The annual tax on securities accounts

Table of contents

• What is the annual tax on securities accounts (ATSA)?
• When did the annual tax on securities accounts come into effect?
• Which accounts are subject to the annual tax on securities accounts, and are there any exemptions?
• Which financial instruments are subject to the tax on securities accounts?
• How is the annual tax on securities accounts calculated?
• When and how is the tax on securities accounts collected?
• What is the general anti-abuse provision?

What is the annual tax on securities accounts (ATSA)?

This is a 0.15% tax levied on securities accounts with an average value of more than €1 million over a specified reference period. The tax is levied per securities account and not per account holder. Securities accounts held by individuals and those held by legal entities and associations are subject to the tax.

When did the annual tax on securities accounts come into effect?

The provisions relating to this tax were published in the Belgian Official Gazette on 25 February 2021 and came into effect the following day, on 26 February 2021. The tax was payable for the first time in 2021.

In 2022, the Belgian Constitutional Court ruled that the tax is legally valid.

Which accounts are subject to the annual tax on securities accounts, and are there any exemptions?

Which accounts are subject to the annual tax on securities accounts, and are there any exemptions?

• The annual tax on securities accounts applies to securities accounts held by individuals, legal entities and certain associations. It applies to:
• Belgian residents (as well as Belgian establishments of non-residents): for their securities accounts held with financial institutions established or based in Belgium and abroad.
• Non-residents: only for their securities accounts held with financial institutions established or based in Belgium; their securities accounts held with financial institutions established abroad are not subject to the tax.
• There is a possibility of an exemption for securities accounts held by non-residents if they reside in a country that has a double tax agreement with Belgium, and if that agreement empowers the country of residence rather than Belgium to tax the assets in the securities account.
  
  
  • In the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on the ATSA, the Belgian tax authorities have added a list of double tax agreements that provide for an ATSA exemption. You can find it on the tax authorities' website: https://www.minfin.fgov.be/myminfin-web/pages/public/fisconet/document/46a96c37-725c-4fe7-beb0-652f85fb6b6b (in French).

Which financial instruments are subject to the annual tax on securities accounts?

• The annual tax on securities accounts applies to all financial instruments registered in a securities account. They include equities, bonds, real-estate certificates, turbos, trackers and warrants.
• Securities held in registered form – ownership of which results solely from their being registered in the holder’s name in a register – are not subject to the tax, as they are not registered in the securities account. Note that if you convert taxable financial instruments into registered securities, this may be considered a form of tax abuse, in which case the conversion may be ignored for the purposes of the tax on securities accounts.
• The cash you hold in a current account or savings account is not taken into account.

How is the annual tax on securities accounts calculated?

The following concepts are relevant for the calculation of the tax:

The following concepts are relevant for the calculation of the tax:
this is the "traditional" 12-month period that starts on 1 October and ends on 30 September of the following year.

Specific reference period: 
this refers to a specific reference period that occurs, for example, when a securities account is closed or when the sole or last account holder becomes a resident of a state that is explicitly and exclusively empowered to tax the assets.

Reference dates:
these are the dates on which the statement of assets in the securities account (the "valuation") is drawn up. In principle, a normal period has four reference dates: 31 December, 31 March, 30 June, and 30 September.

General calculation method

At the end of the reference period, the total average value of the taxable financial instruments is calculated based on the statement of assets drawn up on the various reference dates, as follows:

• The last day of each quarter is a reference date: 31 December, 31 March, 30 June, and 30 September. Normally, there are four reference dates.
• On each reference date, the statement of assets based on the value of the taxable financial instruments registered in the securities account is drawn up.
• The valuations in these statements are added up and divided by the number of reference dates.
• This gives the average valuation at the end of the reference period (in principle, 30 September).
• If this average valuation exceeds €1 million, the tax due is calculated at a rate of 0.15%.
• If a securities account has a value of less than €1,015,228.43, the amount of tax payable is capped at 10% of the difference between (i) the taxable base (= the total average value) and (ii) €1 million. For example: if the average value of a securities account is €1,001,000, the amount of the tax is €100 (10% of the difference between €1,001,000 and €1,000,000) instead of €1,501.50 (0.15% of the account’s average value).

