Tax Settings for Belgian Invoicing: VAT Rates, Exemptions and Compliance Configuration
Getting your tax settings right in your invoicing software is the foundation of Belgian VAT compliance. Wrong VAT rates, missing exemption notices, or incorrect intra-EU treatment can lead to VAT corrections, penalties, and difficult conversations with your accountant. Here's how to configure everything correctly in Eurobillr.
Setting Your Default VAT Rate
In Eurobillr's tax settings, you set a default VAT rate that applies to all new invoice lines. For most Belgian freelancers providing professional services, this is 21%. You can override the rate on any individual invoice line — useful when you provide services at different rates (e.g. training at 21% and books at 6%).
Available Belgian VAT rates:
- 21% — standard rate (most professional services)
- 12% — certain food services, social housing
- 6% — food, books, medicine, residential renovation
- 0% — intra-EU B2B supplies, exports
Small Business VAT Exemption Setting
If your annual turnover is below €25,000 and you operate under the small business VAT exemption (vrijstellingsregeling / régime de franchise), you must configure this in your tax settings. When enabled:
- No VAT is added to your invoices
- The mandatory legal notice appears automatically: "Vrijgesteld van BTW op grond van art. 56bis van het Btw-wetboek" (or French/English equivalent)
- No VAT return filings are required
- VAT on expenses is not recoverable
Intra-EU VAT Settings
When you invoice VAT-registered clients in other EU countries, the VAT is reverse-charged to the buyer — you charge 0% and the client self-assesses the VAT in their own country. In Eurobillr's tax settings you can configure:
- Automatic 0% VAT application when a client has a validated EU VAT number
- Automatic inclusion of the correct legal reverse-charge notice per language
- EU VAT number validation via the VIES system before invoicing
VAT Number Validation
Eurobillr validates client VAT numbers in real time against the EU VIES database when you add or update a client. A valid EU VAT number is required to apply the 0% intra-community rate — if the number is invalid or not found in VIES, Eurobillr warns you before you send the invoice.
IC Listing (Intra-Community Sales Listing)
If you supply services or goods to VAT-registered clients in other EU countries at 0%, you must file a quarterly IC listing (intracommunautaire opgave) with the FOD. Eurobillr tracks all your intra-community transactions automatically and generates the IC listing alongside your quarterly VAT return.
Tax Period Settings
Configure whether you file VAT returns:
- Quarterly — most freelancers (annual turnover below €2.5 million)
- Monthly — businesses with higher turnover or those who opt in for faster VAT refunds
Fiscal Year and Income Tax Settings
Eurobillr uses your income tax settings to calculate your real-time tax estimate:
- Your social contribution rate (INASTI)
- Your applicable income tax brackets
- Your municipality tax rate (gemeentebelasting)
- Deductible expense categories and percentages
These settings feed the live tax dashboard that shows your estimated annual tax liability at any point during the year.