Are you one of the 7.4 million Belgians who need to file their tax returns by 15 July? In Belgium, around four million people have their declarations pre-filled, two million file online, and 200,000 still prefer paper forms. If you’re going old-school with paper, make sure to post it by 30 June.
In Belgium, a total of 7.4 million tax returns need to be filed by 15 July (online). What happens if you miss the deadline? you risk a fine between €50 and €1,250 and a penalty of 10% to 200% of the tax
About four million declarations are submitted automatically via the pre-completed declaration, some two million are filed online, and approximately 200,000 are still completed on paper. If you forget to file (or to sign online), you risk a fine between €50 and €1,250 and a penalty of 10% to 200% of the tax
Those filing their tax return on paper must post the letter on 30 June at the latest (Sunday), and doing it online must make sure they have done so before midnight on 15 July.
half of tax returns have already been submitted
With the deadline for online tax filing just three weeks away, over half of tax returns have already been submitted. Francis Adyns from the tax authority mentioned on Flemish radio that despite the usual last-minute rush, a significant number of returns have been filed via MyMinfin this year.
With the deadline to file online coming up in just three weeks, more than half of tax returns have already been filed. “People often wait until the last minute to submit their tax return, but we have already received half of the returns to be done via this year,” Francis Adyns of the tax authority said .
Twice a day, the tax authority tracks how many people already filed their returns online through MyMinfin; at 14:00 and at 02:00. “We are now at 1.2 million,” Adyns said. How many paper tax returns have already been received is not yet clear, as the letters have to be date-stamped, and prepared to be scanned and counted.
As the tax authorities consider filing late the same as not filing at all, this can have serious consequences.
In the past, having an accountant or bookkeeper used to grant you a later tax filing deadline until October, but things have changed.Now, the deadline depends on the complexity of your return. For instance, simple returns from wage earners no longer get an extension, while more intricate ones, like those involving foreign income, can be filed until October 16. Around 1.4 million people fall into the October filing category.
“We now look at the type of return. If that is a simple return from a wage earner, for example, they are no longer entitled to the extension. If it is a complex return, with foreign income for example, then 16 October is the deadline.”
An estimated 1.4 million people only have to file in October.The majority of returns – 4.1 million – are done automatically on the deadline date through the proposals of a pre-filed return, unless people want to make changes via paper or through MyMinfin.