It borders the Brussels-Capital Region and is essentially a suburb of the city, contiguous with the Prince d'Orange neighbourhood (Uccle), and was a component of the short-lived Arrondissement of Brussels-Periphery.

While the Brussels-Capital Region does not have a direct border with Wallonia, the shortest distance between the two is at Sint-Genesius-Rode municipality, with around 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) separating Prince d'Orange and Waterloo along the N5 road.

The regionalization of Belgium has maintained that compromise, though politicians representing French-speakers have interpreted these facilities as a permanent right for Francophones in the Brussels periphery.

They see the incorporation of the territory into the Brussels Capital Region as a threat to the language and cultural rights of Flemish residents, and that a precedent would be set that would invite further Francophone migration to other municipalities with facilities.

The previous system, also proposed by the Flemish politicians but accepted by the French speakers, relied on decennial census programs to adapt the limits of the linguistic regions.