30 June is Tax Day in Belgium

Tax Day is the day when individual income tax returns are due to be submitted. Traditionally, Tax Day has typically fallen on or just before 30 June.

This year again, Tax Day is 30 June for tax returns filed on paper, but to encourage filing online, the deadline is extended until 15 July for filing online via tax-on-web.

What is new?

Until last year, accountants and tax advisers who had a power of attorney from their client had an additional deadline to file until the middle of October. However, this year, agents can only file online until 18 October in what the tax administrations labels “complex” tax returns, that is for self-employed, company directors, or taxpayers who have overseas earnings or pensions, or who pay their spouse or civil partner a salary.

For all other clients, agents have to file before 15 July.

This is making life difficult for tax advisers. They have to check before 15 July for which clients they cannot file in October. And for some clients they may discover that the client has retired, does not have any overseas income anymore or does not have a “complex” tax return. It is not likely that the tax authorities will accept to give them an extension because of force majeure or for other serious reasons.

Note

The definition of a “complex” tax return is questionable. Tax returns with income from overseas investments or tax returns for taxpayers who are liable to the Cayman Tax are as complicated, yet they do not qualify for the extended deadline of 18 October.

What is more since this year, tax returns with a Cayman Tax aspect are “complex” tax returns when it comes to auditing these tax returns; the taxman has ten years to audit these taxpayers.