Buying a house in Belgium: the compromis binds at once, and your region sets your tax
The Belgian buying process resembles the Dutch one — the notary handles the deed, the tax and the registration — but with two catches. The compromis is binding immediately: sold is sold, even before a notary is involved. And the registration tax depends on the region: 2% in Flanders, 3% in Wallonia, in Brussels 12.5% with an exemption on the first € 200,000 — each time on conditions that your Dutch owner-occupied home can spoil.
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Written and checked by Auke on , against the sources at the bottom. Is something no longer right? Report it below and I'll fix it.
Yes, as a Dutch citizen you buy in Belgium as at home: the notary handles the deed, collects the tax and takes care of the registration. What it costs depends on the region. The main item is registration tax, the Belgian property transfer tax:
- 2% in Flanders and 3% in Wallonia for your sole own home;
- in Brussels 12.5%, with an exemption on the first € 200,000;
- on new-build 21% VAT.
The find: your Dutch home counts in all three regions. In principle it puts you back on the standard rate of 12 to 12.5%, unless you sell in time.
The pitfall is at the start. The compromis (the sale agreement) is binding as soon as buyer and seller agree: without a cooling-off period, before a notary is even involved.
In your first year you don't buy. You rent, you get to know the municipality, and only then do you decide — why that order is fixed. This article is for the moment you have got that far.
Why is the compromis already the purchase?
In the Netherlands you are used to three days' cooling-off after the purchase agreement. Not in Belgium: the private sale agreement, the compromis, is binding as soon as buyer and seller agree on the property and the price. No deposit paid? Doesn't matter: sold is sold.
The notarial deed that follows is not a second moment of decision but the legal completion. It has to be there within four months. Within that period the registration duties are also paid, via the notary.
So everything you want to arrange, you arrange before you sign the compromis, not afterwards:
- a condition precedent for your financing (the purchase only goes ahead once it is in place);
- a survey;
- questions about the property.
What does buying a house in Belgium cost, per region?
Registration tax is a regional matter, and the three regions each have their own favourable regime for whoever is really going to live there:
| Flanders | Wallonia | Brussels | |
|---|---|---|---|
| standard rate | 12% | 12.5% | 12.5% |
| favourable regime for your own home | 2% (sole owner-occupied home) | 3% (habitation propre et unique) | abattement: no duty on the first € 200,000, a discount of € 25,000 |
| price ceiling | none | none | € 600,000, price and costs together |
| you move in within | 3 years after the deed | 3 years (5 years for building land) | 3 years |
| and you stay | registered for at least 1 year (sale agreements from 2026) | 3 full years | 5 uninterrupted years |
| your old home sold within | 2 years after the deed | 3 years, promised in the deed | 2 years, abattement by refund |
For all three: natural persons only, and the purchase of the whole in full ownership. In Brussels, since 1 April 2023, an additional abattement (an exemption) of € 25,000 per energy class gained comes on top. The condition is that you improve the EPC, the Belgian energy label, by at least two classes within five years. The period for moving in then also becomes five years.
And now the point that decides everything for emigrants: your Dutch owner-occupied home counts everywhere. Whoever still owns a home in full ownership, anywhere in the world, in principle falls back on the standard rate.
The escape is in the last row of the table: sell your old home within the period and you get the favourable rate after all. If you don't sell in time, you pay the difference, in Wallonia for instance the difference between 12.5% and 3%. So place the sale of your Dutch house before or tightly alongside the Belgian purchase, not "some day".
If you buy a new build, by the way, no registration duty applies but 21% VAT.
What do I pay every year after that?
As an owner you pay the annual onroerende voorheffing (property tax). It is calculated on the indexed cadastral income of the property (a fixed notional rental value), with provincial and municipal surcharges on top. So the amount differs per municipality, and the scheme is again regional.
The Flemish worked example shows how the surcharges make the amount:
- A cadastral income of € 720 is indexed for 2024 to € 1,567.
- The Flemish base levy of 3.97% is then € 62.21.
- The province of East Flanders (148.47 surcharge percentage points) adds € 92.36.
- The municipality of Aalst (944) adds € 587.26.
- Together that is € 741.83 a year.
For a specific property, ask for the latest assessment and put it in your monthly budget. Whoever settles in Belgium soon notices that the cadastral income comes back in more schemes than this one alone.
In Vertrekklaar this is phase 5 of 5 of the journey: the same steps, but applied to your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines monitored. See the whole journey to Belgium.
What this rests on
The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.
- Notaris.be — the sale agreement (the compromis) is binding, deed within four months — notaris.be
- Notaris.be — the taxes when buying a home (rates per region, VAT on new build) — notaris.be
- Vlaanderen.be — the reduced rate of 2% for the sole owner-occupied home and its conditions — vlaanderen.be
- Wallonie.be — FAQ on the registration duties of 3% for the habitation propre et unique — wallonie.be
- Be.brussels — the abattement on the registration duties — be.brussels
- Vlaanderen.be — the property tax (onroerende voorheffing) — vlaanderen.be
- Vlaanderen.be — calculating the property tax (base levy of 3.97%, surcharges, worked example) — vlaanderen.be
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