Privacy statement
1. Who does this privacy statement apply to?
1.1 This website about the Belgian Monarchy (www.monarchie.be is managed by the Media & Communication Department of the King’s Cabinet (“We”).
1.2 This website is informative and does not contain interactive applications. Nevertheless, it may happen that we process personal data of you as a website visitor.
We make every effort to respect the data protection legislation and in particular the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 of 27 April 2016 (“GDPR”).
1.3 Through this Privacy Statement, we wish to inform you about how and why we process your personal data as a website visitor, to whom we transfer this information, what your rights are and who you can contact for more information.
1.4 This website may contain links to other websites. Although we try to provide links to safe websites only, we are not responsible for the content and data protection policies of these websites.
When visiting other websites, we strongly recommend you to read the Privacy Statements on these websites before disclosing personal data.
2. For which purposes can we process your personal data?
2.1 We may process personal data for legitimate purposes. These purposes include but are not limited to:
- the handling of questions, requests and complaints about this website;
- collecting statistics on the use of this website;
- improving the performance and the appearance of this website.
3. Based on which legal grounds do we process your personal data?
3.1 We may process personal data for the above purposes in the context of our legitimate interest, namely the interest of managing and improving this website.
4. Which rights do you have?
4.1 You have several rights concerning the personal data we hold about you. You have the right to:
- access the personal data we hold about you and to receive a copy thereof;
- ask us to update or correct your personal data, if you should think that these data are incorrect or incomplete;
- ask us to delete your personal data, or restrict the way in which we use such personal data, if you believe there is no (longer a) lawful ground for us to process them;
- withdraw your consent to the processing of your personal data (to the extent the processing is based on your consent);
4.2 In order to exercise any of your rights, you can send an email to info@monarchie.be or address a request in writing to Royal Palace, Media & Communication Department, Rue Brederode 16, 1000 Brussels.
You can also use these contact details if you wish to make a complaint to us relating to your privacy.
4.3 If you are unhappy with the way we have handled your personal data, you have the right to file a complaint with the Data Protection Authority of the member state where you usually reside.
5. How can we obtain personal data?
5.1 This website does not contain any interactive applications. However, we may obtain personal data about you when you use this website or when you contact us about this website.
5.2 Data on the use of this website can be obtained in particular via cookies and log files. For more information about this, please consult the cookie section and/or the log files section.
6. Which personal data can we collect?
6.1 Since this website does not contain interactive applications, we only collect a limited amount of personal data.
6.2 When you contact us regarding this website, we will collect all personal data that you provide to us (name, address or email address, content of the message etc.).
6.3 In addition, we may also collect data about the use of this website via cookies and log files in order to improve the performance and the appearance. For more information about this, please refer to the cookie section and/or the log files section.
6.4 If we process your IP address, we use IP masking so that the last two digits of your IP address are not saved. In this way your anonymity is maximally guaranteed.
7. To whom can we disclose your personal data?
7.1 The employees of the Media & Communication Department of the King’s Cabinet will have access to your personal data on a strict need-to-know basis for the purposes described above.
7.2 Your data will not be transferred outside the European Economic Area (EEA).
8. Cookiepolicy
A cookie is a small text file that can be stored on your computer when you visit websites.
8.1 What is a cookie?
Information is saved in this text file, such as your choice of language on a website. When you visit the website later again, this cookie returns to the concerned website. In this way, the website recognizes your browser and can for example retain your choice of language.
Cookies usually also have an expiration date. For example, some cookies are automatically deleted when you close your browser (so-called session cookies), while others can be stored longer on your computer, sometimes until you delete them manually (so-called permanent cookies).
8.2 Why do we use cookies
The Belgian Monarchy, administrator of the website www.monarchie.be, uses 3 types of cookies on its website
- Essential cookies
- Functional cookies
- Cookies for analytical purposes
The Belgian Monarchy uses essential and functional cookies to manage the content of its website. These cookies are necessary for the proper functioning of this website. It is not possible to refuse these cookies if you want to visit our website.
The Belgian Monarchy also uses "MATOMO" for analytical purposes. This analytical tool places cookies that we use in order to quantify the visits (traffic) on the website. This allows us to know how many times a particular page is consulted. We only use this information to improve the content of our website or as a basis for a new campaign by determining certain topics of great interest.
