Short answer. Belgium taxes gains individuals realise on financial assets from 1 January 2026 (Law of 6 April 2026). The standard rate is 10 percent (Art. 171, 2° CIR), EUR 10,000 a year is exempt for assessment year 2027, and gains run from the value at 31 December 2025. Sales to a controlled company and 20 percent holdings have separate rules.
This guide to the Belgium capital gains tax is written for investors and, above all, for shareholders of a Belgian company who will sell it, move to Belgium or leave. The tax took effect on 1 January 2026; 1 June 2026 is only when banks began withholding it. The guide explains the law and assesses no one's own position, which is for their tax adviser. If the company does not exist yet, start with setting up a company in Belgium.
What is the Belgian capital gains tax, and since when does it apply?
The new capital gains tax comes from the Law of 6 April 2026 introducing a tax on capital gains on financial assets (loi introduisant un impôt sur les plus-values sur les actifs financiers / wet tot invoering van een belasting op de meerwaarden op financiële activa), numac 2026002780, 35 articles, published in the Moniteur belge on 21 April 2026 (French text, Dutch text). It takes effect retroactively on 1 January 2026 (Art. 35, al. 1); withholding at source starts on 1 June 2026 (Art. 35, al. 2).
Art. 90, al. 1, 9° of the Income Tax Code 1992 (Code des impôts sur les revenus 1992, CIR), replaced by Art. 3 of the Law, taxes gains realised outside a professional activity, in the normal management of private wealth (gestion normale d'un patrimoine privé / normaal beheer van een privévermogen), on a transfer for consideration (cession à titre onéreux / overdracht onder bezwarende titel) of financial assets. A gift or an inheritance is not such a transfer.
Real estate is outside this tax (Art. 90, al. 1, 8° and 10° CIR). Gains of 2026 are declared in the return for assessment year 2027 (Art. 307, § 1/1 CIR; FPS Finance, SPF Finances / FOD Financiën, consulted on 30 September 2026).
Who pays the tax, and which assets does it cover?
The tax applies to natural persons and, with some exceptions, to the non-profit legal persons subject to the legal-persons tax under Art. 220, 3° and 4° CIR (Art. 222/1 CIR, inserted by Art. 18 of the Law). For such an entity, moving its seat of management abroad counts as a transfer for consideration (Art. 222/1, al. 2). A company subject to corporate income tax is outside this tax.
The financial assets are listed in Art. 92, § 1 CIR, as restored by Art. 4 of the Law:
- financial instruments, such as shares, bonds and funds
- insurance and capitalisation contracts, including branch 21 and branch 23 products
- crypto-assets, including NFTs usable for payment or investment
- funds not held on a payment account
- investment gold
- central bank digital currencies
FPS Finance lists pension savings accounts, group insurance and long-term savings contracts as outside the tax (FPS Finance, consulted on 30 September 2026).
Which of the three categories does a sale fall into?
Art. 90, al. 1, 9° CIR sorts every taxable sale into one of three categories, mutually exclusive and tested in this order. Each has its own rate and exemption.
(a) Internal gains: a sale to a company you control
Shares sold to a transferee that the seller, alone or with the spouse and relatives (ascendants, descendants and collaterals to the second degree, and the spouse's), controls directly or indirectly within Art. 1:14 of the Companies and Associations Code (Code des sociétés et des associations, CSA) (Art. 90, al. 1, 9°, a) CIR). Control is the power in law or in fact to exercise a decisive influence on appointing the majority of directors or on the orientation of management (Art. 1:14, § 1 CSA). Market term: interne meerwaarde.
(b) A substantial holding: 20 percent or more
Outside (a), the seller holds at least 20 percent of the rights in the company (Art. 90, al. 1, 9°, b) CIR). The market term is aanmerkelijk belang.
(c) Every other financial asset
Every other transfer for consideration of a financial asset (Art. 90, al. 1, 9°, c) CIR): smaller shareholdings, funds, bonds, crypto-assets, gold, insurance.
