BELGIAN SUCCESSION TAX: Three Regions in Motion — Current Overview

A parliamentary bill has just reignited the debate in Brussels. Meanwhile, Wallonia has voted through its reform and Flanders is pursuing its own. An overview of a Belgian succession tax landscape in full transformation — and what this means in practice for families and private wealth.

1. Bruxelles — Une simple proposition à l’adoption incertaine

Status:  Draft ordinance — MR initiative — adoption uncertain

A draft ordinance was filed on 27 January 2026 with the Brussels Parliament (A-239/1 – 2025/2026) by six members of the MR group. It is important to note from the outset the status of this text: it is a parliamentary initiative, not a government bill.

This is all the more notable given that the coalition agreement of the new Brussels regional government — known as the "Valentine's Day Agreement", concluded in mid-February 2026 between MR, PS, Les Engagés, Groen, Anders, Vooruit and CD&V, after 613 days of political deadlock — contains no mention of a reform of Brussels succession tax. The MR, which authored the bill, has stated its intention to "open the discussion" with its coalition partners. Adoption therefore remains subject to political and budgetary negotiations in Brussels.

The underlying diagnosis is, however, widely shared: Brussels succession tax brackets have remained unchanged and unindexed since 1977. Current rates are as follows:

The bill provides, for estates opened as from 1er January 2028, for an approximate halving of rates across virtually all categories:

Beyond the rate reduction, the bill encompasses three complementary features:

• Reduction of the taxation of the family home: rates of 1% (up to €50,000), 3% (€50,000 to €175,000) and 6% (€175,000 to €250,000) — it should be noted that, unlike Wallonia, Brussels does not currently impose a 5-year residence requirement for this relief, so there is no such condition to remove.

• Introduction of optional flat-rate deductions for succession liabilities: €1,500 for the deceased's personal debts, €3,000 for community debts (half attributable to the estate), €5,000 for funeral expenses — with indexation from 2029.

• Amendment to the globalisation mechanism for tax brackets III and IV (uncles/nephews and other persons), so that each heir is taxed individually on his or her own share rather than on the aggregate assets of the category.

2. Wallonia — Reform enacted, pending entry into force

Status:  Decree of 5/12/2024 — published in the Belgian Official Gazette 13/12/2024 — entry into force: 01/01/2028

Wallonia moved first. The Walloon Parliament adopted a decree on 4 December 2024 carrying a comprehensive reform of succession taxation, with entry into force on 1 January 2028. Two measures, however, already took effect on 1 January 2025: the abolition of the 5-year residence requirement for the family home exemption in favour of the surviving spouse or legal cohabitant, and the increase of certain allowances on small estates.

Beyond the rate reductions, the Walloon reform includes several structural measures effective from 2028:

• Exemption of the first €25,000 in the direct line and between partners.

• Extension of preferential direct-line rates to step-descendants of the surviving spouse or legal cohabitant (step-grandchildren, step-great-grandchildren) and to foster children — an adjustment to the realities of blended families.

• Optional flat-rate deductions for liabilities: €1,500 for the deceased's debts, €3,000 for community debts and €5,000 for funeral expenses.

• Reduction of gift taxes on real estate: maximum rate of 14% in the direct line (down from 27%), 20% between other persons (down from 40%).

  
  

3. Flanders — A structurally different system, a targeted reform

Status:  Programme decree (Oct. 2025) — 2026 measures in force — full reform horizon 2028–2029

Flanders already operates a succession tax regime that is structurally more favourable than those of Brussels and Wallonia, for two fundamental technical reasons.

3.1. The « splitsing » — separate taxation of movable and immovable assets

In the direct line and between partners, Flemish succession taxes are calculated separately on the movable and immovable components of the estate. This split avoids disproportionate progression into the higher brackets: an estate of €500,000 composed equally of movable and immovable assets will be taxed twice on €250,000 rather than once on €500,000. Neither Brussels nor Wallonia operates this mechanism.

3.2. Measures in force as of 1 January 2026

Following the programme decree adopted in October 2025 and the « Septemberverklaring » of 22 September 2025 — which scaled back the initial reform timetable in response to a revised budgetary deficit of €4.2 billion for 2026 — only targeted measures have entered into force this year. Namely:

• Partner allowance on movable assets: raised from €50,000 to €75,000

• Progressive target: €125,000 by 2028 (programme decree)

• « Singlevermindering »: reduced rates for single persons without descendants

• The « vriendenerfenis » (friends' inheritance, €15,000 at 3%) is being phased out: it remains available under testaments drafted before 01/01/2026, regardless of the date of death. For testaments drafted from 01/01/2026, only the « singlevermindering » applies. The two regimes cannot be combined.

• Durcissement des règles concernant le régime spécial relatif aux transmissions d’entreprises familiales

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3.3. Deferred measures — Horizon 2028–2029

Several measures originally envisaged for 2026 have been deferred to 2028 at the earliest, subject to budgetary conditions:

• €50,000 allowance for children on movable assets.

• Augmentation de l’abattement époux / partenaire sur biens mobiliers à 125.000 €.

• Reduction of the 9% rate to 3% on the €50,000–€150,000 bracket in the direct line.

• Adjustment of brackets for brothers, sisters and other heirs.

4. What has already changed across all three Regions: the suspect period extended to 5 years

While the three Regions are progressively reducing succession taxes, they have simultaneously tightened the regime for unregistered movable gifts by extending the suspect period from 3 to 5 years. This tightening is now effective in all three Regions:

The suspect period is the time window during which an unregistered movable gift (bank transfer, securities portfolio, works of art, jewellery, etc.) is reintegrated into the donor's estate in the event of death. If the donor dies within this period, the beneficiary pays succession tax on the value of the gift — generally significantly higher than the gift tax that would have applied had the gift been registered.

In Brussels, unregistered gifts made up to 31 December 2025 remain subject to the 3-year period. Those made from 1er January 2026 onwards are subject to the new 5-year period.

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Important Note

This publication is for informational purposes only. It does not constitute legal or tax advice and may not be relied upon as such. The information contained herein reflects the state of legislation and legislative proposals as per 19 February 2026. DEKEYSER LAW accepts no liability for decisions taken solely on the basis of this article.