FIRE for recruiters: when are you financially independent?
You’re financially independent when your wealth brings in enough to live on: around 25 times what you spend in a year. As an independent recruiter, you can get there much faster than as an employee, because you keep more of what you bill. Here you’ll read how FIRE works, what your number is and how fast you’ll reach it.
Gauthier · 27 October 2026 · 8 min read
When you’re young, you have something you can’t buy later on: time. Time to make sure you don’t have to work your whole life. That you don’t depend on anyone: not on a boss, not on the bank and not on a bad year. And that you’re free to do what you enjoy.
You only have that chance for a short time. A few years when you have the energy, few commitments yet and billing at its peak. Anyone who invests heavily then has a much easier time later. The earlier you start, the longer your money works for you.
Life is hard enough as it is. It’s just more fun when you have more choice. That’s what it’s all about: not lots of money, but lots of time and being independent. Enough money gives you that.
What is FIRE?
FIRE stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early: becoming financially independent and being able to stop early. The idea is simple. You build wealth that brings in enough to live on. From then on, you don’t work because you have to, but because you want to.
That second part, stopping early, isn’t the goal for most people. Anyone who is financially independent usually keeps doing something, but on their own terms: fewer days, a project of their own or the same job without the pressure of next month. It’s about the choice.
Your number: 25 times what you spend a year
How much do you need? Reckon on 25 times what you spend in a year. That’s the 4% rule: if you take 4% out of your wealth every year, the rest keeps growing and you can live on it for a long time. The rule comes from American research, such as the Trinity study from 1998. With a portfolio of mainly shares, 4% a year turned out to be sustainable over most thirty-year periods.
Take Lotte, the senior recruiter from How much does an independent recruiter earn? She lives with her partner, has two children and shares the costs at home. Together they spend €1,500 a month on housing, €650 per child (the minimum cost according to the Flemish Gezinsbond), €6,000 a year on travel and €2,000 a month on everything else. Her half is €2,650 a month. If she stops working, she also pays for her car herself: €800 a month.
So Lotte needs €3,450 a month, or €41,400 a year. Her number is 25 times that: €1,035,000. That sounds like a lot, but it’s not the amount that makes you rich. It’s the amount that makes you free.
Why recruiters get there faster
How fast you reach your number depends mainly on what you have left each month. As a recruiter, you have an advantage there: you earn according to what you bill. And as an independent, you keep a good deal more of it.
As an employee, Lotte keeps around €3,140 a month. After her spending, she can invest €490 a month. Through her own BV (private limited company) at Shortlist, that’s around €6,600 net, and she can invest €3,950 every month. With a 7% return and 2% inflation, it looks like this:
| Lotte | Net per month | She invests per month | Free |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employee, €240k billing | €3,140 | €490 | after more than 40 years |
| Shortlist, €240k billing | €6,600 | €3,950 | after 16 years |
| Shortlist, €300k billing | €9,000 | €6,350 | after 11 years |
| Shortlist, €400k billing | €12,850 | €10,200 | after 8 years |
Every extra €100,000 you bill saves you years. But what you spend counts just as much. Without children, Lotte is free after just 12 years at €240k billing. If she lives alone and pays for the same life entirely herself, it takes 41 years.
If you’re thinking about going independent, everything is laid out in the guide Becoming an independent recruiter in Belgium.
How to make your money work for you
What you have left, you put to work. Which fund, which tracker or which broker you choose, we won’t tell you: that’s investment advice, and that requires a licence from the FSMA. The principles are the same for everyone, though.
01Invest every month
Set aside a fixed amount automatically, the day after payday. That way you invest in good months and bad, and you don’t have to guess when the time is right.
02Diversify widely
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket: spread your money across many companies, sectors and regions. That way, one bad share or one bad market weighs less heavily. You can read how that works on Wikifin (in Dutch), the FSMA’s website.
03Keep your costs low
An investment fund in Belgium costs around 1.5% a year on average, according to a study by the FSMA. A tracker usually costs 0.4% or less. That looks like a small difference, but for Lotte it adds up to almost €100,000 after 16 years.
04Sit tight when markets fall
Stock markets can fall sharply, sometimes by a quarter or more. Anyone who sells then locks in the loss. Anyone who sits tight and keeps buying gives their money time to recover. So only invest money you won’t need in the coming years.
