Good to know
Good to Know
- There is no requirement for a Belgian or EU local partner/shareholder — foreigners of any nationality can own 100% of a Belgian company.
- Non-EU/EEA/Swiss nationals who intend to personally run the business as self-employed or as company administrator need a separate 'professional card' authorization on top of company registration — this is a personal work-authorization step, not a company-formation step, and can add significant time.
- Since 2019 there's no legal minimum share capital for a BV/SRL, but notaries will scrutinize your 2-year financial plan closely — underfunding that leads to bankruptcy within 3 years can expose founders to personal liability.
- Cost and timeline estimates vary quite a bit across sources (roughly €1,300–€5,000 and 10 days to 6+ weeks) depending mainly on notary complexity, whether you use a formation agent, and how quickly foreign documents can be apostilled and translated — budget toward the higher end and longer end if you're incorporating from abroad.
- All incorporation documents must be drafted in Dutch, French, or German depending on your registered office's region — Brussels allows either French or Dutch.
- A foreign national who wants to work self-employed in Belgium (whether as a sole proprietor or via their own company) generally needs a professional card in addition to any required residence permit — this is separate from, and additional to, general immigration status.
- Don't confuse the personal income tax brackets (up to ~50%) that apply to sole-proprietor/freelancer profits with the much lower flat corporate tax rate (20-25%) that applies once you incorporate — this gap is exactly why many freelancers switch to a company as income grows.
- The reduced 20% SME corporate rate has real strings attached (it requires paying at least one director a minimum salary of €45,000/year, among other conditions) — it isn't automatic just because a company is small.
- Belgium requires e-invoicing for domestic B2B transactions starting 1 January 2026, so any newly formed company should set up compliant invoicing software from day one.
Corporate Tax
- Minimum Director Remuneration For SME Rate
- €45,000
Minimum annual pay a company must give at least one individual director to qualify for the SME reduced tax rate.
- Large Group Minimum Tax
- Belgium applies a 15% global minimum tax for large multinational groups or domestic groups with consolidated revenue over €750 million, implementing the EU Pillar Two directive — not relevant to typical small foreign-owned nomad businesses.
- Surcharge And Advance Payments
- A surcharge is added to the final tax bill if advance quarterly tax payments weren't made during the year; the surcharge for tax year 2026 is 6.75%, and it can be avoided entirely with sufficient advance payments.
Standard Rate
- Rate Percent
- 25
- Note
- Applies to all taxable profit above the SME reduced-rate bracket, and to the full profit of companies that don't qualify as an SME.
- Description
- Standard corporate income tax rate on company profits in Belgium.
SME Reduced Rate
- Rate Percent
- 20
- Qualifying Conditions
- Company must meet the legal definition of an SME (based on Code for Companies and Associations size criteria), at least 50% of shares held by individuals (not another company), and at least one director must receive a minimum annual remuneration.
- Applies To Profit Bracket
- €100,000
- Description
- Reduced rate available to qualifying small/medium companies on the first bracket of profit.
Foreign Owned Company Treatment
- Resident Company
- A company incorporated/tax-resident in Belgium (e.g. a subsidiary of a foreign parent) is taxed on its worldwide profits, just like a domestic company.
- Branch Of Foreign Company
- A foreign company operating via a Belgian branch (permanent establishment) rather than a subsidiary is taxed at the same 25% (or reduced 20%) rate, but only on Belgium-sourced income, not worldwide profits.
Freelancer Sole Proprietor Vs Company
- Practical Guidance
- A sole proprietorship is generally recommended for those earning modest amounts or testing a business idea because it's fast, cheap, and low-admin; once income and risk grow, many freelancers convert to or start directly as a limited company (SRL/BV) both for the liability shield and because the effective tax rate on company profits can end up materially lower than the top personal income tax bracket.
Limited Company SRL BV Or NV Sa
- Setup
- Requires a notary to draft the articles of association and a financial plan showing sufficient funds to operate; there's no fixed statutory minimum capital requirement, but the founders must demonstrate adequate funding.
- Taxation
- Company profits are taxed under the corporate income tax regime (25% standard / 20% reduced SME rate), separately from the owner's personal tax; paying yourself a salary or dividend from the company is then taxed again under personal income tax rules.