- Is the buyer controlled by the seller, alone or with the spouse and close relatives (Art. 1:14 CSA)?Category (a): 33 percent, no exemption (Art. 171, 1°)Go to the next test
- Does the seller hold at least 20 percent of the rights in the company?Category (b): first EUR 1,000,000 exempt over five taxable periods, then bands of 1.25, 2.5, 5 and 10 percent; 16.5 percent on a sale of a resident company's shares to a legal person outside the EEACategory (c): 10 percent, EUR 10,000 exempt (assessment year 2027)
The control test and the share-transfer articles: Company in Belgium: The Belgian Companies and Associations Code.
What are the capital gains tax rates in Belgium in 2026?
Each category is taxed separately at the Art. 171 CIR rate that Art. 14 of the Law assigns it, unless the tax so computed is higher than ordinary progressive taxation of all income, which then applies (Art. 171, opening phrase, CIR 92, official copy). No communal surcharge is added (Art. 466, al. 2 CIR, completed by Art. 32 of the Law).
The EUR 1,000,000 exemption, the EUR 10,000,000 threshold and the bands of Art. 171, 9° to 11° are not indexed; the category (c) exemption is (Art. 178, § 5 CIR). No computed tax for a category (b) sale is printed here, for the reason given in the section on selling your own company.
Rates by category, Art. 171 CIR as amended by Art. 14 of the Law of 6 April 2026.
| Category | Rate | Article | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| (c) every other financial asset | 10% | Art. 171, 2°, e) CIR | standard rate; withheld at source on some assets |
| (a) internal gain | 33% | Art. 171, 1°, a) CIR | no exemption |
| (b) tranche up to EUR 2,500,000 | 1.25% | Art. 171, 9° CIR | bands not indexed |
| (b) EUR 2,500,000 to 5,000,000 | 2.5% | Art. 171, 10° CIR | bands not indexed |
| (b) EUR 5,000,000 to 10,000,000 | 5% | Art. 171, 11° CIR | bands not indexed |
| (b) above EUR 10,000,000 | 10% | Art. 171, 2°, f) CIR | threshold not indexed |
| (b) shares of a resident company sold to a legal person established outside the EEA | 16.5% | Art. 171, 4°, l) CIR | buyer within Art. 227, 2° or 3° CIR |
What is exempt from the tax?
For category (c), EUR 10,000 of gains a year is exempt for assessment year 2027; the Law's base of EUR 4,855 is indexed, so later years differ (Art. 96/2, al. 1, 2° CIR). Up to EUR 1,000 a year of unused exemption (assessment year 2027) carries forward, to a maximum of EUR 15,000 after five years (Art. 96/2, al. 1, 3° and al. 3; Art. 33 of the Law). Each partner of a joint return has their own exemption (FPS Finance).
For category (b), the first EUR 1,000,000 is exempt, reduced by the tranche used in the four preceding taxable periods (Art. 96/2, al. 1, 1° and al. 2). Category (a) has none. Table 2 adds three exemptions tied to particular operations.
Exemptions under Arts. 96/2 and 95 CIR; EUR 10,000 and EUR 1,000 are assessment year 2027 amounts.
| Exemption | Amount or effect | Applies to | Article |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual exemption | EUR 10,000 (assessment year 2027; indexed) | category (c) | Art. 96/2, al. 1, 2° CIR |
| Carry-forward | up to EUR 1,000 a year (assessment year 2027), maximum EUR 15,000 after five years | category (c) | Art. 96/2, al. 1, 3° and al. 3 CIR; Art. 33 of the Law |
| Substantial-holding exemption | first EUR 1,000,000, reduced by what was used in the four preceding periods | category (b) | Art. 96/2, al. 1, 1° and al. 2 CIR |
| Internal gains | none | category (a) | Art. 96/2, al. 1 CIR |
| Contribution of shares to a company | exempt; the old acquisition value carries over to the shares received | contributions not covered by Art. 95 | Art. 96/2, al. 1, 4°; Art. 102, § 1, al. 3, d) CIR |
| Reorganisations | exempt | operations within Art. 95 | Art. 95 CIR, amended by Art. 6 of the Law |
| Exit from joint ownership | exempt within three years of a death, a divorce or the end of legal cohabitation | the co-owners | Art. 96/2, al. 1, 8° CIR |
How is the taxable gain calculated?
