Accounting & Tax Compliance in Belgium

How accounting and tax compliance work in Belgium

Belgium applies a flat 25% corporate tax rate, with a reduced 20% rate on the first €100,000 of profit for qualifying small companies — a federal framework applied uniformly regardless of region. The more material regional variable for employers is not tax but immigration: Belgium's three regions (Flanders, Wallonia, Brussels) and the German-speaking Community each set their own salary thresholds for non-EU work permits, revised independently and on different schedules.

Operating in Belgium requires coordination across a federal tax and social security framework and a regionally fragmented immigration system, where salary thresholds for non-EU hires differ by region and are updated on independent schedules.

Rate structure and what it applies to

25% standard · 20% on first €100,000 profit for qualifying SMEs

• Regional work permit thresholds — set independently by Flanders, Wallonia, Brussels and the German-speaking Community, each on its own update schedule
• High employer social security baseline — (~27-33% of gross salary), with a new quarterly cap above €85,000 effective through 2026
• Salary margin restrictions — — a biennial cap on average total salary cost growth, currently set at 0% for 2025-2026
• Single Permit procedure — for non-EU hires, requiring joint regional and federal approval within a four-month window

Rates that apply in Belgium

Belgian GAAP under the Code for Companies and Associations, and when an audit is required

Statutory bookkeeping in Belgium follows Belgian GAAP under the Code for Companies and Associations. Statutory audit mandatory above 2 of 3 thresholds: €5.5M balance sheet, €11M turnover, 50 employees — aligned with EU harmonized thresholds.

Annual accounts and registration

Annual accounts filed with the National Bank of Belgium within 7 months of year-end (30 days after approval).

Entity registration runs through the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (KBO/BCE), via notarial deed for an NV/SA, typically taking 1–3 weeks.

Frequently asked questions