- Liability
- Limited liability — shareholders are only liable up to the amount of their investment in the company, protecting personal assets from business debts.
- What It Is
- A separate legal entity from its founder(s); the most common forms for foreign entrepreneurs are the SRL/BV (private limited company) for small/medium operations or the NV/SA (public limited company) for larger ventures seeking outside investors.
- Administrative Burden
- Faces more scrutiny from tax authorities and more ongoing obligations than a sole proprietorship, including filing an annual corporate tax return and formal annual accounts.
- Accounting Cost Estimate
- €4,000
Notary Cost Estimate
- Currency Local
- EUR
- Amount USD Range
- 648-3240 USD
- Amount Local Range
- 600-3000 EUR
Foreign Company Entry Alternatives
- Subsidiary
- Opening as a subsidiary creates a separate Belgian legal entity (similar to setting up a local limited company), taxed as a Belgian resident company on worldwide income.
- Branch Office
- A foreign company can open a Belgian branch instead of a local subsidiary; the branch carries unlimited liability and the parent company remains legally responsible for all its debts and obligations, but it is only taxed on Belgium-sourced income.
Sole Proprietorship Eenmanszaak Entreprise Individuelle
- Setup
- No minimum start-up capital required; registration is done through the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises, and setup can be completed online or via an accredited enterprise counter.
- Taxation
- All business income is taxed as the individual's personal income under Belgium's progressive personal income tax brackets (roughly 25–50% depending on income level), not under the corporate tax regime.
- Liability
- Unlimited personal liability — business debts can be recovered against the owner's personal assets, though Belgian law allows the owner's main private residence to be declared exempt from seizure under certain conditions.
- What It Is
- The business and the individual are the same legal entity — most freelancers and independent consultants use this form.
- Social Contributions
- Self-employed social security contributions are roughly 20-21% of net profit, with quarterly payments (illustrative figures cited elsewhere put a typical quarterly contribution around €600, rising for higher earners).
Accounting Cost Estimate
- Currency Local
- EUR
- Amount USD Range
- 1080-2160 USD/year
- Amount Local Range
- 1000-2000 EUR/year
Registration Fees Example
- VAT Activation
- €78
- Cbe Registration
- €112
VAT Registration
- Standard VAT Rate
- 21%
- Small Business Exemption Threshold
- €25,000
- Note
- Freelancers/companies with annual turnover below this threshold can opt for the small-business VAT exemption scheme, meaning they don't charge or reclaim VAT; above it, VAT registration and periodic returns are mandatory.
Filing Obligations
- Corporate Tax Return
- Filed electronically via the Biztax platform. Deadline is generally the last day of the 7th month following the end of the company's financial year — for a calendar-year company (year-end 31 December), that means a filing deadline around 31 July of the following year.
- E Invoicing
- Structured e-invoicing between Belgian businesses becomes mandatory starting 1 January 2026.
- VAT Returns
- VAT returns are filed monthly (due by the 20th of the following month) or quarterly (due by the 25th of the following quarter), and a nil return must still be filed even with no transactions in the period. Late or missing VAT filings carry penalties.
- Record Keeping
- Accounting records and supporting documents must be kept for at least 10 financial years.
- Annual Accounts
- Companies must file annual accounts with the National Bank of Belgium; SMEs can use an abbreviated reporting scheme, while larger companies must use the full scheme.
- Registration Steps
- Any business (sole proprietor or company) must register with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (CBE / Banque-Carrefour des Entreprises) to get a company number, which also functions as the VAT and social-security identifier; this can be done through an accredited 'business counter' (guichet d'entreprise).
Incorporation Process And Requirements
- Overview
- Brussels-based companies are incorporated under Belgian federal company law (the Companies and Associations Code), so the process is identical to incorporating anywhere else in Belgium — there is no Brussels-specific registry, only a Brussels-Capital Region business-support layer for permits/professional-card applications.
Timeline
- Fastest Case
- As little as 10 days to ~2-3 weeks when documents are complete and no foreign-document apostille/translation is needed.
- Typical Range
- Roughly 2 to 6 weeks from having documents ready to being fully operational (name check, financial plan, notary signing, CBE registration, VAT and bank account activation).
