Further to our previous updates on the thematic investment deduction (see our newsflash of 16 January 2025 and our newsflash on the Royal Decree of 28 July 2025), the Flemish region recently announced on its website that an additional extension to the deadline for submitting certificate applications will be granted. This is, however, still subject to formal enactment by Royal Decree.
Taxpayers must obtain a certificate for qualifying assets acquired or created from 1 January 2025 onwards in order to benefit from the thematic investment deduction. This certificate, issued by the competent region, must in principle be attached to the tax return in which the deduction is claimed. The certificate application process depends on a cooperation agreement between the federal government, the regions and the Federal Public Service Finance. This agreement is currently being finalised but has not yet been signed by all competent ministers. Until it is published in the Belgian Official Gazette, no applications can be filed. A dedicated web application is under development and will be brought online as soon as possible. Once operational, the web application will provide detailed guidance on the required supporting documents and technical descriptions that must accompany each application.
Under the draft texts, the submission deadline is set at six months after publication of the cooperation agreement in the Belgian Official Gazette. Given that signature by all competent ministers is still pending, the effective filing deadline is expected to fall towards the end of 2026 at the earliest. This is in addition to the transitional extension introduced by the Royal Decree of 28 July 2025 for which we refer to our newsflash in this regard.
We will provide a further update as soon as the web application goes live and the cooperation agreement has been published in the Belgian Official Gazette.
For more details on the thematic investment deduction and how to prepare for the application process, contact Tom Wallyn or Tim Pieters, or reach out to your regular PwC contact.
