CRB

Branch registration - Belgium

Branch Office in Belgium

Register and run a Belgian branch: the correct court filing, what the state charges, and what your head office owes every year.

Request a branch registration plan
  • Belgium recognises a branch, not a "representative office"
  • Registered at the enterprise court registry, not a business counter
  • Your foreign parent's accounts become public in Belgium every year
  • Non-resident tax: 25%, 20% on the first EUR 100,000
Belgium only The glass facade of a contemporary office building in Brussels.

What a Belgian Branch Is, and What We Do

A Belgian branch has no legal personality of its own. The foreign company is the legal person, and it carries the branch's liabilities without limit (Art. 2:148 CSA). Start with the company registration guide for the full route to any Belgian company.

We assemble and file the branch's Art. 2:24 CSA dossier, register it at the correct enterprise court registry and the KBO/BCE, register the establishment unit, coordinate VAT activation, and keep the recurring filing calendar. We do not draft your parent company's own documents, and we do not become the branch's legal representative.

What's Included in Our Branch Office Service

Six pieces of work, from the parent's dossier to the first compliant invoice.

  • Filing-Dossier Assembly

    We assemble the Art. 2:24 CSA filing dossier for your foreign parent, EU or non-EU list, checked against the enterprise court registry's requirements before it is filed.

  • Court Registry Filing and KBO/BCE Inscription

    We file at the correct enterprise court registry for your branch's district and handle the KBO/BCE inscription of the foreign legal person, so you receive a Belgian enterprise number.

  • Establishment Unit Registration

    Separately from the court filing, we register the branch's establishment unit at an accredited business counter, choosing the NACEBEL activity codes and clearing any access-to-profession check they trigger.

  • VAT Activation and Fiscal Representative Handoff

    We coordinate VAT activation on Form 604A. A non-EU parent that needs a fiscal representative is handed to global fiscal representative belgium for the guarantee and filing.

  • Recurring Filing-Calendar Advice

    We track your recurring deadlines: your foreign parent's annual accounts filed with the National Bank of Belgium every year, and a second set for the branch itself where the law requires one.

  • Stationery and Website Compliance

    We check that your branch's invoices, letters, order forms and website carry the mentions Belgian law requires (Art. 2:29 CSA) before the branch starts trading commercially.

What we do not do: draft or certify your parent company's own constitutive documents, act as the branch's legal representative, or promise a bank account or a date for one.

Branch, Subsidiary or Representative Office: Which Applies to You

  • A Fixed Presence, Not a New Company

    Want your foreign company to trade in Belgium without incorporating a separate entity? That is what a branch is for.

  • Told to Open a "Representative Office"? There Is No Such Status

    Under the CSA the choice is a branch or nothing. A "representative office" is not a Belgian legal status, whatever a provider elsewhere calls it.

  • Want Ring-Fenced Liability Instead?

    A branch carries your parent company's liabilities without limit. If you want the company's debts stopped at the Belgian entity, set up a subsidiary in belgium instead.

  • Already Working in Belgium for 30+ Days?

    Sending staff to deliver services here for more than 30 days in twelve months can already make you a Belgian permanent establishment (Art. 229 §2/1 CIR 92), branch or not.

None of these choices is permanent. A company that later needs a different legal form follows the company-changes process, see belgium bvba to bv change, and a founder who would rather buy an existing company than register either can move straight to our ready-made companies service.

Two separate tests: a registered branch under company law, and a Belgian establishment under income tax The company-law track runs from a fixed presence in Belgium to a branch registered under Articles 2:23 and 2:24 CSA. The income-tax track runs from a fixed place of business, or services delivered for more than 30 days in twelve months, to a Belgian establishment under Article 229 CIR 92. Both tracks converge on the same conclusion: a foreign company may owe Belgian tax even without a registered branch. Company law CSA / WVV A fixed presence in Belgium the decision to open Branch registered at the enterprise court registry Arts. 2:23 and 2:24 CSA Income tax CIR 92 A fixed place of business, or 30+ days Art. 229 §1 and §2/1 Belgian establishment for income tax Art. 229 CIR 92 You may owe Belgian tax even without a registered branch
Two different tests: registering a branch under the CSA and creating a Belgian establishment for income tax are decided separately.
Contemporary glass facade of an office building in Brussels reflecting urban architecture.

