Once registered at the municipality and regardless of your status, you will receive the Belgian annual tax form every year during the month of April, regarding the Personal Income Tax. The Belgian tax year runs from 1 January until 31 December, and you file tax on the income earned in that year the following summer.
Watch out every year for the typical brown envelope and make sure to take the necessary action, even if you are exempt from taxes. The paper tax return form must be returned stamped to the scanning centre after having been completed, dated and signed before end of June of each year. It is always possible to complete your return electronically via TaxonWeb. This requires your Belgian electronic residence card and a suitable card reader or the itsme® app. This means that you will no longer need to request a paper return.
In order to fill in your tax return, you must first gather various documents that may entitle you to tax reductions: the 281.10 payslip (to be obtained from your employer), the statement of your childcare costs, the certificate for your mortgages, pension savings, gifts to recognised institutions (donations and legacies), service vouchers, costs incurred in order to save energy, alimony payments, etc.
Fill in the basic data in the beginning of the form and fill in the codes in the rest of the document. Every form has attached to it a quite extensive manual in French and Dutch.
You’ll receive a tax assessment notice (avertissement extrait de rôle/aanslagbiljet steuerbescheid) by the end of June of the following year. This tells you how much tax you must pay, when it’s due, or whether you will receive a refund.
For officials of the European institutions who do not have their tax residence in Belgium the return must be sent to the scanning centre, undated and unsigned but with the tax exemption certificate issued by their institution and mentioning that they are non-resident in Belgium for tax purposes.
Do not hesitate to call our Expat Welcome Desk if you have any questions.