Belgian Government Approves Optional VAT Regime for Leasing of Business Property

The Belgian government approved during its 23 March 2018 budget control meeting a draft regulation for a new optional value added tax (VAT) regime for the leasing of immovable property used for business from 1 October 2018. Under current rules, the leasing of immovable property is generally exempt from VAT, which results in the inability of property owners to deduct input VAT incurred on the construction and renovation costs of the property they lease. The new regulation provides that an owne…