Belgium's Chamber of Deputies approved legislation on 9 July 2026 phasing in a broad overhaul of the personal income tax system through 2030, raising the tax-exempt threshold from EUR 10,910 to EUR 15,600, equalising child supplements at EUR 2,650 by 2029, and introducing new rules on single-parent allowances, overtime pay, entrepreneur deductions, and benefits in kind.
Belgium’s Chamber of Deputies approved legislation introducing a range of personal income tax reforms on 9 July 2026.
This legislation outlines a comprehensive reform of the Belgian personal income tax system, scheduled for implementation through 2030. The primary objective of the proposal is to increase purchasing power for low-income workers by gradually raising the tax-exempt income threshold from EUR 10,910 to 15,600.
The supplements for the first and second dependent children will be increased in four stages, so that by 2029 each child will receive an equal supplement of EUR 2,650. To harmonise the system, the indexation of supplements for three or more children will be temporarily frozen between the 2026 and 2029 income years.
Other key reform measures include:
- Single parents: The tax-free allowance supplement for single parents will be restricted and granted only to “true” single parents, explicitly excluding parents who are factual cohabitants.
- Simplification of tax calculation: Starting from the 2030 assessment year, the tax on the tax-free allowance will no longer be calculated using a separate tax scale. Instead, it will be calculated at the same rate as the basic income tax.
- Integration income: Starting in 2026, the integration income will be treated as taxable replacement income.
- Working pensioners: A separate, favourable tax rate of 33% will be introduced for pensioners who choose to take on supplementary work after completing a 45-year career or reaching the statutory retirement age.
- Overtime and work bonus: To reward extra work, the limit for voluntary overtime hours will be increased to 360 hours per year, with 240 of those hours being exempt from income tax. Additionally, the fiscal “work bonus” for low-wage earners will be significantly reinforced.
- Independent entrepreneurs: An “entrepreneur deduction” will be introduced for self-employed individuals without a company, allowing them to exempt 10% of a first tranche of their profits/benefits. The reform also abolishes the tax surcharge applied to independent individuals for the absence or insufficiency of advance tax payments.
- Benefits in kind and company directors: The reform discourages the excessive use of flat-rate benefits in kind; advantages exceeding 20% of a worker’s or director’s gross salary will be subject to a separate tax (7.5% or 10% depending on the specific application). The minimum remuneration required for company directors to benefit from reduced corporate tax rates will also be raised to EUR 50,000.
- Private wealth operations: To provide legal certainty, operations managing private wealth (real estate, portfolio values, etc., excluding financial assets) will irrefragably be presumed as “normal management” if the resulting gross income does not exceed EUR 2,000.
