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On 29 May 2024, the Belgian Official Gazette published the Royal Decree of 15 May 2024, thus commencing the countdown for multinational enterprises (MNEs) and large-scale domestic groups subject to Pillar Two (i.e., having either a Belgian ultimate parent entity or one (or more) Belgian constituent entities) to file a Pillar Two Notification Form in Belgium. This registration is required to obtain a Pillar Two tax identification number (P2 TIN). (A link to the publication in the Belgian Official Gazette is available in French/Dutch.)

For more information on this notification, see EY Global Tax Alert, Belgian tax authorities issue specific Pillar Two notification form requiring immediate action, dated 23 May 2024.

The Royal Decree enters into force as from 31 December 2023 and is applicable for reporting periods starting on or after 31 December 2023. As such, the Royal Decree does not implement new rules or provide additional guidance but confirms that the Pillar Two Notification Form should be filed with the Belgian Tax Authorities (BTA) by one of the following dates, whichever is the latest:

• Within 30 days following the start of the financial reporting year for which the MNE group or the large-scale domestic group enters into the scope of Pillar Two
• Within 45 days following the publication of the Royal Decree of 15 May 2024 in the Belgian Official Gazette; as the Royal Decree was published on 29 May 2024, this date is now Saturday 13 July 2024

Although the 13 July due date falls on a Saturday, it currently seems unlikely that this due date will be deferred to the next business day. Therefore, affected MNEs should plan to respect 13 July 2024 as the due date until further notice.

Note that a Pillar Two Notification Form should also be filed if an in-scope taxpayer may benefit from the transitional safe harbor rules in Belgium.

The Royal Decree confirms that once a Pillar Two Notification Form has been submitted, the BTA will review the form and notify the respective taxpayer if the form is incomplete or is missing specific information, allowing the latter to make the required amendments.

Taxpayers who elect to make Pillar Two advance tax payments will receive priority in the allocation of a P2 TIN.

Furthermore, the Royal Decree does not provide specific penalties for cases in which a Pillar Two Notification Form is filed late or incorrectly. However, the Report to the King states that a late or incorrect filing will lead to a later registration, which cannot be invoked as a mitigating circumstance for any resulting sanctions (e.g., if a taxpayer is unable to (timely) submit a QDMTT return or any other Belgian Pillar Two obligation due to the lack of a P2 TIN).

Pillar Two-related questions

The BTA also published specific points of contacts for Pillar Two-related questions. For any content-related questions, taxpayers can submit their inquiries to goge.beheer.gestion3@minfin.fed.be whereas any technical (IT) related issues can be addressed to spoc.pillar2@minfin.fed.be.

In addition, the BTA published additional practical guidelines for taxpayers that want to present and discuss a Pillar Two tax technical-related question with the BTA. It appears that an FAQ list will be published and updated regularly.

Implications for businesses

It is clear that the required information to complete the Pillar Two Notification Form requires a good understanding of the Pillar Two scope of the MNEs or large-scale domestic group, including the Pillar Two qualification of each entity.

Taxpayers that need assistance to complete the Pillar Two Notification Form, tax technological assistance to help gather the required information in order to facilitate filing, the practical electronic submission of the form or more generally with any Pillar Two related questions, should contact their tax advisor.