Expat Q&A: Buying property and paying taxes

Buying a property in the Brussels-Capital Region is a lengthy process that incurs numerous charges, such as taxes (including property tax and, in some instances, taxes on any income from the property). Who must pay these charges? How to calculate them? And can you get a reduction? The Expat Welcome Desk has the lowdown!

Property tax

What is it?

Property tax is a regional tax on real estate (houses, apartments, land, etc.), which is payable annually. All (built or unbuilt) real property in the Brussels-Capital Region is subject to this tax.

Who must pay it?

Property tax is owed by:

• The owner
• The person who has possession of the property
• The usufructuary
• The person who has the right of superficies
• The usufructuary of taxable properties on 1 January of the tax year

In the case of joint ownership or co-ownership, Bruxelles Fiscalité will send a tax assessment to a single taxpayer.

How is this tax calculated?

You need the cadastral income of the property to calculate this. Cadastral income is the average annual net rental value of the property on the reference date (until further notice, this is 1 January 1975).

Property tax is thus calculated based on the cadastral income on 1 January of the tax income year. The regional base rate for all properties is 1.25% of the indexed cadastral income. 

The amount also varies depending on the property’s location. In addition to the region, each province and each municipality adds a tax to this, called ‘opcentiemen/centimes additionnels’.

Please note that reduced tax rates apply in specific situations (e.g., properties rented through a social housing authority and social housing).

Are you entitled to a tax reduction?

Some people meet the necessary conditions for obtaining a reduction of this property tax (children eligible for family benefits, if you own a modest home, or you mainly reside in the home you own, etc.).

As explained in the table on this webpage (section ‘Are you entitled to a reduction? ’), you must meet the required conditions if you are in a situation that entitles you to this reduction and provide proof thereof.

The percentage of the reduction varies depending on the situation of the person occupying the property. These reductions are linked to the occupant (owner or tenant, provided this person has registered their domicile at the property subject to property tax on 1 January of the tax year). Since the 2020 financial year, only the owner can submit an application to Bruxelles Fiscalité. The reduction is granted to the owner. The tenant may deduct this amount from the rent they pay. 

Please note: the tenant can only deduct this once a year.

Please note: Children who are eligible for child benefit under European law may thus be taken into account for the application for a reduction.

Declaring income from property

Who must make the declaration?

In principle, the owner, usufructuary, possessor, long-term tenant, or person with right of superficies of the property must declare any income from the property in their tax return (Section III).

Please note the owner is the person who has full ownership of the property. If you have bare ownership of a property, there is no requirement to declare any income from the property.

Which type of property?

Own home

Your own home is exempt from personal income tax. This means you don’t need to list it on your tax return. The own home exemption does apply to one single dwelling.

As an owner, usufructuary, possessor, long-term tenant or person with right of superficies of a dwelling that you cannot occupy for any of the following reasons:

• Professional;
• Social;
• Construction or renovation prevents you from moving in/living in the property;
• Legal or contractual obstacles prevent you from occupying the property.
• Regardless, this property may still be considered your ‘own home’ if you can prove your situation to the FPS Finance with supporting documents. Despite this, the FPS Finance may refuse to grant you an exemption (after having analysed your file).

Please note!

• The garage and any parts of the property that are not intended for personal use/occupancy (intended for professional use or for rental) are not subject to this exemption. These must thus be declared.
• If you only live in the property for part of the income year, the exemption is calculated pro rata.

A built property that is rented out

If you are renting the property to someone, you must declare rental income. However, the declaration must be done differently depending on how the tenant uses it (and their status):

• Rental to a natural person for non-professional occupation of the property;
• Rental to a natural person for professional purposes, to a legal entity or to a business, association, or a group without legal personality.

A distinction is also made between furnished and unfurnished properties. If you are renting out a furnished property, you must declare the income from renting furniture as movable income (Section VII) in addition to your income from the property (Section III).

An unbuilt property that is not rented out

If you own such a property, list the non-indexed cadastral income of the property under code 1106/2106, stating the number of days during which you were the owner, usufructuary, possessor, long-term tenant, or person with right of superficies of the property during the tax year.

A specific calculation is made if you are the co-owner of a property or file joint taxes with your legal partner.

Further information

• ‘Property Tax’ – MyTax.brussels
• ‘Property Tax’ - Be.Brussels
• ‘Declaring income from property’ - FPS Finance

The Expat Welcome Desk is a free service that advises internationals on the practicalities of daily life in the Belgian capital, from accommodation and residence permits to employment rights and taxation, among a number of topics.