Belgian Inheritance Law and Inheritance Tax: How It Actually Works (2026)

Belgian inheritance splits cleanly into two questions that are decided by two different levels of government, and confusing them is the most common way people get the answer wrong.

Who inherits, and what share is protected, is FEDERAL. Those rules are the same in Antwerp, Namur and Brussels, and they live in Book 4 of the Civil Code.

What it costs in tax is REGIONAL. Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels each set their own brackets, their own abatements and their own family-home reliefs, and the differences are large enough to change the outcome by tens of thousands of euro on an ordinary estate. There is no national rate table, and a source that gives you one is wrong.

Information last verified on 21 July 2026. This page provides general legal information and does not constitute legal advice in an individual case.

The federal half: who inherits

Belgian succession law was recodified in Book 4 of the Civil Code, in force since 1 July 2022. It sets an order of heirs, gives the surviving spouse a distinct position layered across that order, and protects part of the estate from being given away.

The protected part, the reserve, was reformed by the law of 31 July 2017 with effect from 1 September 2018, and the reform genuinely changed outcomes. Children now hold a fixed one half of the estate collectively, however many of them there are. Before the reform that fraction scaled up with the number of children, to two thirds and then three quarters, so a parent of three now has substantially more freedom to give away than they did in 2017. Parents lost their reserve entirely, and instead have a maintenance claim based on need.

The practical distinction most likely to catch someone out is between a legal cohabitant, who has made a declaration at the commune, and a de facto cohabitant, who has not. The first inherits the usufruct of the family home by default. The second inherits nothing at all, no matter how long the relationship lasted, unless a will says otherwise.

The full picture, including the order of heirs, the spouse's usufruct, and how to accept or renounce an inheritance, is on the who inherits page.

Gifts during life

Giving assets away before death is the main way Belgians reduce what an estate will cost, and the rules on it are federal for the civil mechanics and regional for the tax.

The mechanism that decides whether a gift works is the look-back period. An unregistered gift is pulled back into the taxable estate if the donor dies within it. That period is now five years in all three Regions, but it arrived at different times, so which rule applies to a given gift depends on both the Region and the date. Registering a gift and paying the flat gift tax immediately is what takes it out of the look-back altogether.

The forms a gift can take, what a notary is needed for, and how gifts are brought back into account against the reserve are on the lifetime gifts page.

The regional half: what it costs

This is where a national answer stops existing.

Which Region taxes the estate is set by the fiscal domicile of the deceased, specifically wherever they lived longest during the five years before death. It is not decided by where the heirs live, nor by where the property sits. Someone who spent four of their last five years in Namur and died in a hospital in Leuven, owning a flat in Brussels, is taxed under the Walloon regime.

The three regimes differ on every axis that matters:

• The brackets themselves. Flanders runs three bands in the direct line, Wallonia runs nine, Brussels runs six. The top rate in the direct line is the same 30 percent in Wallonia and Brussels but 27 percent in Flanders, and the shape of the climb to it is quite different.
• What distant heirs pay. All three punish inheritance outside the direct line, but Brussels and Wallonia keep siblings on a separate and cheaper scale than uncles, aunts, nephews and nieces, while Flanders splits differently again.
• Whether heirs are taxed separately. In Wallonia and Brussels every heir is assessed on their own share. In Flanders that is true too, except for the most distant class, which is assessed on the combined total the whole class receives. Splitting an estate between four friends therefore lowers the bill in Wallonia and Brussels and changes nothing in Flanders.
• Abatements and the family home. Wallonia gives a per-heir abatement that doubles on smaller shares, Brussels gives a flat one, and Flanders gives neither but exempts the family home for a surviving partner outright. Wallonia and Brussels attach a five-year residence condition to their family-home relief; Flanders does not.

Each Region has its own page with the full tables, a worked example showing the arithmetic band by band, and an estimator:

• Flanders inheritance tax
• Wallonia inheritance tax
• Brussels inheritance tax

What is changing

Two dated changes are worth knowing about, and only one of them is in force.

Flanders raised an exemption on 1 January 2026, taking the exempt tranche of movable assets from 50,000 to 75,000 euro. It applies to what a surviving spouse or partner inherits, and not to children or other heirs.

Wallonia has adopted substantially lower rates, but they are not law yet. The decree was passed in December 2024, and its own article 30 applies the new rates only to deaths from 1 January 2028. Until 31 December 2027 the current Walloon table is the only one that governs. Any source quoting the lower Walloon figures as current is quoting a future.

Deadlines

The declaration of an estate is due four months after a death in Belgium, five months if the death occurred elsewhere in the European Economic Area, and six months outside Europe. Payment falls due two months after that filing deadline expires, which catches people out because it does not run from the day you actually file, nor from receiving an assessment.

This page provides general legal information about a foreign legal system and does not constitute legal advice for an individual case. Inheritance tax differs by Region and the rules change regularly. Check the current position with the competent regional administration, or with a notaris or notaire, before acting.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is inheritance tax the same everywhere in Belgium?

No, and this is the single most important thing to know. Inheritance tax is a regional competence, so Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels each set their own brackets, abatements and reliefs. The differences run to tens of thousands of euro on an ordinary estate. Who inherits, by contrast, is federal and identical across the country.

Which Region taxes an estate?

The Region where the deceased had their fiscal domicile for the longest period during the five years before death. It is not decided by where the heirs live, and not by where the property is located. Someone who spent most of that period in Wallonia is taxed under the Walloon regime even if they died in a Flemish hospital and owned a flat in Brussels.

How much can I leave away from my children?

Half the estate. Since the reform that took effect on 1 September 2018, children hold a reserve of one half collectively, regardless of how many of them there are, leaving the other half freely disposable. Before that reform the protected fraction grew with the number of children, so older sources describing two thirds or three quarters are out of date.

Does my partner inherit if we are not married?

It depends entirely on whether the cohabitation is legal or merely factual. A legal cohabitant, meaning one who has made a declaration at the commune, inherits the usufruct of the family home by default. A de facto cohabitant inherits nothing without a will, however long the relationship lasted. This is the gap that most often surprises people.

Does giving assets away before death avoid inheritance tax?

It can, but only if the gift falls outside the look-back period, which is now five years in all three Regions. An unregistered gift is pulled back into the taxable estate if the donor dies within that window. Registering the gift and paying the flat gift tax at the time takes it out of the look-back altogether.

When is everything due?

The declaration is due four months after a death in Belgium, five months within the European Economic Area, and six months outside Europe. Payment is due two months after that filing deadline expires, not two months after you file and not on receipt of an assessment notice.