Belgian Pillar II notification obligation: deadline extended!

According to the Law of 19 December 2023 on the introduction of a minimum tax for multinational companies and large domestic groups (Dutch/French), as amended by the Law of 12 May 2024 containing various tax provisions (Dutch/French), Belgian taxpayers that are in scope of the "Pillar II" rules need to obtain a unique group registration number to fulfill their obligations under the regime. The Royal Decree of 15 May 2024 (Dutch/French) has provided more details as regards the timing and procedure of said registration, and the Belgian Tax Authorities have issued specific guidelines on the registration process itself.

The Pillar II notification process can be summarized as follows:

• Who? As outlined in our previous newsflash, the "Pillar II" rules as introduced in Belgian law apply to multinational enterprise groups ("MNE" groups) and large domestic groups with consolidated annual revenues exceeding EUR 750 million (in at least two of the four preceding tax years) and with a Belgian nexus. In principle, each group with at least one Belgian constituent entity must register with the Belgian Tax Authorities to be able to carry out the necessary prepayments, filings and other compliance obligations. The specific group entity that is required to make the notification depends on the situation in question (e.g. in case of several ultimate parent entities ("UPE") in Belgium, it will be the entity that has been designated as the authorized representative).
• How? In-scope taxpayers need to notify the Belgian Tax Authorities using a notification form (in XML format) that is available on the MyMinfin platform. The Belgian Tax Authorities published additional guidelines on the notification procedure through a FAQ (Dutch/French) (which is available on their website).
• Content? The details to be provided in the notification form concern the contact details of the notifying entity, an overview of the group's ownership structure, information on the consolidated financial statements and details on the MNE group or large domestic group (such as the group name, the reporting period, the address of the UPE that prepares the consolidated financial statements etc.).
• Deadline? Taxpayers have no time to lose as the form must be submitted by the later of two deadlines: (i) 45 days from the publication date of the aforementioned Royal Decree in the Belgian Official Gazette, i.e. 13 July 2024 or (ii) 30 days after the start of the tax year for which the group falls within the scope of the Belgian "Pillar II" legislation. MNE groups and large domestic groups that do not (plan to) carry out prepayments in 2024 for the domestic top-up tax or the Income Inclusion Rule can however benefit from an administrative tolerance which extends the notification deadline to (and including) 16 September 2024. Any failure or delay in submitting the notification form can lead to a fine ranging from EUR 2,500 to EUR 250,000.
• Result? In case all required information is provided and the notification is successful, the Belgian Tax Authorities will register the relevant group with the Belgian Crossroads Bank for Enterprises. Subsequently, the "Pillar II" registration number will be sent by e-mail to the entity that made the notification. In case, however, the notification would prove to be incorrect or incomplete, the notifying entity will be informed and asked to make the necessary adjustments first.

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In case of questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to your regular contact within the Fieldfisher Belgium tax team.