How Registering a Branch Works

The eight steps of registering a Belgian branch Eight steps in order: decide branch or subsidiary, appoint the branch representative under Article 2:149 CSA, assemble the Article 2:24 CSA dossier over two to six weeks, translate and legalise as market practice, file at the enterprise court registry in days, publish in the Moniteur belge within days, register the establishment unit for EUR 111.50, and activate VAT with the bank account and Article 2:29 CSA stationery. 2 to 6 weeks the longest step EUR 111.50 per establishment unit 1 Decide branch or subsidiary a decision, not a filing 2 Appoint the branch representative Art. 2:149 CSA 3 Assemble the dossier Art. 2:24 CSA 4 Translate and legalise practice, not law 5 File at the court registry days, once complete 6 Publish in the Moniteur belge within days of filing 7 Register the establishment unit same day 8 VAT, bank and stationery Art. 2:29 CSA
The eight steps of registering a Belgian branch, from the parent's decision to the first compliant invoice.
  1. Decide branch or subsidiary. Weigh unlimited parental liability and a public annual filing against a subsidiary's ring-fenced liability and its own accounts only. This is a decision, not a filing step.
  2. The parent appoints a branch representative. Your company's competent organ decides to open the branch and appoints who represents it here, carrying the same liability toward third parties as a Belgian director (Art. 2:149 CSA).
  3. Assemble the filing dossier. Gather the EU seven-item list or the non-EU eight-item list: constitutive deed, register and number, certificate of existence, branch address and activities, representatives' powers, last accounts. Planning figure: two to six weeks.
  4. Translate and legalise. Market practice applies an apostille and a certified translation to the dossier; no official text states a general rule for foreign corporate documents, so confirm the accepted language with the receiving registry.
  5. File at the enterprise court registry. The dossier goes to the registry for the branch's district, one registry of your choice with several branches. No statutory limit applies; planning figure: days once the file is complete.
  6. Publication in the Moniteur belge. The registry publishes the filing by mention in the annexes automatically. From publication, the filed documents become opposable to third parties. Planning figure: within days of filing.
  7. Register the establishment unit. A separate step at an accredited business counter: NACEBEL activity codes chosen, any access-to-profession check cleared. Cost: EUR 111.50 (2026). Planning figure: same day once the enterprise number exists.
  8. Activate VAT, open the bank account, bring stationery into line. Form 604A starts VAT identification; a Belgian bank account and Art. 2:29 CSA-compliant stationery and website follow before the branch trades.

Not Sure Whether a Branch or a Subsidiary Fits Your Group?

Compare the liability and filing consequences before you file anything.

Compare with a subsidiary Start your onboarding

Documents and State Fees

Before the branch opens, your head office produces these documents; what follows is what Belgium charges to register and run it.

  • Constitutive deed and articles, or the full consolidated text as amended
  • Company name and legal form
  • Home register and your registration number there
  • Certificate of existence from that register
  • Branch address, activities, and its own name if different
  • Representatives' identity and powers (non-EU: joint or separate)
  • Last annual and consolidated accounts, as filed at home
  • Non-EU only: company seat and object
  • Non-EU only: subscribed capital and the law governing the company
A wax seal stamp resting beside a freshly pressed seal on handmade paper, the kind of formality a branch dossier carries.
What the Belgian state charges to register and run a branch, 2026 unless noted; our own fee never appears here.
What the state charges Amount Note
KBO/BCE establishment-unit registration EUR 111.50 per unit, plus the same per additional unit
Moniteur belge, electronic, incorporation line EUR 236.50 excl. VAT / 286.17 incl. filings from 1 March 2026
Moniteur belge, paper, incorporation line EUR 292.90 excl. VAT / 354.41 incl. same tariff page
Moniteur belge, amending-deed line EUR 171.70 excl. VAT / 207.76 incl. which line a first branch filing attracts is not settled, see the FAQ below
NBB annual accounts filing, full model EUR 379.50 XBRL / 449.70 PDF recurring, annual
NBB annual accounts filing, abridged model EUR 89.40 / 159.50 recurring, annual
NBB annual accounts filing, micro model EUR 67.00 / 137.30 recurring, annual
Late-filing surcharge EUR 151 to 1,510 (2026, indexed) Art. 3:13 CSA, applies via Art. 3:20 §1

The annual company contribution (EUR 399.73 or EUR 998.47) is not included: whether it applies to a branch of a foreign company is not confirmed, so we do not publish it here.

Problems We Solve

  • "Can I Open a Representative Office Instead?"

    No. Under the CSA the choice is a branch or nothing, because two ranking pages elsewhere sell a representative office that does not exist in Belgian law.

  • Your Group's Accounts Become Public, and Late Filing Is Priced

    Your foreign parent's own accounts go on the Belgian public record every year (Art. 3:20 §1 CSA), and filing late carries a surcharge under Art. 3:13 CSA. Most providers mention the filing and skip the price.

  • What the State Actually Charges, Itemised

    The table above lists every state fee, in euro, with its source and year. No competitor page in this market publishes a single one of them next to its own fee.

  • Registered at the Court Registry, Not a Business Counter

    A foreign company's branch is inscribed at the enterprise court registry, not at a business counter. Providers routinely blur the two steps; getting the sequence right is verifiable from the source.

  • Who Is Liable if Something Goes Wrong

    Whoever manages your Belgian branch carries the same liability toward third parties as a Belgian director (Art. 2:149 CSA). The appointment is not a signature-collecting role.

Why Work With Us

Prepared by Maarten De Wilde, Formation and corporate structuring lead. Reviewed by Aurelie Lambert, Tax, licensing and compliance lead. Updated 25 September 2026.

