Gifting during your lifetime is often more tax-efficient in Belgium than letting inheritance run its course. Gift duties are flat and lower than progressive inheritance tax, and you can already split assets.
Gift versus inheritance (Flanders)
For movable assets (cash, investments) in Flanders:
| Kinship | Gift duty | Inheritance tax |
|---|---|---|
| Direct line / partner | 3% | 3% / 9% / 27% |
| Others | 7% | up to 55% |
For real estate in Flanders:
| Slice | Gift direct line | Inheritance |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 150,000 euros | 3% | 3% / 9% |
| 150,001 to 250,000 euros | 9% | 9% |
| 250,001 to 450,000 euros | 18% | 27% |
| Above 450,000 euros | 27% | 27% |
Brussels and Wallonia apply similar principles with different amounts.
Suspect period: 5 years in Flanders, 3 years in Brussels and Wallonia
An unregistered gift (manual or bank gift) of movable assets within the suspect period is still added back for inheritance tax:
- Flanders: 5 years (since 2025);
- Brussels and Wallonia: 3 years.
A registered gift never falls back under inheritance tax, even if the donor dies the next day. Hence the value of registering.
Gift with reserved usufruct
Popular technique: you gift bare ownership to your children and keep the usufruct (rent, interest, use of the home). Benefits:
- you keep control and income;
- on your death, usufruct extinguishes and your children become full owners without extra inheritance tax;
- you pay gift duty on the full value but in favourable brackets.
Bank gift or notarial gift
| Method | Cost | Registration | Suspect period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank gift (transfer + letters) | free | optional | 5 yrs Flanders, 3 yrs elsewhere |
| Registered bank gift | 3% gift duty | at FPS Finance | none |
| Notarial gift | 250 to 1,000 euros + duty | mandatory | none |
The bank gift is popular for its simplicity, but it needs pacta adjecta (letters) to prove it really is a gift and not a loan.
When gifting is fiscally interesting
Consider:
- the gap between top inheritance rate and gift duty;
- whether you expect to live 5 more years (otherwise no benefit for unregistered gifts);
- the need to keep control (consider usufruct);
- the impact on the reserved share of other children (equality).
Practical example
A Flemish father (75, healthy) wants to pass 200,000 euros to his daughter.
- At death: 50,000 × 3% + 150,000 × 9% = 15,000 euros of tax.
- Registered bank gift today: 200,000 × 3% = 6,000 euros.
- Saving: 9,000 euros and the daughter has the funds now.
Nalenta and planning
Nalenta focuses on the post-death declaration, but our guides clarify the rules. For precise planning, consult a notary or tax adviser. For rates see Flanders, Brussels and Wallonia.