After many decades, a new expat regime has replaced the current regime as of 1 January 2022.
The idea is still to enable international companies to attract qualified people in Belgium at a more competitive cost. While the new regime should provide more legal certainty and accommodate certain flaws, it also brings fundamental changes (including stricter conditions).
Under the new regime, a fixed percentage of 30% (capped at EUR 90,000 per year) of the remuneration can be considered as ‘own costs of the employer’, exempt from any tax for the expat.
There are now two different categories of expats: incoming researchers and incoming taxpayers, each category with specific requirements.
Since the entry into force of the new regime on 1 January, there are already two important updates:
1) In January, the tax authorities have outlined the transitional measures for expats that benefit from the old regime. They can opt for the new regime before 31 July 2022, but not all expats benefiting from the old regime will be eligible under the new regime. In this case, the old regime can apply until 31 December 2023.
2) In February, the Belgian RSZ/ONSS (social security administration) confirmed that no social security contributions are due on the amount that qualifies for the new tax regime. The relevant legal provisions will be adapted for this purpose.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to our tax team in case of any questions regarding the Belgian expat regime!
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Thomas Gernay & Guillaume Delfosse
thomas.gernay@simontbraun.eu
guillaume.delfosse@simontbraun.eu
+32 (0)2 543 70 80
This article is not legal advice or opinion. You should seek advice from a legal counsel of your choice before acting upon any of the information in this article.