Sample calculations

Sample calculation for a normal reference period:

You have held a securities account with BNP Paribas Fortis SA since 1 January 2023. The average value of the taxable financial instruments held in the account is as follows:

• value on 31 March 2023: €1,560,000
• value on 30 June 2023: €1,670,000
• value on 30 September 2023: €1,340,000

The average value is (€1,560,000 + €1,670,000 + €1,340,000) = €4,570,000 ÷ 3 = €1,523,333.33.
The amount of tax payable is €1,523,333.33 × 0.15% = €2,285.

Sample calculation for a specific reference period (closure of a securities account):

You opened a securities account with BNP Paribas Fortis SA on 1 January 2023 and you closed it on 7 July of the same year. In this case, only the statements of 31 March and 30 June will be used to determine the average value:

• value on 31 March 2023 = €1,560,000
• value on 30 June 2023 = €1,670,000

The average value is (€1,560,000 + €1,670,000) = €3,230,000 ÷ 2 = €1,615,000.
In this case, the amount of tax payable is €1,615,000 × 0.15% = €2,422.50.

When and how is the tax on securities accounts collected?

• As a Belgian financial institution, BNP Paribas Fortis SA will automatically collect the annual tax due on securities accounts.
• The basic principle is that a payment discharging the account holder from all liabilities in respect of this tax is made through the Belgian intermediary. Where there is no Belgian intermediary (e.g. for securities accounts held with a foreign bank), the account holder must generally declare and pay the tax themselves. If a securities account is held by multiple account holders, each account holder may file a declaration for all account holders. Each account holder is then jointly and severally liable for paying the tax and any fines and interest.

Procedure for a normal reference period

If you are the holder of a securities account on which the tax is payable, you will be informed. You will receive a statement by 31 October at the latest, containing the following information:

• the account number of the securities account concerned
• the identity of the account holders
• the information used to calculate the taxable value (reference dates, average value, amount to be paid etc.)
• the reference period

The statement will also mention the account number of the current account linked to the securities account, from which the tax will be debited.

Procedure for a specific reference period (for example following the closure of a securities account):

If it appears that your securities account is subject to the tax, you will receive the statement shortly after the closure or after another event that marked the beginning of the specific reference period. This statement will contain the same information as for a normal reference period. The tax will be debited after the statement is made available.

Statement

In principle, you will receive the statement through our digital channels.

What is the general anti-abuse provision?

Belgian law contains a general anti-abuse provision that allows the tax authorities to ignore transactions aimed at avoiding tax. The provision does not take effect automatically: the tax authorities must invoke tax abuse, but taxpayers can also submit counter-evidence showing that a transaction was not aimed at avoiding tax.

The transactions targeted by the general anti-abuse provision include the following:

• splitting securities accounts so that securities are transferred between accounts held with the same financial intermediary or to accounts held with another financial intermediary, with the aim of bringing the total value of the securities held in a single account to below €1 million
• opening securities accounts so that securities are distributed among accounts held with the same financial intermediary or with another financial intermediary, with the aim of bringing the total value of securities held in a single account to below €1 million
• converting equities, bonds and other taxable financial instruments into registered securities, so that they are no longer held in a securities account, with the aim of avoiding the tax. An example would be a conversion of securities that are generally held in a dematerialised form and that do not represent a significant stake in a company (usually a family-controlled company) held as a long-term investment or for control purposes, which is outside the normal framework of a portfolio investment
• transferring a securities account subject to the tax to a foreign company, which transfers the securities to a foreign securities account with the aim of avoiding the tax
• investing the assets of a securities account subject to the tax in a fund whose units are held in registered form, with the aim of avoiding the tax
• transferring a securities account or an existing branch-23 insurance policy to a branch-23 insurance policy with an insurance company established outside Belgium, with the aim of avoiding the tax
• transferring a securities account where the securities are transferred abroad to the same financial intermediary or to accounts with another financial intermediary, with the aim of avoiding the tax
• holding a securities account where all the securities have been sold or transferred to create zero values on the reference dates, in order to reduce the average value of the taxable financial instruments during the reference period with the aim of reducing the tax or avoiding it.