Belgium's Council of Ministers approved a preliminary draft law amending the Value Added Tax Code to require near real-time electronic reporting of invoice data to tax authorities from 2028, extending an existing e-invoicing mandate that began 1 January 2026.
Belgium’s Council of Ministers approved a preliminary draft law amending the Value Added Tax Code on 18 July 2026, requiring companies to report invoice data electronically in near real time to tax authorities starting in 2028.
The measure extends an existing e-invoicing mandate for domestic B2B transactions that took effect on 1 January 2026, moving toward dual reporting requirements that will tighten the government’s ability to track business transactions.
Since 1 January 2026, a general obligation to issue structured electronic invoices or equivalent documents between taxable persons has been introduced. As a continuation of this obligation, the draft bill provides for a “near real-time” electronic reporting system under which certain mandatory invoice data must be reported electronically to the tax authorities by both the supplier or service provider and the customer.
This bilateral electronic reporting system aims to:
- Improve taxpayer compliance by digitising and automating data flows, resulting in the transmission of more reliable information.
- Enhance tax administration and enforcement by enabling faster access to more detailed and reliable data, improving risk analysis, strengthening existing control techniques, facilitating quicker action against specific fraud schemes, and increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of tax audits.
The introduction of this electronic reporting obligation also eliminates the requirement to file the annual list of taxable customers under the Value Added Tax Code for taxable persons subject to the new reporting obligation.
The preliminary draft has been submitted to the Data Protection Authority and the Council of State for review.
Earlier, Belgium published a decree requiring mandatory structured e-invoicing for B2B transactions between VAT-registered taxpayers from 2026, implementing the Act of 6 February 2024.
