Are you paying too much tax as a Belgian freelancer?
In Belgium, a self-employed person pays on average between 40% and 55% in taxes on their income (social contributions + progressive income tax). The key to reducing this burden? Correctly deducting all your professional expenses. Yet many freelancers miss perfectly legal deductions.
1. Home office
If you work from home, you can deduct a portion of your rent, electricity, heating, and internet. The rule: calculate the percentage of floor space used professionally. A 15m² office in an 80m² apartment = 18.75% deductible.
2. Car and bike expenses
Professional travel is deductible. For cars: fuel, insurance, maintenance, leasing — but note that deductibility depends on CO₂ emissions. Electric bikes are 100% deductible.
3. Phone and internet
Your mobile and internet subscriptions are partially deductible. If you use your phone 70% for work, you can deduct 70% of the bill.
4. Business meals
Meals with clients or partners are deductible at 69% (not 100%). Always keep the receipt with the client's name noted on the back.
5. Software and subscriptions
All your professional tools: accounting, invoicing (DEMFACT), cloud storage, Microsoft 365, Adobe — 100% deductible.
6. Training and books
Any training related to your professional activity is deductible. Books, online courses, seminars, conferences — keep the invoices.
7. Professional contributions
Professional liability insurance, federation or professional order fees, guaranteed income insurance — all deductible.
8. Bank charges
Fees for your professional account, payment terminal, bank commissions — 100% deductible.
9. Client gifts (with limits)
Business gifts are deductible up to €50 per person per year (excl. VAT). Above that, VAT is no longer recoverable.
10. Supplementary pension savings (PLCI/VAPZ)
The Free Supplementary Pension for Self-Employed (PLCI/VAPZ) is deductible as a professional expense. In 2026, the ceiling is approximately €3,965.77 (ordinary PLCI) — money you get back directly on your taxes.
How to track all of this easily?
The biggest problem isn't knowing these deductions — it's not forgetting to record them. Every lost receipt, every unfiled invoice is money lost to taxes.
That's exactly why DEMFACT built Financiar: a smart tax dashboard that:
- Scans your invoices with AI and classifies them automatically
- Calculates your taxes in real time based on Belgian tax brackets
- Reminds you of fiscal deadlines (quarterly VAT, income tax, client listing)
- Shows exactly how much you save thanks to your deductions