SNCB/NMBS is the Belgian state passenger rail operator, running domestic train services under a public service contract with the federal government. It is a public limited company under public law and the main operator on the network managed by Infrabel.
SNCB/NMBS was created by a law of 23 July 1926 and marks its centenary in 2026. Since the 2014 restructuring it has operated trains, while Infrabel manages the infrastructure and HR Rail is the legal employer of railway staff. Sophie Dutordoir is the chief executive.
In 2025 SNCB/NMBS carried 207.8 million passengers, 1% more than in 2024, and had 16,976 employees on 1 January 2026. Punctuality reached 91.7%, up from 89.7% in 2024.
In 2026 the company corrected its passenger counting, lowering the 2024 figure from 245 million to 205.6 million. The correction also cut the 2019 figure from 253 million to 230 million.
Public service contract and market opening
The federal government approved the current public service contract of SNCB/NMBS on 23 December 2022, and it was signed in February 2023. The contract runs to 2032 and sets the services the company must provide and the subsidies paid by the Belgian state.
The contract was awarded directly, before the 4th Railway Package made competitive tendering the norm for public service rail contracts from December 2023. On 18 July 2026 the federal government decided to open subsidised passenger services to competition gradually after 2032, with a transitional contract awarded directly to SNCB/NMBS for services not yet tendered.
The same decision provides for a federal public transport authority. The detailed timetable for tendering has not yet been set.
Fleet and labour
The current fleet includes M7 double-deck coaches built by Alstom. In December 2025 SNCB/NMBS awarded the AM30 framework contract for new multiple units to CAF after appeals by Alstom and Siemens Mobility were rejected.
The framework covers up to 170,000 seats over 12 years. The first order is for 180 units with 54,000 seats, worth EUR 1.7bn, and includes battery trains to replace diesel units, with the first vehicles due in 2030.
The company lost 27 days to strikes in 2025 over pension reform, government budget cuts and the end of statutory status for new rail staff, which applies from 1 June 2026. The strikes cost an estimated two million ticket sales.