In April 2015, the government of Belgium disclosed a tax shelter plan for the digital economy. If certain conditions are met, this plan provides that investments in new shares of start-ups will be eligible for a tax relief of 30% (SMEs) or 45% (micro-companies). The investment can be made directly or indirectly through a crowd funding platform or public start-up fund. The investor is required to hold the shares for at least 4 years.

The limits provided for in the initial plan have been increased substantially. An investor may invest up to a maximum of EUR 100,000 or 30% of the capital of the start-up yearly. If the 30% threshold is exceeded, the tax relief will be limited to investments representing 30% of the capital of the start-up. The definitive plan also provides for an exemption from interest withholding tax on qualifying loans granted to start-ups via a crowd funding platform up to a maximum of EUR 9,965 per year per taxpayer.

However, the plan has not been as successful as predicted. Later, the government prepared another draft bill to expand the scope of investment instruments that may benefit from the tax relief. At present, the incentives are available to public starter funds in which individuals can freely participate and to private collective investment companies.
As from the assessment year 2017, the incentives will also be available to special investment companies, not being collective investment companies, whose sole purpose is to invest in specific start-ups at the request of investors. However, for this type of investment, the intervention of a regulated crowd-funding platform is required.

Furthermore, the draft bill clarifies that: issuers of certificates, representing shares of start-ups, are deemed to be special investment companies; only contributions in cash are eligible for a tax relief, and only loans to companies are eligible for a tax relief.