Tax cut to be less than was first promised

Next year, the Federal Government’s tax cut for those in work will only be half of what was originally announced. According to a report in Friday’s edition of the financial daily ‘De Tijd’ the average tax reduction will be just 125 euro/annum instead of the 250 euro/annum that had been announced.

Prime Minister Charles Michel’s Federal Government not only decided to cut expenditure and increase some taxes, such as excise duty.

The liberal, Flemish nationalist and Flemish Christian democrat coalition also decided to increase the level of the flat rate that can be set off against tax as expenses incurred while worked.

The Federal Government had ear-marked 900 million euro for the measure and had estimated that the average working Belgian would pay 250 euro/year less in tax as result of the measure.

However, figures contained in the draft budget that was handed over to the European Commission show that just 450 million euro has been ear-marked for the measure, just half of what had been announced.

125 euro/year won’t be anything like enough to compensate for the money lost as a result of the Federal Government’s other plan not to make wages by 2% when the so-called “index” is exceed early next year.

However, working Belgians can expect a further tax cut in 2016, a year than was originally planned; the Finance Minister Johan Van Overtveldt’s office told ‘De Tijd’.

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