- Add For Non Residents
- Add roughly 1-2 extra weeks for founders needing apostilled/translated foreign documents, and note that obtaining a non-EU professional card, where required, can itself take over a month and runs in parallel to (not necessarily before) company registration.
Estimated Cost
- Range Low
- €1,300
- Range High
- €5,000
- Typical Midpoint Estimate
- €3,000
- Breakdown Notes
- Covers notary fees for the deed, CBE/KBO registration fees, Belgian Official Gazette publication, and (if used) VAT-activation and accountant/advisory fees. Notary fees alone are typically the largest single item.
Capital Requirements
- NV SA
- €61,500
- BV SRL
- No statutory minimum share capital since the 2019 company law reform (can technically start with a nominal amount), but founders must present a 'financial plan' proving equity is sufficient to fund the business for its first two years — an inadequate plan can expose founders to personal liability if the company goes bankrupt within three years.
- Sole Proprietorship Partnership
- No minimum capital requirement.
Step By Step Process
- Choose a legal structure (BV/SRL is standard for foreign founders) and check/reserve your company name via the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (CBE/KBO/BCE) database.
- Draft a financial plan (2-year projection) demonstrating sufficient starting equity — required for BV/SRL and NV/SA.
- Open a Belgian business bank account in the company's name and deposit the initial capital contribution; the bank issues a deposit certificate needed for the notary.
- Sign the deed of incorporation and Articles of Association before a Belgian notary (in person or via power of attorney) — this is mandatory for limited-liability structures.
- The notary electronically files the deed with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (CBE), the Commercial Court registry, and the Belgian Official Gazette (Moniteur belge/Belgisch Staatsblad), which together assign the company's 10-digit enterprise number.
- Activate the company at an accredited Business Counter (Guichet d'entreprise / Ondernemingsloket) — without this activation the business cannot legally trade.
- Register for VAT with FPS Finance (via MyMinfin or an accredited counter) if the business carries out taxable activities.
- Register Ultimate Beneficial Owners (UBO) via the MyMinfin portal within 30 days of incorporation.
- Join a social insurance fund (mandatory for all self-employed persons, directors and partners) and register as an employer with the NSSO if hiring staff.
- Non-EU/EEA/Swiss founders who will personally work as self-employed or as administrator must separately obtain the professional card before starting activity.
Common Legal Structures
- BV/SRL (Besloten Vennootschap / Société à Responsabilité Limitée) — private limited company, by far the most common vehicle for small/medium foreign-founded businesses
- NV/SA (Naamloze Vennootschap / Société Anonyme) — public limited company, used for larger operations
- Branch office of a foreign company
- Sole proprietorship (self-employed / 'indépendant')
Typical Documents Required
- Passport/ID and proof of address for all founders/directors
- Draft Articles of Association
- Financial plan (2-year projection) for limited-liability companies
- Proof of registered office address in Belgium (lease agreement or ownership title)
- Bank deposit certificate for share capital
- Apostilled and, if needed, certified-translated versions of any foreign-issued documents (since incorporation documents must be in Dutch, French or German)
Official Registry And Government Links
Foreign Ownership And Local Partner Rules
- Detail
- There are no restrictions on foreign ownership or nationality of shareholders or directors, and no requirement for a Belgian or resident co-shareholder/local partner.
- Ownership Restriction
- none
- Residency Requirement
- None — you can register and manage a company as a non-resident, though a real registered office address in Belgium is mandatory (a PO box is not sufficient).
- EU EEA Swiss Nationals
- EU, EEA and Swiss citizens have freedom of establishment and can incorporate and act as self-employed/director under the same conditions as Belgian nationals.
- Non EU Nationals Professional Card
- Non-EU/EEA/Swiss nationals who want to act as self-employed or as a company administrator in Belgium must first obtain a 'professional card' (carte professionnelle / beroepskaart) — this functions as a personal work/business authorization, not a local-partner or sponsorship requirement, and it must be secured before starting activity.
- Citation Note 1
- There are no nationality restrictions and foreign nationals are permitted to fully own the company they open in this country.
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this business permits & incorporation for foreigners research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
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Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.