Professional withholding tax: new deductions applicable as of November 1, 2026

A royal decree of September 27, 2026, modifies the calculation rules for professional withholding tax in order to align them with the reform of personal income tax. The text was published in the Belgian Official Gazette on October 2, 2026, page 52733, under reference C − 2026/007167. It applies to income paid or attributed as of November 1, 2026, and therefore directly affects the payslips of Belgian employees.

The decree is based on the law of July 15, 2026, regarding the reform of personal income tax, some provisions of which already entered into force on January 1, 2026. An initial royal decree of July 24, 2026, had transposed some of these modifications into the professional withholding tax; the tax-exempt portion of income, the supplements to this portion, the spousal quotient, and the reductions for replacement income remained to be converted.

The measure modifies Annex III of the AR/CIR 92, whose application rules determine the withholding. Urgency was invoked and the opinion of the Council of State was not requested, so that those liable for the withholding tax could be informed as soon as possible. The decree is signed by King Philippe and countersigned by the Minister of Finance J. Jambon.

A tax-exempt portion set at 11,550 euros

The text establishes a tax-exempt portion of income of 11,550 euros per year, which now serves as a reference for several withholding mechanisms. The tax obtained after the application of Chapter 1 is reduced by 3,089.63 euros, which is the tax corresponding to this portion; the difference constitutes the basic tax. For couples, the basic tax is further reduced by 6,179.26 euros, which is twice the tax on the exempt portion.

Spousal quotient: 30% of net income, with caps

The spousal quotient remains fixed at 30% of the annual net taxable income attributed to the spouse of the income beneficiary. However, the imputed amount is capped:

• 12,790 euros if both spouses have reached the age of 66 by January 1, 2027, a cap reached with an annual net taxable income of 42,633.33 euros;
• 11,780 euros in all other cases, including when the party responsible for the withholding does not have the necessary information, a cap reached with an annual net income of 39,266.67 euros.

Tax Reductions and Dependent Children

The basic tax reduction tables are replaced. For dependent children, the annual reduction amounts to:

• 684 euros for one child, 1,644 euros for two, 4,344 euros for three, and 7,488 euros for four;
• 10,884 euros for five children, 14,292 euros for six, 17,712 euros for seven, and 21,492 euros for eight;
• beyond the eighth child, a fixed amount of 21,492 euros increased by 3,780 euros per additional child, i.e., 25,272 euros for nine children and 29,052 euros for ten.

Other annual reductions are confirmed: 648 euros when the beneficiary is themselves disabled, 1,992 euros per dependent person aged 66 in a state of dependency, 636 euros per other dependent person, and 636 euros for a disabled spouse. Added to this are 636 euros for a widower or widow who has not remarried, a single or divorced parent with dependent children, 1,740 euros when the spouse receives their own professional income not exceeding 290 euros net per month, and 3,474 euros when this income consists exclusively of pensions or annuities not exceeding 579 euros net per month.

Pensions and Unemployment with Company Supplement Excluded

The decree does not apply when the professional withholding tax is calculated in accordance with number 80 or Part 5 of the application rules of Annex III of the AR/CIR 92. The government justifies this exception by the fact that it is too late, in practice, to modify the calculation of the withholding tax due on pensions in 2026, and that the impact of the reform is limited for most pensioners, given the compensation of the increase in the exempt quota within the tax reduction for pensions. The same logic applies to unemployment benefits with a company supplement.

Specifically, employers and social secretariats must apply the new tables starting from the November 2026 payroll, which will modify the monthly net pay for many employees. The limit amounts related to the number of dependent children, ranging from 19,543 euros for one child to 92,690 euros for twelve, are also updated.

Source: Belgian Official Gazette of October 2, 2026, No. 222, 196th year, p. 52733, reference C − 2026/007167.