What changed in 2026
Tax rules for freelancers in Belgium moved several times this year. Each entry below is a change this tool’s own engine had to absorb — with the date it applies from, the source that established it, and the figures it moved.
7 changes recorded · rule set last verified against primary sources on 2026-07-20
- Costs you more
VVPR-bis withholding rises from 15% to 18%
Dividends granted or made payable from 1 July 2026 on qualifying VVPR-bis shares are taxed at 18% instead of 15%. Distributions decided on or before 30 June 2026 keep the old rate, so the timing of the general meeting mattered. On a €40,000 dividend the change costs €1,200. VVPR-bis is still far cheaper than the 30% standard rate.
Source: Programmawet 30 mei 2026; Vandelanotte/RSM/PwC · engine: dividend.vvprbisRate
Calculate thisCalculate thisVVPR-bis in 2026: the reduced dividend rate rises to 18%
- Costs you more
Close-and-restart now costs you the reduced dividend rate for three years
If you take VVPR-bis or liquidation-reserve dividends and then, within three years, become a director of a company doing the same or similar work, those dividends are re-taxed as ordinary movable income — unless you can show the move was mainly driven by something other than the tax saving. Aimed squarely at liquidating a company and starting a fresh one. A separate rule voids any financial-year-end change made from 24 November 2025 that lacks a non-tax motive. If you are contemplating a new structure, the distribution you already took is now part of that decision.
Source: Programmawet 30 mei 2026, art. 13 en 17 (B.S. 1 juni 2026, numac 2026003986) — primary text in docs/research/sources/
Calculate thisCalculate thisVVPR-bis in 2026: the reduced dividend rate rises to 18%The liquidation reserve in 2026: new reserves now cost more to release
- Saves you money
Software developers regain the copyright regime — at half the benefit
After the Constitutional Court confirmed in May 2024 that software was excluded, legislation brings computer programs back into the favourable copyright regime from income year 2026. The catch: the lump-sum cost deduction no longer applies to non-artists, so an IT freelancer pays 15% withholding on the full gross copyright slice rather than on roughly half of it. Still cheaper than salary, but about half as generous as before 2023.
Source: Partena/Tiberghien/Moore; Grondwettelijk Hof 16 mei 2024 · engine: copyright.itEligibleFromYear, copyright.artistEffectiveRate
Copyright income for IT freelancers: back in from 2026, at half the advantage
- Costs you more
Liquidation reserve: exit withholding 6.5% → 9.8%, waiting period cut to 3 years
For reserves booked in financial years ending on or after 31 December 2025, the withholding on distribution after the waiting period is 9.8% instead of 6.5% — but the wait drops from five years to three. Combined with the 10% anticipatory levy on the net reserve, the total burden is exactly 18.00%, deliberately harmonised with the new VVPR-bis rate. Reserves booked before the cut-off keep the old 5%/6.5% rates under transitional rules.
Source: RSM/Vandelanotte/KPMG; Deutsche Bank BE · engine: liquidationReserve.exitLevyAfterWait, liquidationReserve.waitYears
Calculate thisThe liquidation reserve in 2026: new reserves now cost more to release
- Saves you money
Meal vouchers: maximum face value €10, deductibility doubled to €4
From 1 January 2026 a meal voucher can be worth up to €10 — the employer share rising to €8.91 against a €1.09 employee share. Corporate-tax deductibility doubles from €2 to €4 per voucher, but only if the employer pays the full €8.91. The higher face value needs a collective or individual written agreement; it is not automatic.
Source: Acerta/Pluxee/Sociare · engine: fringe.mealVoucher.faceValue, fringe.mealVoucher.deductiblePerVoucher
Calculate thisMeal, eco and gift vouchers for company directors in 2026: the new €10 ceiling
- Costs you more
Minimum director’s remuneration for the reduced corporate rate rises to €51,000
From assessment year 2027 (income year 2026) a small company must pay at least one director €51,000 — up from €45,000 — to keep the 20% reduced corporate rate on the first €100,000 of profit. Watch the figure: the act sets a base of €50,000, which nearly every commentary quotes, but art. 215 WIB 92 indexes it and the amount actually applicable for income year 2026 is €51,000. Benefits in kind may make up at most 20% of that remuneration. The condition does not apply during a company’s first four taxable periods. If your salary sits between the old and new floor, the reduced rate is now at risk.
Source: Attentia/Andersen/Alteor; wetsontwerp 9 juli 2026 · engine: corporate.minDirectorSalary, corporate.bikMaxShareOfRemuneration
Calculate thisThe €50,000 salary rule: paying 20% corporate tax instead of 25%
This article is general information for a one-person company (BV/SRL), not tax advice. Rules and figures change — confirm your situation with your accountant before acting.