05Put your BV to work
As an independent, you have extra levers. What you don’t need straight away, you can leave in your BV, with the liquidation reserve or VVPR-bis (read Director’s pay or dividend). And through an IPT, your BV builds up a pension for you (read Social contributions and pension when you’re self-employed).
If you’re unsure, talk to an independent financial planner registered with the FSMA: they don’t sell you products.
Let’s not be naive about it
FIRE sounds great, but there are catches. This is what I hear most often.
“A 7% return isn’t a guarantee.”
That’s right. 7% is an average over long periods, and in some years you lose money. That’s why you diversify widely and only invest money you can do without for years, and why we calculate in today’s euros: we take 2% inflation off every year.
“The 4% rule is American.”
That’s right too. The studies looked at American stock markets and at thirty-year periods. If you stop at forty, your wealth has to last longer. So build in some margin, or keep working a little: every euro you still earn yourself is one you don’t have to take out of your wealth.
“What about tax?”
Since 2026, you pay 10% tax in Belgium on the capital gains on your investments, above €10,000 a year. On top of that, you pay stock exchange tax on every purchase and sale, and 30% withholding tax on dividends. Our calculator doesn’t factor them in, so allow some extra room.
“I don’t want to live frugally.”
You don’t have to. FIRE isn’t about rice and beans, but about the gap between what you earn and what you spend. Anyone who bills well can live well and still put a lot aside. You just choose consciously where your money goes.
As a partner: free sooner, with an exit
Shortlist isn’t the only fast route. As a partner at Greystone Partners, you build your own office, with 30% of the shares. On the calculator’s growth path, you keep around €13,100 a month from year 4, and your stake is worth around €747,000 after three years. With the same family as Lotte, you’re then free after just 4 years, because your stake counts too.
Rather have a team and an exit? Work it out in the Greystone Partners calculator (in Dutch), or read how to get there in Your career in recruitment.
Run the numbers
Work out your number and how fast you’ll reach it in the wealth-building calculator. You choose what you spend, your route, your car and how many years you look ahead, and you see straight away when you’re free. If you’d like to read it at your leisure, request the guide: eleven pages with your own plan, as a PDF in your inbox.
Checklist: your plan in six steps
- You know what you spend each month, your car included.
- You know your number: 25 times what you spend a year.
- You don’t let your lifestyle grow with every good month.
- You invest automatically every month, widely diversified and at low cost.
- You put your BV to work: the liquidation reserve, VVPR-bis and your pension.
- You run the numbers again every year, because your life changes too.
Frequently asked questions
What does FIRE mean?
FIRE stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early. You build wealth that brings in enough to live on, so that working becomes a choice instead of a must.
How much money do you need to be financially independent?
Around 25 times what you spend a year. If you spend €3,000 a month, that’s €900,000.
What is the 4% rule?
The rule of thumb that you can take 4% out of your wealth every year without it running out quickly. It comes from American research into thirty-year periods. If you stop young, build in some margin.
Do you pay tax on your investments in Belgium?
Yes. Since 2026, you pay 10% on capital gains above €10,000 a year, plus stock exchange tax and withholding tax on dividends. This is general information, not personal tax advice.
Can you become financially independent as an employee too?
Yes, but it takes much longer, because you have less left over. In our example, more than 40 years as an employee, compared with 16 years as an independent at Shortlist.
Sources
- The 4% rule and the Trinity study (Cooley, Hubbard and Walz, 1998): Wikipedia.
- The minimum cost of a child, €649.72 a month on 1 October 2026: Gezinsbond (in Dutch).
- The capital gains tax, passed on 3 April 2026: KPMG.
- Stock exchange tax and withholding tax: Wikifin, the taxes on your Belgian investments (in Dutch).
- Spreading risk: Wikifin (in Dutch). The costs of trackers: Wikifin (in Dutch).
- The costs of investment funds in Belgium: FSMA, December 2022, summarised by Forum for the Future (in Dutch).
Calculated with the wealth-building calculator: a 7% return and 2% inflation, in today’s euros. A simulation, not investment, tax or legal advice. Amounts rounded.