Acquisition value, FIFO and costs
The gain is the price or value received minus the acquisition value, identical assets matched first in, first out, foreign currency converted at the purchase and sale dates (Art. 102, § 1, al. 1, 4 and 5 CIR). Without evidence of the acquisition value, the whole price is taxable (§ 1, last al.). No costs or taxes are deductible (FPS Finance).
The 31 December 2025 reference value
For assets acquired before 1 January 2026, the gain is the price received minus the value at 31 December 2025 (Art. 102, § 4, al. 1 CIR), which FPS Finance calls the reference date (date de référence / fotomoment). For listed assets it is the last closing price of 2025 (al. 2, 1°).
Unlisted shares: three methods or an expert valuation
For unlisted shares the value is the highest of the three in table 3 (Art. 102, § 4, al. 2, 2° CIR). Instead of the third method, or where none applies, a company auditor (réviseur d'entreprises / bedrijfsrevisor) or a certified accountant may fix the value by 31 December 2027, provided neither is the company's usual professional (al. 3). An incorporation in 2025, such as forming an SRL or BV that year, counts under the first method.
The highest of methods 1 to 3 applies; an expert valuation may replace method 3 (Art. 102, § 4 CIR).
| Method | What it uses | Article |
|---|---|---|
| 1. A 2025 transaction | an arm's-length transfer, the last capital increase or the incorporation between 1 January and 31 December 2025 | Art. 102, § 4, al. 2, 2° CIR |
| 2. A contract formula | the valuation formula of a put-option contract or offer in force on 1 January 2026 | Art. 102, § 4, al. 2, 2° CIR |
| 3. The accounts | equity plus 4 times EBITDA of the last financial year closed before 1 January 2026 | Art. 102, § 4, al. 2, 2° CIR |
| Expert valuation | instead of method 3, or where no method applies: value fixed by 31 December 2027 by a company auditor or certified accountant who is not the usual professional | Art. 102, § 4, al. 3 CIR |
| No evidence | the whole price received is taxable | Art. 102, § 1, last al. CIR |
The historical-cost option until 2030
For disposals until 31 December 2030 of assets acquired before 2026, the taxpayer may ask to use the demonstrated historical acquisition value (Art. 102, § 4, al. 4 CIR). If that produces a loss, the taxable gain is nil and the loss cannot be deducted (FPS Finance).
Losses
Losses offset only gains of the same taxpayer, taxable period and category: a loss on listed shares cannot reduce an internal gain or next year's gain. The loss needs proof of the acquisition value by all means except the oath (Art. 102, § 5 CIR).
Does the bank withhold the tax, and how is it declared?
Withholding by Belgian intermediaries and the opt-out
Banks, brokers and insurers established in Belgium withhold 10 percent on residents' category (c) gains on financial instruments and insurance (Art. 261, al. 1, 5° and Art. 269, § 1, 5° CIR), ignoring the exemption, a higher acquisition value and losses. Nothing is withheld on crypto-assets, currency or gold, on a category (a) or (b) sale, or where the account holders clearly opted out; that choice is revocable once per taxable period, effective the next, and the intermediary reports it (Art. 265/1 CIR).
The 2026 transition
The 2026 opt-out had to be notified by 31 August 2026 and covers all of income year 2026. Withholding on gains of 1 June to 31 August 2026 is payable by 30 November 2026; for 1 January to 31 May, holders could ask for an equivalent amount to be paid, with the same two deadlines (Arts. 34 and 35, al. 3 to 6 of the Law).
Declaring the gain and recovering what was withheld
The exemption, a higher acquisition value or losses on withheld gains are claimed in the return for the period of the gain (Art. 307, § 1/1 CIR). Gains on crypto-assets, funds, gold and central bank digital currencies must be declared, and opt-out income has no liberatory effect (Art. 313, al. 1). For 2026 gains that is the assessment year 2027 return.
