The Belgian tax authorities have announced that the next phase in the modernization of the VAT chain will take effect on May 1, 2026. This phase introduces several key changes for VAT-registered businesses:

• Centralized Management via MyMinfin: Businesses will be able to consult and manage their financial status more easily in one central location.
• Abolition of the “Summer Break” Regulation: The standard filing extension during the summer period is being discontinued. As a transitional measure for this year, no late-filing penalties will be imposed if the return is submitted within the deadlines of the former regulation.
• New Bank Account Numbers: New account numbers will be introduced specifically for VAT payments.
• Refund Requests: Any refund request made directly within a VAT return will be limited to the credit resulting from that specific return. However, any remaining credit on the “VAT Provision Account” can still be reclaimed via the MyMinfin portal.

Transition of VAT Credits VAT credits remaining on the current account as of April 30, 2026, will be automatically transferred to the new VAT Provision Account, provided that all VAT returns have been filed by that date.

If there are outstanding returns on April 30, the tax authorities will allow a grace period of several weeks to complete the filings. Following this period, they will determine whether the credit can be refunded or if it must be applied to cover outstanding debts.

Future Developments Further details regarding payments via direct debit and the ongoing progress of this modernization project will be published soon. The official 2026 VAT calendar is now available on the FPS Finance website.

As of 1 January 2026, VAT-liable businesses established in Belgium will, in most cases, be required to use a structured electronic invoice for transactions between them.

During the first three months of 2026, the tax authorities will not impose sanctions for failing to meet the obligation to issue and/or receive a structured electronic invoice, provided that the business can demonstrate that it has made timely and reasonable preparations to comply with this new requirement.

This is therefore not a general postponement. The tolerance applies only if the business has made sufficient efforts to ensure the timely and correct implementation of e-invoicing. The tax authorities will assess this on a case-by-case basis.

Following last week’s budget negotiations, the Belgian government announced several adjustments to VAT rates. The VAT on hotel accommodations and similar lodging services, as well as on the rental of camping pitches, will increase from 6% to 12%.

The VAT rate for sports and leisure activities will also rise from 6% to 12%. Initially, cultural activities were considered as well, but the government ultimately decided not to increase the current 6% VAT rate for culture. We now await further clarification in the legislative texts to understand where exactly the boundary with cultural services will be drawn.

In addition, the government plans to align the VAT treatment of take-away meals and non-alcoholic beverages with that of dining on-site. This means the VAT on these take-away items will increase to 12%. Conversely, the VAT on non-alcoholic drinks consumed on-site—for example in restaurants—will be reduced from 21% to 12%. Here too, we are waiting for detailed legislation to clarify the distinction between 12% VAT on take-away and the 6% rate applicable to food products intended for home consumption. The government may look to the French system as a reference.

Alcoholic beverages will continue to be subject to the standard 21% VAT rate.

Finally, the VAT on pesticides will increase from 12% to 21%.
For natural gas, there will (for now) be no VAT increase. However, excise duties on natural gas—as well as on heating oil, diesel, and petrol—will rise, while excise duties on electricity will be reduced.

On 26 August 2025, the tax authorities announced that the further implementation of the VAT chain (such as the introduction of the VAT provision account, the abolition of the VAT current account, and the use of a new account number for regular VAT payments), scheduled for 1 October 2025, has been postponed until further notice.
The tax authorities have now also published a circular providing some clarifications on the consequences of this postponement.

In its circular 2025/C/6 of 27 January 2025, the tax authorities had provided for a transitional period until 30 September 2025 for certain elements of the new VAT chain. Due to the indefinite postponement of the measures yet to be implemented, that transitional period has now also been extended indefinitely.

As long as this transitional period applies:

• regular VAT payments must continue to be made to account BE22 6792 0030 0047 – “VAT receipts”, using the structured communication indicated by the administration on the receipt of the submitted periodic VAT return;
• refund requests in the VAT return regarding the VAT credit concern the full VAT credit (and not only the credit arising from the relevant return – meaning that even in a return with a payable VAT balance, a refund may be requested of an outstanding VAT credit);
• the holiday scheme remains in place – including in 2026 if the holiday period falls before the end date of the transitional period;
• for both quarterly and monthly filers, submission and payment may be postponed until the next working day if the statutory deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday – once the transitional period ends, this extension will only be allowed for monthly filers;
• no fine will be imposed for late submission of a VAT return, provided it is submitted by the 10th day of the second month following the return period.

The tax authorities will communicate on their website when the transitional period ends.

Circular 2025/C/62, 1 October 2025

Mixed VAT taxpayers who apply the real use for their VAT deduction are currently required to provide the following additional information, based on figures from the previous year, with their VAT return for the first quarter or, at the latest, for the month March:

• the percentage allocation of the VAT charged to:
  • costs of activities for which there is a right to deduct;
  • costs of activities for which there is no right to deduct;
  • mixed costs;
• the special ratio(s).

