Belgian Net Asset Tax before the Court of Justice of the EU – AG’s Opinion released
According to the Advocate General’s opinion issued on 21 January 2016, the Belgian Net Asset Tax applied to foreign investment funds is compatible with European law. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) was requested, by the Court of Appeal of Brussels, to grant a preliminary ruling on the compatibility, with European
Belgium to introduce a new capital gains tax
In the framework of the ‘Tax Shift’ agreement, the Belgian government announced a new speculative tax (or capital gains tax, below ‘CGT’). The bill of law on measures for strengthening job creation and purchasing power dated 10 December 2015 provides further details in this respect. Speculative tax/capital gains tax In a nutshell, here are the
NBB publishes circular introducing governance manual for banking sector
Since the introduction of the new Banking Act[1], various governance rules have been updated and further detailed. The National Bank of Belgium published on 7 December 2015 a circular that introduces a governance manual for the banking sector. This manual aims to combine and clarify all governance policy documents applicable to credit institutions. The financial crisis drew
Single resolution fund on schedule for 1 January 2016
The EU’s single resolution mechanism will enter into force, as scheduled, on 1 January 2016. This signals completion of the second pillar of Europe’s banking union. As of 30 November 2015, a sufficient number of member states ratified an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) on the transfer and mutualisation of contributions to a single resolution fund (SRF). This
Financial Sector Contribution: (proposed) rates increases
On 26 November, the Belgian Government introduced a bill of law comprising, already, some changes to the brand-new Financial Sector Contribution (FSC) introduced by the Act of 10 August 2015. As a reminder, the FSC is the result of the multiplication of three factors: “FSC = Qualifying Liabilities x FSC Rate x NID Rate”. It
Belgian withholding tax on interest income paid to foreign investment companies: exemption enlarged
Following an infringement procedure initiated by the European Commission several years ago, Belgium has finally amended its regulation regarding the perception of withholding tax on Belgian-source interest on debt claims and debt securities made or allocated to investment companies established abroad in another Member state of the European Economic Area. Belgian and foreign investment companies
ESMA readies MiFID II, MAR, and CSDR
ESMA published its final draft technical standards on some of the most important pieces of post-crisis financial regulation: MiFID II, MAR and CSDR. On 28 September 2015, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its final draft version of the Technical Standards (TS) on Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II), Market Abuse Regulation
Final report on draft Implementing Technical Standards
ESMA has published its final report on draft Implementing Technical Standards on the procedures and forms for submitting information to ESMA by national competent authorities in relation to penalties and measures in accordance with Article 99e of the UCITS V Directive. On 18 September 2015, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its draft
