On 6 March 2024, the Belgian government submitted a draft law to parliament, which is intended to amend the law of 19 December 2023 on the introduction of a minimum tax for multinational companies and large domestic groups. If the draft law is approved, it would be applicable to financial years starting on or after 31 December 2023.
The main objective of the draft law is to implement the additional Administrative Guidance published by the OECD in July and December 2023, as this is not yet reflected in the law of 19 December 2023. Please also refer to the global policy alerts which summarise the respective sets of guidance (July – December).
Key changes introduced by the draft law:
- The definition of Qualified Refundable Tax Credits has been extended to include Marketable Transferable Tax Credits. This category includes credits that can be sold to third parties instead of receiving a refund from the government.
- A provision to allow NME Groups to elect to include dividends related to Portfolio Shareholdings (where the ultimate parent entity (UPE) holds less than 10% of the Ownership Interests in the other Constituent Entity).
- A provision for a QDMTT Safe Harbour. The safe harbour, when applicable, eliminates the need for an MNE Group to undertake a second calculation under the GloBE Rules after completing the QDMTT calculation.
- The introduction of simplified calculations for Non-material Constituent Entities, which provide for an alternative method to determine GloBE Income or Loss, GloBE Revenue and Adjusted Covered Taxes of Constituent Entities.
- The implementation of the UTPR Safe Harbour. This is designed to provide transitional relief from the UTPR in the UPE jurisdiction during the first two years in which the GloBE Rules come into effect.
- Clarification regarding the treatment of hybrid arbitrage arrangements under the Transitional CbCR Safe Harbour that arise from differences in the source of financial information or differences between tax and financial accounting treatment. It is important to note that there is no need for an actual hybrid instrument or arrangement. In summary, the CbCR Safe Harbour will not be available to the extent that inconsistent treatment of a Hybrid Arbitrage Arrangement (if entered into after 18 December 2023) would otherwise result in a jurisdiction qualifying for the CbCR Safe Harbour.
- Additional guidance on the allocation of Blended CFC Taxes (GILTI).
Parliamentary question regarding the disclosure requirements
In line with the OECD Model Rules on Pillar 2, all deferred tax assets and liabilities that are reflected or disclosed in the financial accounts of the Constituent Entities for a Transition Year may be taken into account in a GloBE ETR calculation. However, there is still some uncertainty about the ‘reflected or disclosed’ requirement. Therefore, the Belgian Minister of Finance clarified this point in a reply to a parliamentary question. In his reply, he stated that it is sufficient that the total amount of deferred tax assets and liabilities is included in the Consolidated Financial Statements, provided that a more detailed overview for each separate Constituent Entity is available and can be provided in the event of a tax audit.
Let’s connect!
Are you wondering what the potential (cash tax) impact might be for you? Why not reach out to your regular PwC contact, or contact Pieter Deré or Evi Geerts.
