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What does Impulseo pay for a telesecretariat?
Half of what the service really costs you, up to a ceiling per GP per year, paid once a year after the costs. Three regions run it, each with its own agency, conditions and deadline. This page sets out what each agency publishes; Tilcao, an AI receptionist, has no say in the refund.
Only GPs qualify. Dentists, physiotherapists and specialists get nothing for a telesecretariat. A group practice or a medical house applies per GP, and the ceiling is multiplied by the number of GPs.
| Region | Agency | Refund | Ceiling per GP per year | Who | Apply by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wallonia (Impulseo III) | AViQ | Half of the actual cost | €3,700 indexed: €4,820.16 for 2025 costs | Accredited GP, alone or in a group, medical houses included | 31 May of the next year |
| Brussels (Impulseo III) | Vivalis | Half of the actual cost | €4,835.43, the amount Vivalis gives for 2025, to be indexed | Accredited GP, alone or in a group, medical houses included | 30 June of the next year |
| Flanders | Departement Zorg, paid by PMV | Half of the actual cost | €3,400, not indexed | GP recognised at most 15 years ago, for 5 years at most | 30 June of the next year |
| German-speaking Community | None | No telesecretariat support since 2018 |
Who qualifies in Wallonia?
An accredited GP, working alone or in a group of at least two GPs with a written collaboration agreement, medical houses included. The decree and the AViQ forms ask for:
- GP accreditation: an INAMI number ending in 003 or 004.
- A labelled electronic medical record, and at least one summary health record (Sumehr) published on the Walloon health network.
- At least 150 global medical records in the year before the year you apply for. The waiver for newly accredited GPs is written for the salary support only, not for the telesecretariat.
- A contract that puts a medical telesecretariat service at your disposal for the practice’s administration.
- No salary support (Impulseo II) for the same month. A year can be split, part salary and part telesecretariat.
Who qualifies in Brussels?
An accredited GP, alone or in a group, medical houses included, who meets all of these. Vivalis says Impulseo II and III still apply “for now”.
- A labelled electronic medical record, and at least one Sumehr published on the Brussels Health Network.
- At least 150 global medical records or flat-rate patients per GP. This does not apply to a GP accredited less than three years ago.
- Membership of a GP circle recognised in Brussels (FAMGB or BHAK), and a place on the out-of-hours rota.
- One practice address per application, and no salary support for the same period.
Who qualifies in Flanders, and is it ending?
Flanders replaced Impulseo with its own decree in 2023. It pays a starting GP, meaning recognised at most fifteen years ago, for five consecutive years at most, if the GP belongs to the local huisartsenkring and takes part in the on-call service. The service must offer at least an online diary and answering and triaging the GP’s calls, and the provider must be in PMV’s list: a new one is added by PMV first. GPs who already had the old support on 1 January 2023 have a transition that ends in 2027 at the latest.
It is likely to end. On 2 October 2026 VRT reported that the Flemish budget agreement scraps Impulseo support for GPs. On 4 November Domus Medica wrote that telesecretariat costs made in 2026 will still be paid in 2027, and that Impulseo then stops if the government keeps its course. The Departement Zorg pages do not say so yet.
How do you apply?
Once a year, for the costs of the year before, with the contract and the invoices. The first request asks for the most: after that, the invoices of the year and any change to the contract.
- Wallonia: the AViQ form for a solo GP or for a group (one form covers salary and telesecretariat), by 31 May, by email to impulseo@aviq.be with an acknowledgement of receipt or by post. Attach your ID, proof of accreditation, the contract describing the service and the invoices; a monthly invoice must name its month. AViQ-funded support structures such as the SSMG, the GBO and the Fédération des maisons médicales help you file for free.
- Brussels: the Vivalis form for a solo GP or for a group, by 30 June, through IRISbox with your eID, by email to impulseobruxelles@vivalis.brussels or by post. Attach the circle and on-call attestations, the contract and the invoices. If Vivalis asks for more, you have six months to answer.
- Flanders: PMV online, by 30 June. The first request adds the contract, what the service offers, and proof of circle membership and on-call duty.
Does an AI telesecretariat count for Impulseo?
No official text says yes or no. In Wallonia and Brussels the decree asks for a contract that puts a medical telesecretariat service at the GP’s disposal for the practice’s administration, and says nothing about operators, software or AI. In Flanders the service must answer and triage calls, and the provider must be in PMV’s list. Ask your agency in writing before you count on the refund, and keep its answer with your file.
Tilcao does not promise the refund. It answers and books, and it never triages: for a call that may be urgent it reads out your own rule and hands over to a person. In Flanders, ask PMV how it reads triage before you sign with any AI service, ours included.
- Does an AI telephone service, or a hybrid with a person behind it, count as a medical telesecretariat?
- Which costs count: the monthly fee, the price per call or minute, the setup fee, the VAT?
- Must the online diary be part of the same contract?
- What ceiling applies to 2026 costs, and when is it published?
Where does Tilcao fit?
Tilcao is an AI telesecretariat for the phone and WhatsApp: it answers every call at once, says it is an AI, books, moves or cancels in the diary where your software allows a connection, and leaves the team a summary. It runs in dental practices today; for a GP practice or a medical house we set it up on request, starting from your software and your rule for urgent calls. Hear it on the demo line of our example practice, +32 460 23 23 00.
What a telesecretariat costs from published prices is on medical telesecretariat in Belgium, the AI services side by side on AI receptionists for medical practices compared, and what a secretary costs on the cost of a medical secretary.
Questions practices ask
How much does Impulseo pay for a telesecretariat?
Half of the actual cost, up to a ceiling per GP per year: €4,820.16 in Wallonia and €4,835.43 in Brussels for 2025 costs claimed in 2026, and €3,400 in Flanders for a GP who started at most fifteen years ago, for five years at most. The German-speaking Community has had no telesecretariat support since 2018.
Does Impulseo refund an AI telesecretariat?
No official text says so, in any region. Wallonia and Brussels ask for a contract for a medical telesecretariat service without defining it further; Flanders asks for an online diary plus answering and triaging calls, from a provider in PMV’s list. Ask your agency in writing first.
When is the Impulseo deadline?
31 May in Wallonia (AViQ) and 30 June in Brussels (Vivalis) and Flanders (PMV), each time for the costs of the year before.
Can a physiotherapist, dentist or specialist get Impulseo?
No. Impulseo is for general practice only, and every region checks GP accreditation. Other care practices pay the full cost of a telesecretariat or an AI receptionist.
Can I combine Impulseo II and Impulseo III?
Not for the same month. The decrees only rule out the same month, so part of a year can go to salary support and the rest to the telesecretariat. In Flanders the same rule holds with the salary support for a practice assistant or nurse.