Revised transfer pricing documentation rules in Belgium

Introduction 

Last year, the Belgian tax authorities have introduced significant changes to the transfer pricing “TP” documentation forms – a move that will impact many multinational groups operating in Belgium. These changes, effective for financial years starting on or after 1 January 2025 (corresponding to assessment years starting on or after 1 January 2026) are not just administrative. 

They signal a broader shift toward greater transparency, deeper scrutiny, and enhanced alignment with the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and Tax Administrations as most recently revised in 2022 (“OECD TP Guidelines”). 

Although the upcoming compliance season (related to FY 2024) may not be impacted by these new rules, the time to act is now!

What’s changing? 

Key updates effective for FY 2025 According to the latest guidance, the revised TP forms now require:

Local file form (Form 275 LF): 

• Intercompany transaction data to be reported per country, not aggregated.
• Mandatory inclusion of tax identification numbers for key competitors and permanent establishments.
• Mandatory inclusion of relevant country code(s) with respect to section B12 regarding cost contribution agreements, advance pricing agreements, rulings, and in-house (re)insurance policies.
• Attach the full transfer pricing documentation, when available (including agreements and transfer pricing studies).

Master file form (Form 275 MF): 

• A description of the analytical framework for the value chain and functional analysis of the group, including a comparison between the allocation of profits to the individual entities based on the value creation per each primary function, and the transfer pricing outcomes (and hence alignment between both).
• A six-step DEMPE analysis (i .e. an analysis focused on the development, enhancement, maintenance, protection, and exploitation of intangibles).
• Information regarding potential hard to value intangibles “HTVI”. 

CbC reporting notification (Form 275 CBC NOT):

• It will be possible to indicate whether the notification is an initial notification, a modification of a previous notification, or a termination of the reporting obligation as a result of no longer being part of the MNE group.

Why this matters now 

For calendar year taxpayers, 31 December 2025 marks the end of the first financial year subject to these new requirements. While most eligible taxpayers dispose of transfer pricing studies such as functional analyses and benchmarking studies to support their TP policies, a detailed value chain analysis or DEMPE analysis is often not readily available. 

As current TP policies may have been designed under less stringent analytical/reporting expectations, a misalignment could exist between the transfer pricing outcomes of these current TP policies and an allocation of profits based on a value chain or DEMPE analysis. Alternatively, global mobility of key personnel and shifts in economic substance across jurisdictions can significantly impact arm’s length transfer pricing outcomes. 

In case any misalignments or inconsistencies are identified, there still is a window of opportunity to perform corrective actions and align TP policies before FY 2025 year-end closing.

Recommended next steps 

To prepare for these changes and avoid surprises during next year’s documentation cycle or ultimately during upcoming tax audits, we strongly recommend:

• value chain and DEMPE analysis (re)assessment: analysing where value is truly created;
• stress testing your current TP policies: identify potential misalignments or inconsistencies;
• performing corrective actions where needed;
• proactively preparing contemporaneous TP documentation, demonstrating adherence with the arm’s length principle, to be filed in due time (i.e. de facto filing obligation).