Buying property through a company in Belgium: what changes

No reduced rate and no abatement

Wallonia

According to notaire.be, the standard rate in Wallonia is 12.5%. The table “Which rate applies to you?” gives the rate of 12.5% for the situation “I am buying through a company”. The 3% rate is for the sole and own home, with conditions (no other dwelling in full ownership, registering your domicile in the property within 3 years, keeping your residence there for at least 3 years).

Brussels

The Brussels abatement requires the buyers to be natural persons. Notaire.be says so plainly: “The buyers must be natural persons”. The other conditions are: a property located in Brussels whose price does not exceed €600,000, intended wholly or partly for housing, full ownership of the whole property, no other dwelling in full ownership, moving in as your main residence within 3 years (5 years in the case of energy renovation) and then keeping it as such for 5 years.

Flanders

Flanders applies 12% sales duty as the standard rate. The 2% rate for the sole and own home is reserved for natural persons: see registration duties, which points out that a company as co-buyer brings all the buyers back to 12%.

Worked example

For a €300,000 property bought without meeting the conditions of the favourable regime, the registration duties are:

By comparison, for a natural person who meets all the conditions, the duties are €12,500 in Brussels (€200,000 abatement), €9,000 in Wallonia (3%) and €6,000 in Flanders (2%), according to the registration duties guide. To calculate your full costs, use the purchase costs tool.

VAT on a new property

The notaire.be infofiche (July 2025) explains that buying a property is taxed, generally through registration duties (12.5% in Brussels and Wallonia, 12% in Flanders). But if the property is new, the sale is most often made under the VAT (21%) regime. The three conditions for VAT to apply to the building and the land are:

• the building constructed on the land is sold with VAT;
• the land and the building are sold by the same person;
• the land and the building are transferred at the same time.

A dwelling is “new” when it is transferred no later than 31 December of the 2nd year following the year of its first occupation or use. A seller who opts for VAT must tell the buyer from the first written document (offer or sale agreement (compromis)); otherwise the buyer pays registration duties.

These rules apply to every buyer. Whether a company can recover the VAT it pays depends on its activity: the notaire.be factsheet does not deal with this point, and neither does this guide. See an accountant.

Other points to know

Benefit in kind

When a company makes a home available to a director or an employee, the tax authority may treat it as a taxable “benefit in kind” (avantage de toute nature). The calculation rules are on the FPS Finance (SPF Finances) website, which we could not consult while writing (the page was protected by an anti-bot check). We therefore give no formula and no amount: ask FPS Finance or an accountant.

The loan and the fees

For financing, see mortgage credit broker to understand the role of a broker. The notary’s fees come on top (see the notary’s role and fees).

Annual taxes on the property

According to Wikifin, property tax (précompte immobilier / onroerende voorheffing) is due every year and is calculated on the cadastral income. See property tax. For a let property, see rental income. The commune may also levy taxes on vacant homes or, in Wallonia, on second homes (vacant property, second-home tax).

Which professionals to consult

A notary explains the registration duties and VAT that apply to the deed. An accountant or chartered accountant analyses the impact for the company (deduction, VAT, benefits), and a lawyer or tax adviser can check the structure. This guide does not give personalised advice.