Withholding covers category (c) financial instruments and insurance only, from 1 June 2026.
| Asset or sale | Withheld at source | Declared in the return | Article |
|---|---|---|---|
| Category (c): financial instruments and insurance, no opt-out | 10% | to claim the exemption, a higher acquisition value or losses | Arts. 261, 269, 307 CIR |
| Category (c): crypto-assets, currency, gold | no | yes | Arts. 261, 313 CIR |
| Category (c) under an opt-out | no | yes | Arts. 265/1, 313 CIR |
| Category (a) or (b) sale | no | yes | Art. 261, al. 1, 5° CIR |
Transferring shares in a Belgian company? We prepare the transfer documents and the register entry; your tax adviser keeps the tax position. Request a share transfer file
What happens when you sell shares in your own Belgian company?
This section is for shareholders of a Belgian BV/SRL or NV/SA, the private and public limited companies in Belgium. It sets out the Law's criteria and consequences; which route suits a seller is a question for their own tax adviser.
Three situations a founder meets
A sale to an unrelated buyer, holding 20 percent or more. Category (b): the first EUR 1,000,000 is exempt over five taxable periods, then the bands of Art. 171, 9° to 11° CIR, or 16.5 percent where a legal person established outside the EEA buys a resident company's shares (Art. 171, 4°, l)).
A sale to a company you or your family control. Category (a): 33 percent and no exemption (Art. 90, al. 1, 9°, a) and Art. 171, 1°, a) CIR), with control tested under Art. 1:14 CSA together with the spouse and close relatives.
A contribution of the shares to a company for new shares. Exempt, with the old acquisition value carried over to the new shares (Art. 96/2, al. 1, 4° and Art. 102, § 1, al. 3, d) CIR): the operation that brings existing shares into a Belgian holding company.
A 2026 share sale, step by step
- Classify the sale (seller): test (a), then (b), then (c); under (b), check for a legal-person buyer outside the EEA. No statutory timing.
- Fix the acquisition value (seller, possibly with an auditor or certified accountant who is not the usual professional): the 31 December 2025 value, an expert valuation by 31 December 2027, or historical cost for sales until 31 December 2030. Keep the evidence.
- Sign the transfer and enter it in the share register (seller and buyer): for a BV/SRL, a private deed, no notary (Arts. 5:61 and 5:24 CSA), subject to the Art. 5:63 approval clause unless disapplied. No statutory timing.
- Adviser reporting (Art. 326bis CIR): by the last day of February of the following year.
- Withholding (Belgian intermediary): none on a category (a) or (b) sale.
- Declaration (seller): assessment year 2027 for a 2026 sale; filing date not yet published.
- Assessment (FPS Finance): separate taxation unless ordinary taxation is lower, no communal surcharge.
- Departure (seller): special return within three months for earlier 2026 gains, then the deferred exit tax.
The records a seller keeps
Derived from the rules above, not an official list:
- the transfer agreement and the share register entry
- evidence of the acquisition value: incorporation deed, capital increase deeds, earlier purchase agreements
- the 31 December 2025 valuation and its basis: the 2025 transaction, the put-option formula, the accounts of the last financial year closed before 2026, or the expert's report
- the identification data of buyer and seller for the Art. 326bis report
- the return for the year of the sale, where exemptions or losses are claimed (Art. 307, § 1/1 CIR)
Why this guide prints no tax figure for a sale of a substantial holding
Art. 171, 9° CIR taxes a tranche of category (b) gains up to EUR 2,500,000; Art. 96/2, al. 1, 1° exempts the first EUR 1,000,000 of the same income. The texts do not say whether the bands run before or after the exemption, and the two readings give different totals. The administration's circular 2026/C/74 has not yet been checked against its official text for this guide, so no figure is printed.
