How to apply for an advance tax ruling on crypto yourself?
We are receiving an increasing number of questions from investors about the tax treatment of cryptoassets and the possibility of obtaining an advance tax ruling. As a result of DAC8, expanded reporting obligations for cryptoassets, and increased data exchange between platforms and tax authorities, crypto investments are also coming increasingly into view of the tax authorities. We therefore make this editable Word template available without obligation to taxpayers seeking advance certainty that their activities qualify as the normal management of private assets. Further practical information is available via this link.
Practical Guidelines for Completing the Template
Once you have downloaded the template above, please complete all relevant information where necessary. At the beginning of the document—see 'Tick what applies'—you should indicate precisely what advance decision is being requested. In practice, this will generally concern the first and/or third box.
For completeness, we note that this template may be used both for a formal application for an advance decision and for a preliminary prefiling request. In practice, however, we strongly recommend submitting a prefiling request first in order to test the Belgian Ruling Commission's position informally in advance. The distinction between a formal ruling application and a prefiling is explained further below.
Under Title 1, we recommend answering the questions as comprehensively as possible and, where relevant, attaching the necessary supporting documents (for example transaction overviews, portfolio summaries, tax reports, screenshots, etc.).
As regards the motivation, in most cases it is generally sufficient to refer to Title 1 (the description of the facts and the intended transaction), stating that, based on those elements, you are of the opinion that the situation qualifies either as the normal management of private wealth or as miscellaneous income.
We recommend submitting the application directly by email to the Advance Tax Rulings Office at dvbsda@minfin.fed.be. dvbsda@minfin.fed.be.
Naturally, this template offers no guarantee whatsoever that the Belgian Ruling Commission will issue a positive advance decision. The document is nevertheless intended to collect and present in a structured manner all relevant factual and tax information normally requested in the context of a ruling application.
When Does One Typically Qualify for a Positive Ruling Regarding the Normal Management of Private Wealth?
Based on existing ruling practice, private individuals without a professional or occupational connection to crypto assets are generally the most likely to obtain a positive ruling confirming the normal management of private wealth.
In doing so, the Belgian Ruling Commission considers various factual elements, including:
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the number of transactions carried out;
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the frequency of trading;
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the amount of the original investment;
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the proportion of cryptoassets within the taxpayer's total movable assets;
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the use of borrowed funds, leverage, or margin trading;
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the average holding period of the assets;
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whether automated trading software or bots are used.
In practice, cases involving a relatively limited number of transactions (no more than 36 per year), a limited initial investment (no more than €50,000), and a relatively limited share of crypto within the taxpayer's financial assets (no more than 25%) appear more likely to qualify for a positive decision.
For more information about advance decisions (tax rulings) concerning cryptoassets, please see our more detailed article. If you are uncertain about the tax classification of your crypto income or crypto capital gains, please see our detailed article in which the different tax categories and their treatment are explained further
Request a Prefiling for Your Crypto Transactions?
An application for an Advance Tax Ruling is, in principle, not submitted anonymously. In practice, however, we observe that in more complex or less straightforward cases, taxpayers often first opt for an anonymous prefiling through a representative, such as a law firm, before formally submitting a ruling request in their own name.
A prefiling request concerns a prior and informal discussion of a case with the Belgian Ruling Commission, during which it is generally assessed anonymously how the tax authorities may evaluate a specific situation or proposed transaction in the context of a formal ruling request. Neither the taxpayer nor the ruling commission is formally bound by the positions taken during this phase.
An anonymous prefiling may be particularly appropriate in borderline cases where it is uncertain whether the tax authorities will classify the situation as normal management of private assets or as miscellaneous or professional income. Because such prefilings are generally anonymous and do not disclose the taxpayer's identifying details, nothing is ordinarily 'lost' in practice. Merely presenting a situation informally does not automatically trigger a tax audit or further investigation.
If the prefiling indicates that the Belgian Ruling Commission sees little scope for a positive decision, all further options remain open because no formal personal ruling application has yet been submitted.
Need help?
The template should in principle be sufficiently clear to allow you to prepare an application for an Advance Tax Ruling yourself. Should you nevertheless have any questions regarding this template, encounter uncertainties when completing it, or be unsure whether your case may qualify for a ruling concerning the normal management of private wealth, you may always schedule a non-binding and free consultation with us.
Does the refusal of a tax ruling automatically mean that the income qualifies as miscellaneous income?
In practice, we observe that the Belgian Ruling Commission often adopts a particularly cautious and strict approach in crypto-related files. The conditions for obtaining a positive ruling confirming normal management of private assets are therefore relatively stringent in practice, and many investors do not fully meet all parameters applied within the ruling practice.
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However, failing to obtain a positive ruling does not automatically mean that the income constitutes miscellaneous or professional income. In practice, tax audits often involve a more pragmatic and comprehensive assessment based on all the specific facts and circumstances of the case.
The fact that the Belgian Ruling Commission is unwilling to issue a positive ruling does not necessarily mean that the income constitutes miscellaneous or professional income. A ruling is only an advance assessment made within an often very strict and cautious framework, whereas subsequent tax audits generally allow for a more pragmatic assessment. An advance decision should therefore be regarded as an additional form of tax certainty and peace of mind—more of a 'nice to have'—rather than an absolute requirement for relying on the normal management of private assets at a later stage.
Aeacus Crypto Lawyers is the only law firm in Belgium fully dedicated to crypto assets, crypto taxation, and digital wealth. We assist clients from A to Z with all legal and tax aspects of crypto, ranging from tax advice, tax regularisations, and wealth structuring to tax audits, repatriation of crypto assets to bank accounts, litigation, advance tax rulings, and interactions with tax authorities or financial institutions.
For completeness, we would also point out that cryptoassets are attracting increasing scrutiny from both the tax authorities and financial institutions. This is due in part to DAC8, the expansion of international data exchange between crypto platforms and tax authorities, and increasing scrutiny of transactions from crypto to bank accounts, and the introduction of the crypto capital gains tax means that investors increasingly require advance tax certainty and proper documentation of their crypto activities.
We therefore generally recommend first submitting an anonymous prefiling request. Such a prefiling is informal and non-binding, but it does allow a first indication to be obtained in advance regarding the position of the Belgian Ruling Commission. If it becomes clear during this phase that there is little scope for a positive decision, it can still be decided not to submit a formal ruling request.