Your accountant gives you the cost of a CDI hire. He probably forgets these 5 items.

When a finance team compares a direct permanent contract with an umbrella payroll setup, the comparison usually stops at gross salary plus employer social contributions. That is roughly 60% of the real number. The remaining part sits in budgets that are rarely attributed to the hire itself.

The visible cost

For a consultant at 5 500 EUR gross per month, the visible annual cost of a direct CDI in Belgium is close to 105 000 EUR: twelve months of gross salary, holiday pay, the end of year bonus and employer contributions of roughly 25%.

The costs nobody budgets

• Recruitment: agency fee of 15% to 25% of the first annual salary, or several weeks of internal sourcing time.
• Onboarding: two to six weeks of reduced productivity, plus the time of the manager and the team.
• Payroll administration: contract drafting, monthly payroll, expense claims, insurance certificates, legal watch.
• Absence: guaranteed salary during the first 30 days of illness stays with the employer.
• Benefits management: company car and fuel card orders, meal vouchers, group insurance, hospitalisation cover.
• End of contract: notice period, outplacement in some cases, and the cost of a vacant seat on the project.
• Risk of a bad fit: a departure after five months means the recruitment and onboarding budget is spent twice.

Side by side comparison

With BSH the consultant is employed under CP200 by BSH. Your company signs one service contract and receives one monthly invoice. Recruitment, payroll, benefits, insurance and legal follow up sit on our side. The cost is predictable, fully deductible and stops when the mission stops.

• Direct CDI: gross salary plus contributions, plus the seven hidden items above, plus internal HR load.
• BSH umbrella payroll: one invoice, one contract, no payroll department, no end of contract exposure.

When each option makes sense

A direct CDI remains a good choice for a long term core role you want to build internally. Umbrella payroll fits project work, uncertain duration, foreign consultants, and situations where you want to offer a strong net package without creating a payroll function.