Law featuring various individual income tax measures approved by parliament

On 9 July 2026, the Belgian parliament approved a new law featuring various individual income tax measures.

The law brings together a number of measures from the federal coalition agreement intended to make work more financially rewarding, supplemented by additional measures to simplify existing tax provisions or remove uncertainties. This alert provides a summary of these measures.

Measures to increase the attractiveness of work

• The copyright tax regime will be extended to digital professions as from income year 2026, including the development of computer programs. During the Commission of Finance and Budget meeting of 20 May 2026, the minister of finance also advised of a revised administrative position on the copyright regime; namely that it is no longer necessary to satisfy the requirements both of reproduction and communication to the public. Consequently, development of software for internal use may also qualify.

• The tax-free allowance will be progressively increased over a four-year period as from income year 2026. The resulting increase in net income will be neutralised for non-working individuals.

• The tax reduction for unemployment income will be reduced as from income year 2026 and abolished as from 2029. The tax reduction for the highest pension income will also be reduced as from income year 2026.

• The supplements to the tax-free allowance will be reformed over a four-year period as from income year 2026, in favour of the supplement for the first dependent child.

• Changes to the benefit of the marriage quotient will be implemented as from income year 2028. For non-pensioners, the benefit will be halved by income year 2029; for pensioners, the benefit will be phased out gradually over a period of 20 years.

• As from income year 2028, the special social security contribution will be reduced by calculating it on an individual basis rather than per family. This will be achieved, among other measures, by a 50% reduction in the maximum amount and a reduction in the percentage contribution on the first income bracket.

• As from 1 April 2026, the number of voluntary overtime hours will increase to 360 hours, of which 240 hours will be exempt.
• The number of overtime hours with overtime allowance that benefit from a favourable tax regime will be permanently increased to 180 hours as from 1 January 2026. In addition, the increases for specific sectors such as the construction sector, the hotel industry, road works, and railway works are maintained and clarified.

• The work bonus will be increased as from income year 2026, primarily benefiting the lowest paid.

• As from income year 2026, the subsistence income (leefloon | revenu d’intégration sociale) will need to be reported as taxable income in the individual income tax return with its specific tax reduction regime for replacement income.

• A specific levy of 33% will be introduced on the professional income of pensioners who continue to work after retirement, applicable to income paid as from 2027.

Measures related to self-employed workers

• As from income year 2027, the minimum director’s remuneration—as one of the conditions to benefit from the reduced corporate income tax rate of 20%—will increase from EUR 45,000 to EUR 50,000 and will be indexed annually.

• As from income year 2027, an entrepreneurial deduction of 10% of taxable income will be introduced for self-employed persons for income from their main or secondary occupation. The deduction will be capped at EUR 650 for 2027 and will be progressively increased to EUR 900 by income year 2029.

• As from income year 2026, the tax increase for insufficient advance payments by self-employed individuals will be abolished and an additional period to make prepayments of between 21 December and 20 February will be introduced.

Miscellaneous measures

• As from income year 2026, no more than 20% of the total taxable remuneration of directors and employees may consist of lump sum benefits in kind. The percentage is calculated collectively for each separate group. If this threshold is exceeded, the imposed sanction for directors will be the loss of the reduced corporate income tax rate and for employees, the payment by the employer of a non-deductible tax of 7.5% on the excess.

• The minimum age for young sportsmen to benefit from an individual income tax rate of 16.5% on the first income bracket will be reduced from 16 years to 15 years as from income year 2026.

• A so-called “de minimis” rule will be introduced as from income year 2026 for income realised outside the normal management of an individual’s private assets. The activities of management of real estate, movable property, and securities will be presumed to be non-taxable if the gross proceeds do not exceed a de minimis threshold of EUR 2,000. Income exceeding EUR 2,000 will be taxed at 33%. Financial assets that fall within the scope of the new capital gains tax regime are explicitly excluded from the de minimis rule.