Softwares & copyrights
Introduction Are IT creations designed by IT consultants considered as original works in the light of the law of the Belgian Code of Economic Law? Typical original works include: Software architecture in its look & feel The user interface design; Documentation related to the created software; Softwares created for the end-users (co-authorship) Applications design ; Architecture and design of information systems; Design and development of component architecture and building blocks; ... Let's have a look at the Belgian favorable tax & legal regime for IP/IT. Author’s rights specific legal & tax regimes The main interest of qualifying work as "original" in light of the Belgian Code of Economic Law is the protection offered by author’s rights to forbid the utilization by a third person of the original pieces of work. A law of 16 July 2008 published in the Belgian Official Gazette of 30 July 2008 and entered into force on 1 January 2008, reformed taxation of copyright and related rights, which now enjoys a way more favorable regime. The aim of the new legal provisions is to group all the incomes resulting from the sale or license rights of the copyright and neighboring rights under one qualification and thus characterize them as movable incomes subject to a withholding tax of 15%, in so far as they do not exceed the amount of 62.090 euros (incomes of 2020, tax year 2021). Beyond that amount, copyrights may either remain characterized as movable incomes or become professional incomes. In this latter case, they are added to any other professional incomes and subject to the progressive tax rates of the individual income tax. In addition, lump-sum expenses or costs may be deducted from gross royalty incomes: 50% for [...]