The Belgian Parliament adopted the law which transposes the new EU obligations of digital platform operators into Belgian legislation in accordance with the seventh amendment to the Directive on administrative cooperation in the field of taxation ( Council Directive (EU) 2021/514 – also referred to as DAC7). The new rules will become effective as from 1 January 2023 (hereafter: Belgian DAC7) and will replace the current Belgian regime for platform operators (hereafter Belgian mini-DAC7).

The Belgian DAC7 introduces due diligence and reporting obligations for platform operators. Furthermore, it sets the conditions for registration in Belgium by certain non-EU platform operators. In general, the DAC7 obligations apply with respect to the sale of goods, a personal service and the rental of immovable property or mode of transport by an individual or an entity. The reported information will be exchanged between EU Member States.

The scope of the Belgian DAC7 is broader than that of the current Belgian mini-DAC7 especially because the term “Reportable Seller” encompasses both individuals and entities (incl. group entities under certain conditions) and the term “Relevant Activity” also covers the sale of goods. It is important to note that under the DAC7 definitions, also a group entity may qualify as a platform operator in the context of other group entities under certain conditions.

How can KPMG help?

KPMG can help you with the following:

  1. Impact assessment: We can help you to perform a DAC7 impact assessment and identify any relevant obligations for your business under the Belgian DAC7 We recommend an impact assessment to any business which has a website or application that connects users and sellers, including entities which have group companies as sellers. You can also perform a preliminary impact assessment based on the European DAC7 Directive with the KPMG online assessment tool by clicking on ‘Atlas Assessment’.
  2. Due diligence: We can support you with identifying what information needs to be provided and how this can be gathered from your systems or through your customers. Collecting the right data for reporting purposes, including a proper verification and documentation thereof, is one of the biggest challenges to become DAC7 compliant. We can support you with a detailed data requirements assessment to identify where the required data is available and/or potentially still missing within your organization. Based on the outcomes of this assessment we can support to select and implement fit-for purpose (automated) data extraction and transmission solutions to extract the required information, leveraging existing data management platforms and solutions deployed for other purposes. We can also support with developing a common reporting framework, underpinned with technology solutions to streamline the several data processing steps, and with building a register required under the due diligence rules.
  3. Reporting: We can assist you to comply with your DAC7 reporting obligation in a timely and correct manner.
  4. Registration: If you are required to register for DAC7 purposes in an EU Member State (not applicable to EU platform operators), we can help you with registration in Belgium.