Contracting in Belgium - A Short Guide to Tax and Social Security

[Brussels Slumdog]

Belgian resident

Great thread - thanks.

IHow will BTA treat that UK Ltd initially if I am the director and only employee, and resident in Belgium? Do I need to move myself immediately to the UK, leaving Wife and Kids in Belgium until I can sell the house here? Will BTA still consider me tax-resident if my family are here? ... do we need to divorce first and then remarry once she moves over to UK? :-)

Any advice on the best way to legally get most net income out of this situation?

- JumpingIn

Your wife and kids live in belgium and your house is in Belgium so this makes you a Belgian tax resident. Moving to the UK and leaving the family behind will not solve your problem. In Belgium couples file a joint declaration
Does your wife work in Belgium?
Will you be doing all your work remotely from your home in Belgium?

[jezosaurus]

Starting up a BVBA, only to shut it down again once I move to the UK, seems unnecesarily complicated and costly. Also, the client prefers to work with a UK Ltd than with a BVBA.
- JumpingIn

You're right there.

Set up a UK limited through a Belgian company with a Belgian subsidiary.
It's know as an "Euro BVBA" - far cheaper to set up than a normal Belgian BVBA.
If the client considers that invoices from a LTD are better than from a BVBA or vice versa, then I'd question their financial integrity (cause there's no difference, and if they think there is, you'd have to assume that their FD is a ****wit)

[motormouth]

To move or not to move?

I have been working in Belgium for around 3 years. I also tripped up with the social security payments but am trying to now sort it out.

My problem was my accountant not explaining things properly at the start, as I would obviously paid up front otherwise.

Anyway, I'm now considering moving back to the UK.

(1) What do I have to do here to close down my business? What sorts of charges are involved?
(2) Could I work for the next 6 months (183 days or so) here in Belgium and pay tax in the UK, or have I done things the wrong way around?
(3) I know of people who work and classify themselves as 'cross border workers' ... ie they go back to the UK every week and claim residency in the UK and pay tax there ... could i do this also?

Thanks in advance,

[Brussels Slumdog]

Cross Border workers

[QUOTE=motormouth;1558421(3) I know of people who work and classify themselves as 'cross border workers' ... ie they go back to the UK every week and claim residency in the UK and pay tax there ... could i do this also?

Thanks in advance,[/QUOTE]

I don't think that Belgium classifies the UK as "Cross border". Belgium has cross border agreements with France,Netherlands and maybe Luxemburg and Germany.Cross border workers live in a border state and go home every night.
When I work in the Netherlands and Germany I pay 6% community tax but not when I work in the UK

[contractorcontractor]

Big Tax

When I was in belgium they had 50% income tax as soon as you earned 1 Euro. On top of that there is 10% Social Tax and another 10% for the Employer. So you will pay 70% tax.

I asked a belgian how he lives and he said, you dont actually pay the tax. The taxman comes to visit on his own, you have a cognac, and he decides how much you must pay.

I worked 3 years in belgium on a good rate and came back with 5000 GBP. All your expenses are chargable but it is still not worth it.

Belgium was a nightmare.

[captainham]

Hmmm, just reading through some of this and now wondering if I need to be worrying...does anyone know where I stand on the following?

I have a UK LTD
Working for a UK Agency
End client is based in Belgium
Contract is 50% home-based (i.e. UK home office), 50% EU travel (occasionally to Belgium, but mostly to other countries)

Thr UK Agency are expecting me to charge UK VAT on my invoices, not that this really means anything of course.

As I'm not physically in Belgium for more than the occasional week, I figured I was ok to remain as a UK LTD???

[Boo]

...
I have a UK LTD
Working for a UK Agency
End client is based in Belgium
Contract is 50% home-based (i.e. UK home office), 50% EU travel (occasionally to Belgium, but mostly to other countries)
...
As I'm not physically in Belgium for more than the occasional week, I figured I was ok to remain as a UK LTD???

Yep. If you are in Belgium for less than 5 days a month you need not register for LIMOSA and so will be firmly out of the Belgian Tax System.

See here for example :

Self-employed business people

Self-employed business people are exempt from the declaration if they do not stay in Belgium for more than 5 days per month for their activities.

Company self-employed directors and mandataries are also exempt if they take part in meetings of the Board of Directors and company general meetings. They, too, may not stay in Belgium for more than 5 days per month.

Hth,

Boo

[captainham]

Yep. If you are in Belgium for less than 5 days a month you need not register for LIMOSA and so will be firmly out of the Belgian Tax System.

Thanks Boo, that's a great link, and goes some way to reassuring. I will on the VERY odd occasion be in BE more than 5 days in any given month, so I'll read through the link in more detail but my initial thoughts on that right now are "Pass the bucket of sand, I'm going to bury my head in it".

[Herrmonch]

Tax/SS for non Belgian resident on short term contract.

Hello!

I've been offered a contract with a Belgian Opera Company to sing in their chorus for one show...the hourly rehearsal rates, and performance fees total around about 2,500 for 8 weeks work...should i be taxed at source for this small amount?

I'm registered in the UK, and working away for that little amount of money/that length of time wouldn't usually mean that I would have to pay any tax on it back home in the UK. I'm just worried that if I do get taxed at source, I'm going to LOSE money on this contract, by the time you take in my needing somewhere to live for 2 months, food, travel etc.

All this has been made more complicated by the company i'd be working for offering me this job the day before going on holiday...and not returning until a few days before my contract would start...it's all rather daunting!

Thank you for any advice you may have on this matter.

[Brussels Slumdog]

Entertainers and Performers

Hello!

I've been offered a contract with a Belgian Opera Company to sing in their chorus for one show...the hourly rehearsal rates, and performance fees total around about 2,500 for 8 weeks work...should i be taxed at source for this small amount?

I'm registered in the UK, and working away for that little amount of money/that length of time wouldn't usually mean that I would have to pay any tax on it back home in the UK. I'm just worried that if I do get taxed at source, I'm going to LOSE money on this contract, by the time you take in my needing somewhere to live for 2 months, food, travel etc.

All this has been made more complicated by the company i'd be working for offering me this job the day before going on holiday...and not returning until a few days before my contract would start...it's all rather daunting!

Thank you for any advice you may have on this matter.

There are different rules and regulations for entertainers and performers which do not apply to us IT folk.