Foreign income

You work or have worked abroad ? Have you inherited, bought property or invested abroad? ? As a Belgian resident, you must declare all your worldwide income and property abroad, regardless of the country in which they are located. Pursuant to the convention signed with the country of origin, your income may be exempted from tax in Belgium. Use our application to find out how to declare your income from the most common countries in Belgium.

Tax return in Belgium

As a Belgian resident, you must declare all your worldwide income in your Belgian tax return. It doesn't matter if you are an expatriate, a cross-border worker or if you have invested abroad or if you only own property abroad.

Types of foreign income

In particular, you must declare:

  • Remuneration received abroad
  • Pensions received abroad
  • Income from property abroad
  • Dividends and interest on foreign investments
  • Foreign life insurance income

Tax return to be filed

You must always file a tax return mentioning all your Belgian and foreign income.

You have received a proposal for a simplified return? If your foreign income is not pre-filled in your tax return, you should not take this proposal into account and you should file a tax return instead.

Sanction for income not declared

Declare your foreign income spontaneously in order to avoid fines and tax increases.

The FPS Finance can check whether all income has been declared thanks to the automatic exchange of information provided for in the conventions signed between the Belgian authorities and other countries.

Taxation according to the country

You pay tax on your foreign income either in Belgium or in the other country. This depends on the country of origin of the income and the conventions for the avoidance of double taxation (or agreements) concluded with the Belgian authorities.

Even if this income is not taxable in Belgium pursuant to a convention, you must declare it. It is indeed taken into account to determine the tax rate to be applied to your other income and, in some cases, to calculate municipal tax and/or tax established by a municipal conglomeration.

Most common countries

Do you have foreign income in Germany, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands or the United Kingdom? Use our application to find out:

  • how to mention this income in your personal income tax return
  • In which country this income will be taxed
  • whether this income is subject to municipal tax and/or tax established by a municipal conglomeration.

Other countries

Do you have income in other countries? Consult the tax conventions signed with the country of origin of the income to find out how your income should be taxed. 

Specific to Dutch income

You live in Belgium but work in the Netherlands? In order to be entitled to the same tax benefits as Dutch residents, you must be recognised as an eligible non-resident person liable to tax by the Dutch authorities.

Conditions for being an eligible non-resident person

You are considered an eligible non-resident person liable to tax if you:

  • reside in Belgium and
  • pay tax in the Netherlands on at least 90% of your income.

To determine this rate of 90%, you must take into account all your income, whether it comes from the Netherlands, Belgium or other countries.

Do you have a partner and pay tax together in the Netherlands on at least 90% of your combined income? You are both eligible non-resident persons liable to tax.

You do not meet the conditions?

As a Belgian resident, you are still entitled to certain tax advantages in the Netherlands even though you do not qualify as an eligible non-resident person liable to tax.

Procedure to observe in this case

You must complete an income certificate to be recognised as an eligible non-resident person liable to tax by the Dutch tax authorities.

The FPS Finance validates this certificate before sending it to the Dutch tax authorities.

Follow these steps :

You will receive an acknowledgement of receipt. We will contact you if there are any errors or problems.

Processing deadline

The FPS Finance first processes your Belgian tax return and then checks your income certificate.

We send your income certificate to the Dutch tax administration by the end of December of the tax assessment year at the latest (= the year in which you have to file your Belgian tax return).

Therefore there is no need to contact us in this regard before this deadline. We will process your request as soon as we have the necessary information.

Example
On 28 June 2025, you file your Belgian tax return via MyMinfin for the income year 2024 (tax assessment year 2025).

On 30 June 2025, you send your completed and signed income certificate via MyMinfin (with data that matches your Belgian tax return).

We send your income certificate to the Dutch tax administration before 31 December 2025.