Early 2022 Belgium introduced a new tax regime for inbound taxpayers and inbound researchers, after the previous expat regime had been in place for 38 years (more guidance on the new expat regime can be found in the Circular 2022/C/47 dated 6/5/2022).

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled in the DAC6 question of the Orde van Vlaamse Balies and others (see C-694/20) that the obligation of a lawyer-intermediary to notify other non-client intermediaries involved, infringes the right to respect for communications with his or her client. Under the Belgian DAC6 legislation, an intermediary with Legal Professional Privilege (LPP) is required to notify another involved intermediary, or in the absence of such intermediary, the relevant taxpayer, that it is unable to comply with its reporting obligation due to its LPP.

Mixed taxable persons can determine their VAT deduction right via two methods: either they perform the VAT deduction on the basis of a general pro rata method or they perform the VAT deduction on the basis of the actual use that is made of the goods and / or services received.

Gemengde belastingplichtigen kunnen op twee manieren hun recht op aftrek van btw bepalen, hetzij op basis van de methode van het algemeen verhoudingsgetal, dan wel op basis van de methode van het werkelijk gebruik.

The law containing various tax and financial provisions has been published in the Belgian Official Gazette on 30 November 2022. Headline of the law is the lengthening of investigation, assessment, objection, and retention periods.

The Belgian Parliament adopted a draft law concerning diverse tax and financial provisions on 10 November 2022 (hereinafter: the Law). This Law also contains amendments to the VAT statute of limitations, retention period and applicable interest rates, claiming a better alignment with the income tax rules as well as an enhanced ability to fight VAT fraud more effectively.