Instructions for the special contribution on high pension contributions (the so-called ‘Wijninckx-bijdrage’) now available
If the total of the contribution into occupational pension plans for one person exceeds EUR 30,000 in 2012, then the company needs to pay a special contribution of 1.5% on the excess amount. This charge is due both for employees and for self-employed remunerated company directors.
The special contribution needs to be reported in the social security return of the fourth quarter of 2012. This return needs to be filed early in 2013. In the draft program law which is currently being debated in the Belgian parliament, the manner in which the calculation needs to be done is described in detail.
The starting point is the individualised cost of occupational pension plans. The contribution into each applicable occupational pension plan needs to be added up for each individual. In other words, both company contributions and any personal contributions into a group insurance plan, pension fund, bonus-related pension plan, sector pension plan, individual pension commitments, etc. all need to be added up. The total sum then needs to be checked against the ceiling of EUR 30,000.
To the extent employees or company directors participate in more than one plan, the company will need to take action without delay to gather all the required information in time.
Determining the cost to be taken into account is a complex exercise specifically in the case of collective financing. Indeed, with collective financing, in principle, no individual pension premium is calculated per member. The program law also lays down the rules for this situation, taking the member’s accrued pension reserves as the calculation basis.
