Registering as self-employed

Under current Belgian law, anyone who becomes self-employed must join a social insurance fund for the self-employed within 90 days of starting self-employment.

However, on 1 April 2010, Royal Decree 38 on the social security status of the self-employed comes into force. The Royal Decree changes the law so that self-employed people have to be registered with the social insurance fund and the Crossroad Bank for Enterprises at the latest on the day they start their self-employed activity.

A fine of between € 500 and € 2,000 will be imposed on anyone who fails to comply with this obligation. However, the fine may be reduced if there are extenuating circumstances (e.g. where the self-employed person is bona fide) but the minimum fine is € 200.

The same fine will be imposed on anyone whom the social security service for the self-employed finds is earning income from self-employment without being affiliated to a social insurance fund, or who is engaged in self-employed activity other than that declared to the Crossroad Bank for Enterprises. The social security service regularly exchanges information with the tax authorities to check for failures to comply with these rules.

For further information, please feel free to contact Brigitte Lievens.