Donations in the Brussels-Capital Region: new rules as of January 1, 2026
As of January 1, 2026, the lookback period for unregistered donations will be extended from 3 to 5 years in the Brussels-Capital Region.
This lookback period applies to all unregistered movable donations, i.e., all donations for which no donation duties have been paid. This includes, for example, bank transfers (account-to-account transfers) or manual gifts.
Currently, failure to pay donation duties means that if the donor dies within 3 years of the donation, the donation is retroactively included in the inheritance tax return and becomes subject to inheritance tax.
For donations made as of January 1, 2026, this waiting period will be extended to 5 years (Ordinance of the Brussels-Capital Region of July 17, 2025 amending various provisions of the Code of Inheritance Duties and the Code of Registration, Mortgage and Court Fees, Official Gazette, July 24, 2025).
By doing so, the Brussels-Capital Region aligns itself with the regime already applicable in the Flemish Region (since 2012) and in the Walloon Region (since 2022).
It should be noted that the criterion for determining which legislation applies to a donation is the tax residence of the donor during the five years preceding the donation.
It is therefore still possible to make unregistered donations before January 1, 2026, which will benefit from a 3-year lookback period.
However, donors who do not want to take risks regarding this lookback period can opt for registered donations, which are subject to donation duties at a favorable rate (compared to inheritance tax), namely 3% or 7% in the Brussels-Capital Region, depending on whether the donation is made directly between spouses, legal cohabitants, or ascendants and descendants in the first case, or between other persons in the second case.
It should also be stressed that a registered donation allows much greater legal certainty regarding the conditions attached to the donation, particularly through mechanisms to maintain control over the donated assets (such as a usufruct reservation, a temporary inalienability clause, or a management clause).