Belgium has one of the highest tax burdens in the EU and is not very friendly towards crypto businesses. Moreover, the regulation itself is quite developed and detailed.
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Country overview
#91
BelgiumCountry stats
Rating Points
140
This indicator describes the overall rating of a given jurisdiction on several parameters according to cryptocurrency operations - market volume, crypto regulation, business climate, taxation framework.
Crypto Penetration
1.4%
Estimated percentage of crypto users out of the country's total population based on public data.
Legal Entities
0
Number of crypto companies registered in the country based on regulator data if available or other types of public data.
Regulation Points
80
An overall assessment of the granularity of crypto regulation in a given country. A high score is also given to countries where cryptocurrency transactions are highly regulated.
Amount of crypto users
161 000
Total amount of crypto users out of the country's total population based on public data.
Taxation points
15
This figure, according to our analysts' calculations, indicates the overall level of tax burden for cryptocurrency transactions in a given country. The higher the indicator, the lower the burden.
Market volume points
125.6
A rough estimate of this jurisdiction's retail crypto market relative to the rest of the world. The higher the indicator, the higher the market potential.
Status of crypto
Legally allowed
General status of cryptocurrency regulation in this jurisdiction.
Crypto payments
Legally allowed
The legal status of cryptocurrency payments for goods and services in a given country based on information from regulators, public data and feedback from our community.
Security Level
Moderate danger
The overall level of security in a given country based on open data.
Crypto Salaries
No info
The legal status of cryptocurrency salaries to employers in a given country based on information from regulators, public data and feedback from our community.
Business Climate
Difficult
Overall assessment of the friendliness of this country for crypto-business. This indicator takes into account the cost of obtaining a license and the attitude towards crypto entities in the country.
Stablecoin Regulation
Low
This indicator is evaluating the regulation of stablecoins in a given country. Complex regulation means that it is possible to issue steiblcoins and obtain a license for this activity. Basic regulation means that the issuance of stablecoins is possible, but not all legal aspects are defined in the law. Standard regulation means that there is a legal practice of steylcoin circulation in a given country.
Bad Factors
No
This section describes the unfavorable economic factors for crypto-business in a given country. These are countries that are under sanctions or on the FATF grey list and other factors.
Types of licenses
Crypto-to-crypto
This license type allows VASP to provide legal exchange from one cryptocurrency to another.
Crypto-to-fiat
This type of license regulates the exchange from cryptocurrency to fiat.
Wallet/Custody
This country has a legal licensing procedure for companies that store cryptocurrency - crypto wallet providers and custodians.
Good
Medium
Bad
Belgium has a Moderate danger security level according to our rating. Jurisdiction has 51.1 points (from 100) for safety level in Numbeo crime rating (1). Homicide level (2) is 1.1 per 100,000 inhabitants a year. Level of firearm related death (3) 1.40 per 100,000 inhabitants a year.
Currently we have no information about legal status of crypto payments in Belgium.
No regulation
The main crypto regulator in Belgium is The Financial Services and Markets Authority of Belgium (FSMA). The regulator's position on VASP regulation was described in an official statement (4) about VASPs from the FSMA website. These regulation were based on Virtual Currency Royal Decree (5) of 8 February 2022.
Belgian crypto platforms had to register (6) with the FSMA until September 1, 2022. To keep their active registration, crypto-service providers had to satisfy seven criterias, including being incorporated as a business with a minimum capital of €50,000.
As for December 2024 there is information about VASPs regulation on FSMA website, but there is no active VASP in the following register (7). In the beginning of 2024 there was only 1 company - Bit4You in the list. Also, there are 7 legal entities in the FSMA database (8) that no longer have VASP registration.
The lack of information on this topic is probably due to the strict approach of regulators in Belgium to VASP and a fairly high tax burden. The situation may change after the adoption of a new law on cryptocurrencies, as part of the implementation of MiCA. According to our information, at the end of 2024, such a law has not yet been adopted. There is also another point that the National Bank of Belgium issues its e-money licenses, which can be used for crypto operations.
| Tax name | Index |
| PIT tax Min | 25 |
| PIT tax Max | 50 |
| Corporate tax (CIT) | 25 |
| Min Individual CGT (for crypto) | 25 |
| Max Individual CGT (for crypto) | 25 |
| Wealth tax Min | 0.15 |
| Wealth tax Max | 10 |
PIT
According to PWC (9), the federal tax rates for the 2023 income year range between 25% and 50%.
CIT
CIT is levied at 25% by PWC (10).
CGT
Capital gains are subject to the standard CIT rate of 25%, according to PWC (11).
1)Crime Index by Country 2023 Mid-Year
2)List of countries by intentional homicide rate
3)List of countries by firearm-related death rate
4)Virtual Currency Regulation: Belgium. Article
5)FEDERALE OVERHEIDSDIENST FINANCIEN. Belgian Royal Decree of 8 February 2022. PDF file
6)Cryptocurrency regulation in Belgium 2022. Article
7)Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP). Article
8)FSMA Database on Institutions
9)Individual - Taxes on personal income. PWC
10)Corporate - Taxes on corporate income. PWC
11)Corporate - Income determination. PWC