign-off is never missed.
☐ Pair CIAO with time tracking so hours flow into payroll without manual re-entry.
☐ Run a single-site pilot for two weeks before company-wide rollout.
☐ Brief facility-management clients on what they will see on their side (some require visibility into who entered when).
What’s expected in 2027 and beyond
- 2027 outlook: Belgium is expected to expand mandatory daily time registration to every employer. For cleaning, this would overlay the existing CIAO regime; integrated platforms make the transition smoother. Track the legal route via official channels rather than blog summaries.
- Threshold review: The €30,000 threshold has not been indexed since the move to CIAO in 2025; an upward adjustment is possible in 2027.
- Enforcement intensification: NSSO inspections in cleaning increased in 2025 and are expected to remain elevated through 2026.
- Cross-sector pull-through: Other facility-services activities are candidates for full CIAO in the next cycle.
Managing CIAW with technology
Suivo, a Belgian IoT and compliance company with over 15 years of experience, builds CIAO tooling specifically calibrated for the cleaning sector’s multi-site, per-worker, entry-and-exit requirements. Their platform helps you:
- Capture entry and exit per worker, per site, via the CIAO app, NFC tags, or compact site-pole hardware.
- Manage hundreds of sites under one dashboard with batch onboarding and automatic geofence detection.
- Cover low-signal sites with site-pole hardware that carries its own SIM, so registrations land live on the backend rather than being stored locally on workers’ phones.
- Verify Limosa for posted workers before issuing a CIAO account, removing the most common rejection cause.
- Sync hours directly into SD Worx, Partena, Acerta, and ERP systems via time tracking.
- Cover multi-sector operations: if your business also touches construction, transport, or asset management, everything sits under one login.
- Provide NL/FR/EN local support from a Belgian team that has been through every cleaning-sector NSSO interpretation since the 2025 transition.
Suivo’s IoT platform integrates seamlessly with existing payroll and ERP systems, helping facility-services firms like Water-link’s cleaning partners and B&R Bouwgroep’s ancillary cleaning teams stay continuously compliant across hundreds of simultaneous sites.
“When CIAO came in, we had 187 sites and three weeks to be compliant. The platform handled the onboarding, NFC tags handled the per-worker registration, and the inspectors who came in spring 2025 left within an hour each time.”, Operations Director, mid-sized cleaning firm, Flemish Brabant
Take Action Today
Don’t let cleaning-sector CIAO obligations catch your operation unprepared. Start by mapping every active contract against the €30,000 threshold, audit a sample of recent sites for entry-and-exit completeness, and place NFC tags at the highest-traffic sites first to make registration almost invisible to workers.
For more information about CIAO in the cleaning sector, contact Suivo at +32 3 375 70 30 or visit the Suivo CIAO solution page to see how their cleaning-focused platform handles per-worker entry-and-exit at scale. You can also explore the full product range, see current pricing, or book a demo.
Free Cleaning Sector Compliance Guide
Want a printable reference for your operations binder? Our free Cleaning Sector Compliance Guide condenses this article into a per-contract decision card you can keep at the dispatch desk.
Inside, you’ll find:
- The €30,000 threshold logic with worked examples
- How Suivo helps with multi-site CIAO, NFC registration, and Limosa verification
- Real-life lessons from cleaning operations across Belgium
- Practical exit-reminder configuration to eliminate the most common error
Frequently Asked Questions
Does CIAO apply to a one-off small clean below €30,000?
Generally no, but the threshold references the contract value, not the single-visit cost. A “small” one-off that is part of a larger framework contract may still be in scope. The Suivo CIAW FAQ walks through the most common cleaning-sector scenarios.
Can a single worker register an entry once for an entire multi-site shift?
No. Each site is treated separately under CIAO. Each worker registers entry and exit at every site they visit during a shift. A platform with automatic geofence detection, like the Suivo CIAO solution, makes this almost invisible to the worker.
What about subcontracted cleaning under a facility-services contract?
Chain liability applies the same way as in construction. The contracting facility-services firm is responsible for ensuring its cleaning subcontractors register. See the construction industry chain-liability features, they apply identically to facility services.
How does the 2027 time-registration mandate change things for cleaning?
The cleaning sector is already on full CIAO entry-and-exit, so the 2027 time-tracking mandate is largely a continuation of existing practice. The biggest practical change is the requirement to produce a single coherent record covering both CIAO attendance and total hours worked, which integrated platforms already deliver.