On a share transfer we work on the company-law side. We start with the company's own records, where the evidence for the 31 December 2025 value usually sits: the 2025 deeds and the last accounts closed before 2026. We then prepare the transfer documents and the register entry. The tax position goes to the client's ITAA-registered adviser.
Is the sale reported to the tax authority?
Yes, for categories (a) and (b). Art. 326bis CIR, inserted by Art. 30 of the Law, obliges anyone who designs, offers, implements or manages such an operation to report the price and the identification of buyers and sellers by the last day of February of the following year. It covers persons resident in Belgium, with a Belgian permanent establishment, incorporated in Belgium, or registered with a Belgian legal, tax or advisory professional body. For a foreign adviser, the answer can turn on when a foreign company has a permanent establishment in Belgium.
A person bound by professional secrecy who is not a lawyer informs the others in writing, and the duty passes to them. The form is set by royal decree. The first reports, for 2026 operations, are due by the end of February 2027.
What happens when you move to Belgium or leave it?
Arriving: the value on your first day
A taxpayer who moves residence or seat of wealth to Belgium takes as acquisition value the value on the first day of subjection to Belgian personal income tax (Art. 102, § 3, al. 1 CIR). A later gain runs from that value, so growth before arrival is outside the Belgian base.
Leaving: the exit tax and its deferral
Moving domicile or seat of wealth out of Belgium is treated as a transfer for consideration (Art. 92, § 2, 2° CIR): the exit tax. Gains realised in 2026 before departure go in the special return for assessment year 2026, in principle within three months; none is needed for a departure before 1 May 2026 (FPS Finance).
Payment is deferred automatically for a move to the EU, the EEA or a treaty state with exchange of information and recovery assistance, and on request against security elsewhere; a sale or a pledge ends the deferral (Art. 413/1, § 6 CIR). The statute says the obligation lapses after 24 months abroad, or on a return within 24 months. FPS Finance says the tax is not due if the assets are not sold within two years of departure (French page), and asks for attestations by 14 and 26 months after departure.
Are non-residents taxed on gains on Belgian shares?
Before the Law, Art. 228, § 2, 9°, h) CIR taxed non-residents on gains on shares of Belgian companies. Art. 20 of the Law of 6 April 2026 abrogates that letter and adds no replacement. That is what the texts say, not a statement that a given non-resident owes nothing: the consolidated Art. 228 and the administration's circular could not be checked for this guide.
The FPS Finance page for non-residents, consulted on 30 September 2026, sends a non-resident with private share gains to the bilateral treaty, under which the country of residence most commonly taxes. It does not mention the new tax. Which state taxes in a given case is settled by Belgium's double tax treaties.
Does a Belgian company pay this tax when it sells shares?
No. The Law of 6 April 2026 amends no corporate income tax article, so a company stays under corporate income tax when it sells shares. Its gain falls under Art. 192, § 1 CIR, exempt on the conditions of the dividends-received deduction (RDT / DBI) in Arts. 202 and 203: the participation exemption (CIR 92, official copy).
Two qualifications apply. A 5 percent separate assessment is due on gains on shares of investment companies, regulated real-estate companies or similar foreign companies exempted under Art. 192, § 1, where their income was deducted as dividends received in an earlier period (Art. 219sexies CIR; FPS Finance notes to the corporate return, assessment year 2026). A gain that does not meet Art. 192 falls into the company's ordinary taxable base (Arts. 215 and 217 CIR). The dates by which the company files its own return are set out in the corporate tax deadlines guide.
What this tax is not: dividends, the liquidation reserve and the "30% rule"
Four Belgian rules are often confused with the capital gains tax. None of them is part of it.
VVPRbis dividends. Withholding on qualifying dividends is 18 percent (was 15) from 1 July 2026, under the programme law of 30 May 2026 (*Moniteur belge*): a dividend route, not a capital gain.
The liquidation reserve. 9.8 percent (was 6.5) from 11 June 2026, under the same law. A distribution on closing a company in Belgium is not a sale of shares.
