Transparency of the Regulatory System
The Belgian government has adopted a generally transparent competition policy. The government has implemented tax, labor, health, safety, and other laws and policies to avoid distortions or impediments to the efficient mobilization and allocation of investment, comparable to those in other EU member states. Recognizing the need to streamline administrative procedures in many areas, the federal government established a special task force in 2015 to simplify official procedures, so far with little result. It also agreed to streamline laws regarding the telecommunications sector into one comprehensive volume after new entrants in this sector complained about a lack of transparency. The Finance Ministry established a foreign investment tax unit in 2000 to provide assistance and to make the tax administration more “user friendly” to foreign investors. Belgium has additionally strengthened its Competition Policy Authority with a number of academic experts and additional resources
The American Chamber of Commerce has called attention to the adverse impact of cumbersome procedures and unnecessary red tape on foreign investors, although foreign companies do not appear to be impacted more than Belgian firms. Draft bills are not generally made available for public comment, but have to go through an independent court for vetting and consistency. Traditionally, scientific studies or quantitative analysis conducted on the impact of regulations are made publicly available for comment; not all comments received by regulators are made public. Belgium publishes all its relevant legislation and administrative guidelines in an official Gazette, called Le Moniteur Belge (www.moniteur.be ).
Both foreign and domestic investors in some sectors face stringent regulations designed to protect small- and medium-sized enterprises. Many companies in Belgium try to limit their number of employees to 49, the threshold above which certain employee committees must be set up, such as for safety and trade union interests.
Accounting standards are regulated by the Belgian law of January 30, 2001, and balance sheet and profit and loss statements are identical with international accounting norms. Cash flow positions and reporting changes in non-borrowed capital formation are not required. However, contrary to IAS/IFRS standards, Belgian accounting rules do require an extensive annual policy report.
International Regulatory Considerations
Belgium is a founding member of the EU, whose directives are robustly enforced. Member states can always apply stricter rules, as is the case for Belgium when it comes to data privacy issues.
Through the European Union, Belgium is a member of the WTO, and notifies all draft technical regulations to the WTO Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT). The country does not maintain any measures that are inconsistent with the Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures (TRIMs) obligations.
Legal System and Judicial Independence
Belgium’s (civil) legal system is independent of the government and is a means for resolving commercial disputes or protecting property rights. Belgium has a wide-ranging codified legal system dating back to 1830. There are specialized commercial courts which apply the existing commercial and contractual laws. As in many countries, the Belgian courts labor under a growing caseload, and backlogs cause delays. There are several levels of appeal.
Laws and Regulations on Foreign Direct Investment
Payments and transfers within Belgium and with foreign countries require no prior authorization. Transactions may be executed in euros as well as in other currencies.
Belgium has no debt-to-equity requirements. Dividends may be remitted freely except in cases in which distribution would reduce net assets to less than paid-up capital. No further withholding tax or other tax is due on repatriation of the original investment or on the profits of a branch, either during active operations or upon the closing of the branch.
Since there are three different regional Investment Authorities, the links to their respective websites are given below.
Flanders: www.flandersinvestmentandtrade.com
Wallonia: www.awex.be
Brussels: www.investinbrussels.com
Competition and Anti-Trust Laws
In 2016, the Belgian Competition Authority ruled in the case of the merger between a Belgian and a Dutch supermarket chain. The Authority ruled that the newly created supermarket chain would be in a position to abuse its dominant market position and ordered the chain to shed 19 stores.
The contact address for competition-related concerns:
Federal Competition Authority
City Atrium, 6th floor
Vooruitgangsstraat 50
1210 Brussels
+32 2 277 5272
info@bma-abc.be
www.bma-abc.be
Expropriation and Compensation
There are no outstanding expropriation or nationalization cases in Belgium with U.S. investors. There is no pattern of discrimination against foreign investment in Belgium.
When the Belgian government uses its eminent domain powers to acquire property compulsorily for a public purpose, adequate compensation is paid to the property owners. Recourse to the courts is available if necessary. The only expropriations that occurred during the last decade were related to infrastructure projects such as port expansion, roads, and railroads.
Dispute Settlement
ICSID Convention and New York Convention
Belgium is a member of the International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and regularly includes provision for ICSID arbitration in investment agreements. It is also a member of the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, also known as the New York Convention, which requires courts of contracting states to recognize and enforce arbitration awards made in other contracting states.
Investor-State Dispute Settlement
The government accepts binding international arbitration of disputes between foreign investors and the state. There have been no investment disputes involving a U.S. person within the past 10 years. Local courts are expected to enforce foreign arbitral awards issued against the government. To date, there has been no evidence of extrajudicial action against foreign investors.
International Commercial Arbitration and Foreign Courts
Alternative Dispute Resolution is not mandatory by law and is therefore not commonly used in disputes, except for matters where the determination by an expert is sought, whether appointed by the parties in agreement or in accordance with a contractual clause or appointed by the court in the context of dispute resolution.
Belgium has no domestic arbitration bodies.
Local courts recognize and enforce foreign arbitral awards. Judgments of foreign courts are recognized and enforceable under the local courts.
Bankruptcy Regulations
In the World Bank’s Doing Business Report, Belgium ranks number 10 (out of 198) for the ease of resolving insolvency. The Business Continuity Act of 2009 provides the possibility for companies in financial difficulty to enter into a judicial reorganization. These proceedings are to some extent similar to the U.S. approach in Chapter 11 as the aim is to facilitate business recovery.
Belgian bankruptcy law is governed by the Bankruptcy Act of 1997 and is under the jurisdiction of the commercial courts. The commercial court appoints a judge-auditor to preside over the bankruptcy proceeding and whose primary task is to supervise the management and liquidation of the bankrupt estate, in particular with respect to the claims of the employees. Belgian bankruptcy law recognizes several classes of preferred or secured creditors. A person who has been declared bankrupt may subsequently start a new business unless the person is found guilty of certain criminal offences that are directly related to the bankruptcy.