For this analysis tool, we use a Matomo-Cloud, an external partner that has both its organisation and the underlying data centres in Europe and is fully committed to GDPR compliance and respect for privacy. For the use of cookies for analytical purposes, your prior consent is requested. These cookies will therefore only be installed on your device after you have given your consent.
8.2.1 List of essential cookies
These cookies are necessary for purely technical reasons for a normal visit of the website. Given the technical necessity, an information obligation solely applies, and these cookies are saved from the moment you access the website.
| Name | Expiry | Content | Purpose |
| BIGipServerF2W-… | At the end of the session | A sequence of characters | Assigns the processing of the requests of a user to a server. |
| TS01448b0 ((Characters after TS... vary)) |
At the end of the session | A sequence of characters | Assigns the processing of the requests of a user to a server. |
8.2.2 List of functional cookies
You cannot block these cookies if you want to access this website, but they are saved only after a choice is made concerning the placement of cookies.
| Name | Expiry | Content | Purpose |
| language | 365 days(1 year) | Langue of the most recently visited page | On the next visit, you will automatically arrive on the homepage in the chosen language. |
| has_js | At the end of the session | 1 | Quick check of the availability of javascript. |
8.2.3 List of analytical cookies
You can decline these cookies if you want to surf on our website.
| Name | Expiry | Content | Purpose |
| _pk_id | 28 days | Token id | Analysis of the website visits. |
| _pk_ref | 6 months | Analysis of the website visits. | |
| _pk_ses | 50 minutes | Session id | Analysis of the website visits. |
8.3 How can I see which cookies are saved in my device and how can I delete them?
If you wish to know which cookies have been saved on your device or if you can delete them, you can use a parameter of your browser. You will find more information on how to do it via the following links.
| Firefox | Chrome | Safari | Internet Explorer |
| Firefox (mobile) | Chrome (mobile) | Safari (mobile) | Microsoft Edge |
If you use another browser, you can check if the procedure for your browser is mentioned in the explanatory website www.allaboutcookies.org/manage-cookies.
9. What information do the logs of this website contain?
9.1 Every time you visit this website we register the IP address, the browser, the operating system, the screen resolution, the external website that has referred to this website, the pages visited, the date and time of the visit to the pages, the search led to the visit of this website and whether it concerns a new or returning visitor.
9.2 This information is not linked to your person. It is only collected for statistical purposes and for the further improvement of this website.
10. Are your personal data protected?
10.1 We take strict technical and organisational (security) measures to protect your personal data from access by unauthorized people and against unlawful processing, abuse, damage, loss and destruction.
10.2 These measures include:
- training to relevant staff to ensure they are aware of our data protection obligations when handling personal data;
- administrative and technical controls to restrict access to personal data on a need-to-know basis;
- technological security measures, including passwords, fire walls, anti virus software and encryption.
10.3 Although we take appropriate security measures as soon as we receive your personal data, the transfer of data through the internet (including email) is never completely safe. Consequently, we can never fully guarantee the security of the personal data sent to us.
11. How long are your personal data retained?
11.1 Your personal data will not be retained longer than necessary for the purposes described above.
As a general rule, the personal data we receive when you use the website or contact us in relation to the website are stored for a period of 5 years.
11.2 Depending on the specific situation, we may however retain your personal data for a longer period of time. This will in particular be the case if any of the following periods is longer: (i) as long as is necessary for the relevant activity or service; (ii) any retention period that is required by law; or (iii) the end of the period in which judicial proceedings might arise.
12. Are your personal data used for automated decision-making?
12.1 Automated decisions are defined as decisions about individuals that are based solely on the automated processing of data and that procedure legal effects that significantly affect the individuals involved.
We do not use personal data on this website for automated decision-making.
13. How to contact us?
13.1 If your have any queries about this Privacy Statement or the website in general, please contact us by:
- emailing us at info@monarchie.be
- addressing a written request to Royal Palace, Media & Communication Department, Rue Brederode 16, 1000 Brussels.
14. Changes to this privacy statement
14.1 We may amend this Privacy Statement from time to time. With each change we will adjust the revision date on this page. The modified Privacy Statement will then apply from this date.
Please consult this page in order to be regularly informed about changes and additions.