The inbound-taxpayer regime, one "30% rule". Now a 35 percent allowance, a EUR 70,000 minimum and no cap, retroactive to 1 January 2025 (Law of 18 December 2025); founders, co-founders and holders of 30 percent or more are excluded. The guide on who qualifies for the Belgian special tax regime for inbound taxpayers sets out the conditions.
The dividend rate, the other "30% rule". 30 percent is the base withholding rate on dividends (Art. 269, § 1, 1° CIR; FPS Finance), not a tax on gains.
Key dates, from the 2025 reference value to 2030
Two dates are often confused: the tax took effect on 1 January 2026; withholding started on 1 June 2026.
- 31 December 2025Reference value for assets held before 2026
- 1 January 2026The tax takes effect, retroactively
- 6 April 2026The Law is signed
- 21 April 2026Published in the Moniteur belge
- 1 May 2026Departure cut-off: no special return for 2026 gains
- 1 June 2026Withholding by Belgian intermediaries starts
- 31 August 2026Deadline to notify the 2026 opt-out
- 30 November 2026Payment of withholding on gains of 1 June to 31 August
- End of February 2027First Art. 326bis reports for 2026
- 2027, date not publishedFirst return, assessment year 2027
- 31 December 2027Expert valuation deadline for unlisted shares
- 31 December 2030Last sale for the historical-cost option
Key dates. The filing date of the first return (assessment year 2027) was unpublished on 1 October 2026.
| Date | Event | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 31 December 2025 | reference value for assets held before 2026 | Art. 102, § 4 CIR |
| 1 January 2026 | the tax takes effect, retroactively | Art. 35, al. 1 of the Law |
| 6 April 2026 | the Law is signed | Law of 6 April 2026 |
| 21 April 2026 | published in the Moniteur belge | numac 2026002780 |
| 1 May 2026 | departures before this date need no special return for 2026 gains | FPS Finance |
| 1 June 2026 | withholding by Belgian intermediaries starts | Art. 35, al. 2 of the Law |
| 31 August 2026 | deadline to notify the 2026 opt-out | Art. 34 of the Law |
| 30 November 2026 | payment of withholding on gains of 1 June to 31 August 2026 | Art. 35 of the Law |
| end of February 2027 | first Art. 326bis reports for 2026 category (a) and (b) operations | Art. 326bis CIR |
| 2027, date not published | first return: assessment year 2027 | FPS Finance |
| 31 December 2027 | deadline for the expert valuation of unlisted shares | Art. 102, § 4, al. 3 CIR |
| 31 December 2030 | last disposal date for the historical-cost option | Art. 102, § 4, al. 4 CIR |
Sources
Official texts behind every figure; statutes are linked as the whole act, articles given in the text. Rates checked against every amendment of Art. 171 CIR up to 30 May 2026.
- Law of 6 April 2026, French text, archived 6 September 2026
- Law of 6 April 2026, Dutch text, checked 30 September 2026
- Income Tax Code 1992, official Walloon copy, archived 7 September 2026
- Companies and Associations Code, archived 6 September 2026
- FPS Finance, the tax explained (Dutch), checked 30 September 2026
- FPS Finance, the tax explained (French), archived 6 September 2026
- FPS Finance, non-residents, checked 30 September 2026
- FPS Finance, notes to the 2026 corporate return, archived 6 September 2026
- Programme law of 30 May 2026
- Law of 18 December 2025
- FPS Finance, withholding tax on movable income, archived 6 September 2026
Related guides
- who qualifies for the Belgian special tax regime for inbound taxpayers: conditions and exclusions.
- Belgium's double tax treaties: which state taxes a gain.
- the innovation income deduction guide: qualifying innovation income of a company.
- Company in Belgium: Transfer Pricing in Belgium: prices between related companies.
- the Belgian CFC rules: foreign subsidiaries and the Pillar Two minimum tax.
- the corporate tax deadlines guide: when a company files its return.
- when a foreign company has a permanent establishment in Belgium: the tests.
Related service
Company in Belgium: Corporate Secretarial Services in Belgium: the share transfer, the register entry and the corporate filings around a sale are prepared there. It is company-law work, not tax advice.