From our practice. Maarten De Wilde, our formation and corporate structuring lead, works in Dutch, English and French from Brussels, and coordinates branch filings with the enterprise court registries, the KBO/BCE and each parent's home-state registrar, across EU and non-EU parents alike.

Related Services

  • Subsidiary in Belgium

    Ring-fenced liability and its own filed accounts. Compare a subsidiary.

  • Company Changes and Restructuring

    Change legal form, directors or seat once you are trading. See the process.

  • Company Liquidation in Belgium

    Closing a Belgian company is different from closing a branch. The liquidation guide.

  • Fiscal Representative in Belgium

    A non-EU parent's VAT guarantee and filing, handled for you. See fiscal representation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a Belgian branch have its own legal personality, and who is liable for its debts?

No. The foreign company is the legal person, and it carries the branch's debts without limit (Art. 2:148, al. 1 CSA). A branch is not a separate entity the way a BV/SRL subsidiary is, so nothing about the branch's liability is ring-fenced from the parent.

Can I open a representative office in Belgium instead of a branch?

No. Under the Code of Companies and Associations, the choice is a branch or nothing: there is no representative-office status in Belgian company law, whatever a provider elsewhere calls it. If your foreign company will have a fixed presence in Belgium, that presence is a branch.

Where is a branch actually registered: the enterprise court registry or a business counter?

The enterprise court registry for the district where the branch is established (Art. 2:23 §1 CSA), one registry of your choice if you have several branches. The establishment unit is a separate registration, at an accredited business counter, done after the court filing exists.

Which documents does my head office have to produce, and do they need an apostille and a translation?

The Art. 2:24 CSA list above: constitutive deed, register and number, certificate of existence, branch details, representatives' powers, last accounts, plus more for a non-EU parent. An apostille and a certified translation are market practice, not a stated legal rule; confirm the accepted language with the registry.

Do I have to file my foreign company's accounts in Belgium?

Yes, every year. The foreign parent's own annual accounts, and consolidated accounts where they exist, are filed with the National Bank of Belgium within one month of approval and at the latest seven months after year end (Art. 2:24 §3, 2° and Art. 3:20 §1 CSA).

What happens if I file the accounts late?

The Art. 3:13 CSA surcharge applies, EUR 151 to 1,510 for 2026 depending on how late and which model you file, on top of the ordinary NBB filing fee. Art. 3:13 names the branch's filing deadline directly, so the surcharge is not a guess.

Do I need a second set of accounts for the branch itself?

Only where your parent is outside the EEA and its accounting law is not equivalent to EU Directive 2013/34/EU (Art. 3:20 §3 CSA), unless the branch has no income of its own and the head office covers all its costs (Art. 3:1 §2 CSA), in which case both conditions exempt it.

Does a branch get a Belgian enterprise number and a VAT number?

Yes, separately. The KBO/BCE inscription at the enterprise court registry gives the branch's foreign parent a Belgian enterprise number. VAT capacity is a different registration, activated on Form 604A with the VAT administration once the enterprise number exists.

Is a branch automatically a permanent establishment for tax purposes?

Company law and income tax ask two different questions. A branch is named directly in the Art. 229 §1 CIR 92 list of fixed places of business, so registering one will usually create a Belgian establishment for tax, but the tests are not the same test.

What tax does a Belgian branch pay?

Non-resident corporate tax on the profit attributable to the Belgian establishment, at the same rates as a resident company: 25 percent, or 20 percent on the first EUR 100,000 for a qualifying small company (Arts. 227, 2°, 233, 246, al. 1, 1°, and 215 CIR 92).

Branch or subsidiary: which one do I need?

It depends on how much liability and public disclosure you can accept. A branch carries the parent's liability without limit and publishes the parent's own accounts every year; a subsidiary ring-fences liability and files only its own accounts. See Related Services above for the comparison.

What does it cost the state to register a branch?

The table above: EUR 111.50 for the establishment unit, the Moniteur belge tariff, and the recurring NBB filing fee. Which Moniteur belge line a first branch filing attracts, the incorporation line or the amending-deed line, is not settled by the tariff page itself, so we present both.

What must appear on the branch's invoices and website?

The company's name and legal form, both the parent's seat and the branch's address, the foreign register and number where applicable, the Belgian enterprise number, and liquidation status where it applies (Art. 2:29 CSA). Get this wrong and whoever signed the document risks personal liability.

How do I close a Belgian branch?

File the closure within 30 days of the decision (Art. 2:24 §3, 1° CSA). Closing a branch is a filing, not a liquidation: if you are winding up a Belgian company itself rather than a branch, see the company liquidation guide. The establishment-unit de-registration cost is not yet confirmed.

How do I open a branch in Belgium?

Decide branch or subsidiary, have your parent appoint a representative, assemble the filing dossier, then file at the enterprise court registry, publish in the Moniteur belge, register the establishment unit, and activate VAT. The eight-step process above walks through each one with its planning figure.

Ready to Register Your Belgian Branch, or Still Deciding?

Get the correct filing sequence, the documents list and the state cost, in one plan.

Request a branch registration plan Start your onboarding