For 2025, as for 2024, these VAT taxpayers have been granted a deferral by the tax authorities to provide this detailed information in their VAT return for the second quarter, or at the latest for the month June (returns to be submitted by 8 August 2025 under the summer arrangement). They may base this information on an estimate. However, they must then provide the detailed information again in their third quarter return, or at the latest in their November return, based on the final figures for the past year.

As was the case last year, the tax authorities have indicated that this estimate will suffice, except for large companies, which will remain obliged to provide the final figures. From 2026 onwards, no tolerance will be applied for these companies.

But even more importantly, from 2026 onwards, SMEs will no longer be required to provide this additional detailed information.

For partially VAT taxpayers entities, it had already been decided last year that only large companies would be required to provide this detailed information.

FPS Finance, news item, 4 July 2025

The amendments to VAT rates provided for in the draft programme law for, among other things, the sale of a house that has been demolished and rebuilt (6% instead of 21%), the installation of central heating burners that run on fossil fuels in homes that are at least 10 years old (21% instead of 6%) and the increase from 12% to 21% for coal, were to take effect on 1 July 2025.

Now that 1 July 2025 has passed and the draft programme law has still not been adopted by the Chamber, the question arose as to what impact this delay will have on the aforementioned changes to VAT rates.

Minister Jambon announced yesterday in the Finance Committee that the government will table amendments to the draft programme law to bring these into force from the date of publication of the programme law in the Belgian Official Gazette.

There would therefore be no retroactive effect. It is possible that this will still be allowed for certain measures on a tolerance basis, but this remains to be seen.

For sales of homes that have been rebuilt after demolition, it may be advisable to postpone issuing the invoice on which VAT is due until the VAT reduction has actually come into effect or until there is more clarity on this matter.

On 27 May 2025, the government submitted the draft programme law to the House of Representatives. For VAT, it contains the following measures:

• exclusion of the reduced VAT rate of 6% for immovable property transactions involving dwellings that are at least 10 years old, both for the supply and the attachment to a building of the components or part of the components of the specific part of a central heating installation that runs on fossil fuels;
• the reintroduction of the reduced VAT rate of 6% for the sale of homes that have been demolished and rebuilt and that:
  • the buyer rents out on a long-term basis directly to private individuals who take up residence there and which have a habitable surface area of no more than 175 m²;
  • the buyer rents out on a long-term basis to or through (a management mandate) a social rental agency or to a social housing company recognised by the competent authority for social housing policy or other legal entity under public or private law with a social purpose;
  • the buyer, who is a natural person, uses the property as their sole and main residence and has a habitable surface area of no more than 175 m²;
• the abolition of section VIII (fuels) of Table B of the Annex to Royal Decree 20, which means that the VAT rate will increase from 12% to 21% for the following goods:
  • uncalcined petroleum coke, used as fuel.
  • coke and semi-coke from coal, lignite or peat;
  • brown coal and compressed brown coal, with the exception of git;
  • coal and solid fuels manufactured from coal;

The above measures were to take effect on 1 July 2025. The government has therefore requested that the draft programme law be dealt with as a matter of urgency.

The retroactive abolition of the extension from 7 to 10 years for the limitation period in cases of fraud was removed from the draft programme law and will be included in a preliminary draft law containing various VAT provisions.

Since 1 January 2025, VAT taxable persons established in Belgium can, under the applicable conditions, also apply the small business exemption scheme in other member states that have introduced it (SME scheme). To do so, however, they must register via a module in Intervat. That module is still under development. In principle, it would be available from 3 March 2025 but the tax authorities have informed that this date will be postponed to 15 April 2025.

Belgian VAT taxpayers who want to apply this exemption scheme in another member state now will have to apply directly to the tax administration of that member state.

FPS Finance, news release, 26 February 2025

The new VAT chain will come into effect in phases starting on 1 January 2025. One of the new measures is that the application for a VAT refund via the VAT return only relates to the credit on that return (schedule 72).

Because a VAT credit can only be refunded if it amounts to at least 50 euros, the tax authorities have provided a new validation rule in Intervat that the application for refund cannot be checked off if nothing or an amount of less than 50 euros is stated in schedule 72.

Until 30 September 2025, however, a transitional arrangement applies whereby the application for a refund of the VAT credit in the VAT return still relates to the full credit on the VAT current account.

However, the tax authorities had already activated the aforementioned validation rule in Intervat, which meant that those subject to VAT could not tick the request for a refund of the credit on their VAT current account if nothing or an amount of less than 50 euros was stated in the 72nd schedule.

The tax authorities have announced that the aforementioned validation rule has now been deactivated. VAT payers who have already submitted their monthly returns for transactions in January 2025 without being able to tick the request for a refund of their VAT credit can either modify their tax return until 20 February 2025 (correcting the VAT return), or make use of the option to request a refund outside of the tax return (by writing to the competent VAT office).

FPS Finance, news item, 18 February 2025