European Testing Week: turning testing into queer self‑care

If Pride is about visibility and joy, European Testing Week is about something just as vital: making sure we stay alive and well to enjoy the next one. Running twice a year, this Europe‑wide campaign encourages organisations, clinics and community groups to boost testing for HIV, hepatitis and other STIs, and to make it as easy, free and stigma‑free as possible.

For queer people in Brussels and across Belgium, it is a perfect excuse to treat getting tested not as a shameful chore, but as a regular part of taking care of ourselves and each other.

What is European Testing Week?

European Testing Week started in 2013 as a single annual campaign and has since grown into a widely recognised biannual event with hundreds of participating organisations in dozens of countries. The idea is simple:

• for one week in spring and one week in autumn, partners across Europe coordinate actions to
• increase access to testing for HIV, viral hepatitis and STIs
• and raise awareness about the benefits of early testing and treatment.

The next editions are already on the calendar:

• Spring 2026: 18–25 May
• Autumn 2026: 23–30 November.

During these weeks, you will see special testing events, extended opening hours, pop‑up clinics, street outreach and social media campaigns encouraging people to check their status and talk openly about sexual health.

Why it matters for queer communities

For LGBTQIA+ people, testing is not just a medical act; it is deeply wrapped up in stigma, fear and past trauma. Many of us have internalised ideas that getting tested is something to be secretive about or that a positive result equals failure. European Testing Week tries to flip that script by framing testing as:

• a normal, routine part of an active, joyful sex life
• a way to protect partners and communities
• and a key step to accessing treatment, PrEP, PEP or vaccines when needed.

Organisations that join the campaign – from queer groups to sexual health clinics – often design their events to be welcoming, anonymous and low‑threshold, especially for people who avoid traditional medical settings. That matters for men who have sex with men, trans and non‑binary people, sex workers, migrants and others who frequently face discrimination in healthcare.

How it works in Belgium (and Brussels)

In Belgium, European Testing Week is taken up by a patchwork of actors, including:

• sexual health NGOs and youth organisations
• LGBTQIA+ groups and community testing projects
• public health services and hospitals.

During the autumn week, campaigns have offered free, anonymous screenings for STIs in Brussels and Wallonia without appointments or prescriptions, coordinated for example by organisations like O’Yes and local partners. In Brussels, testing sites listed on tools like European Test Finder include community‑based services such as Exæquo, which provides HIV, hepatitis and STI testing plus counselling and referrals.

To find a testing site near you during or outside Testing Week, you can use:

• the European Test Finder, which lists centres across Europe;
• Belgium’s depistage.be, which explains where and how to get tested, with a dedicated Testing Week section;
• or the websites and socials of local queer organisations, which usually highlight their Testing Week activities.

From campaign to habit

European Testing Week is a great booster shot, but the real goal is to make regular testing a habit, not something you only think about once or twice a year. For Ket’s readers, that can look like:

• testing every 3–6 months if you are sexually active with new partners
• using Testing Week as a reminder to book your appointment or join a walk‑in
• bringing a friend or partner along so it feels more like mutual care than a solo anxiety trip.

In a moment where queer and trans bodies are still politicised, controlled and talked about without consent, reclaiming our own sexual health is quietly radical. European Testing Week gives us a concrete tool to do just that – together, across borders.

Useful links

depistage.be – how and where to get tested in Belgium

European Testing Week – official site

European Test Finder – find a testing centre

KET Magazine is a community‑driven, non‑profit magazine run by volunteers based in Brussels. Get in touch to share your thoughts or tell us about your activities. You can also promote your events on our website or support our work with a donation. Contact us at Info@ket.brussels.