On 11 September 2026, the Belgian Official Gazette published a Royal Decree of 3 September 2026 ("New RD") establishing a new progressive scale of administrative fines for infringements of the supplementary reporting obligations imposed on intermediaries and relevant taxpayers under DAC 6, DAC 7 and DAC 8.
A brief explanation on DAC 6, 7, 8
For readers less familiar with these directives, a short introduction may be helpful. DAC 6 (Council Directive 2018/822/EU) requires intermediaries — and, in certain cases, taxpayers themselves — to report cross-border arrangements that display certain hallmarks potentially indicative of aggressive tax planning. DAC 7 (Council Directive 2021/514/EU) extends automatic exchange of information to digital platform operators, which must report income earned by sellers on their platforms. DAC 8 (Council Directive 2023/2226/EU) imposes similar reporting obligations on crypto-asset service providers, requiring them to report transactions carried out by their users. Belgium has transposed each of these directives into domestic law, creating corresponding reporting obligations backed by administrative penalties — the subject of the present Royal Decree.
Background: Annulment of the 2020 Royal Decree
The new RD follows the annulment by the Belgian Council of State (Raad van State) of the DAC 6 Royal Decree of 20 May 2020 ("2020 RD") in its judgment of 10 May 2023 (no. 256.480). As PwC Legal analysed in De Fiscale Koerier (2023/12, pp. 315–324), the Council of State found that the 2020 RD violated the constitutional equality principle (Articles 10, 11 and 172 of the Constitution), read in conjunction with Article 6 ECHR, on three grounds:
- No zero-rate for force majeure — The 2020 RD imposed fines even where the infringement resulted from circumstances beyond the taxpayer's control, unlike comparable penalty scales (e.g. Article 229/5 RD/ITC 92).
- No automatic remission upon voluntary correction — The 2020 RD excluded the automatic remission when a taxpayer spontaneously rectified an error before any intervention by the tax authorities regarding the penalty scale under the (Belgian) Code of Miscellaneous Charges and Levies.
- No mitigating circumstances — The 2020 RD offered no possibility for courts to reduce fines below the prescribed scales in the presence of mitigating circumstances, violating the principle of parallelism with criminal sanctions (Article 449 ITC 92).
How the new Royal Decree remedies these issues
The new RD addresses all three grounds of annulment:
- Zero-rate introduced: Each penalty scale now includes a "nil" rate for infringements due to circumstances beyond the taxpayer's control.
- Voluntary correction reinstated: the derogation to the automatic remission has been removed, so automatic remission upon spontaneous rectification again applies to the penalty scales under the Code of Miscellaneous Charges and Levies – rewarding taxpayers who proactively correct errors before any intervention by the authorities. Mitigating circumstances and suspension: Courts may now reduce fines to a minimum of 40% of the prescribed amount where mitigating circumstances exist. Additionally, a new suspension mechanism (probation period of 1–3 years) inspired by the Social Criminal Code also allows courts to suspend the execution of a fine, providing flexibility in administrative tax penalties.
The penalty scales
Each penalty scale has three categories of infringements: (A) infringements due to circumstances beyond the taxpayer's control (force majeure): nil fine; (B) incomplete reporting; and (C) late or non-filing. Within categories B and C, the scale further differentiates between infringements committed without fraudulent intent and those committed with fraudulent intent or intent to cause harm, the latter attracting significantly higher fines. Fines increase progressively with each repeat offence.
For DAC 6 (cross-border arrangements), the penalties as foreseen in the new RD are:
Infringement 1st offence 2nd offence 3rd offence 4th offence Subsequent Incomplete reporting (B) EUR 1,250 EUR 2,500 EUR 5,000 EUR 10,000 EUR 12,500 Late / non-filing (C) EUR 5,000 EUR 12,500 EUR 31,250 — EUR 50,000Where the infringement is committed with fraudulent intent, the amounts are doubled: incomplete reporting starts at EUR 2,500 (up to EUR 25,000 for subsequent offences) and late or non-filing starts at EUR 12,500 (up to EUR 100,000).
Expanded scope: DAC 7 and DAC 8
Beyond remediating the 2020 RD, the New RD also establishes penalty scales for the reporting obligations under DAC 7 (digital platform operators — Article 321sexies ITC 92) and DAC 8 (crypto-asset service providers — Article 326/15 ITC 92). The fine amounts for DAC 6 remain unchanged; DAC 7/8 fines are generally lower for late or non-filing. The same three-tier structure applies: a nil fine for force majeure (category A), and progressive scales for incomplete reporting (category B) and late or non-filing (category C). The fines for incomplete reporting are identical to those under DAC 6. However, the fines for late or non-filing are notably lower:
Infringement DAC 6 — 1st offence DAC 7/8 — 1st offence Late / non-filing (without fraud) EUR 5,000 EUR 2,500 Late / non-filing (with fraud) EUR 12,500 EUR 5,000 Maximum (without fraud) EUR 50,000 EUR 25,000 Maximum (with fraud) EUR 100,000 EUR 50,000Key Takeaway
The 2020 fines for late or incomplete DAC 6 reports were struck down by the Council of State in 2023 because they were too rigid — no excuse for genuine impossibility, no reward for correcting your own mistake, no room for a judge to show leniency. The new decree fixes all three, and at the same time brings digital platforms (DAC 7) and crypto service providers (DAC 8) within the penalty system. Timely and complete reporting is and will remain essential.
Contact PwC Legal
- Véronique De Brabanter — Lawyer - Director, PwC Legal BV/SRL — +32 473 59 34 77
- Gauthier Vael — Lawyer - Director, PwC Legal BV/SRL — +32 472 90 22 07
Authors:
- Véronique De Brabanter, Lawyer - Director at PwC Legal BV/SRL
- Gauthier Vael, Lawyer - Director at PwC Legal BV/SRL
