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Tax & VATRegulatory

VAPZ 2026: pay by 31 December, new maximum €4,251.39

Belgian self-employed: your 2026 VAPZ must reach the provider by 31 December. New ceiling 8.50%, up to €4,251.39 (social VAPZ €4,891.60).

By Artem Kuznetsov, founder

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What matters now

Effective now
Law of 20 July 2026 (Official Gazette 12 October 2026): VAPZ ceiling 8.50% (social 9.78%) for 2026, up to €4,251.39 or €4,891.60. Open to secondary activity with contributions due on at least €1,922.16.
Next date
31 December 2026: the 2026 premium must be on the provider's account. Later payments count for 2027.
Main impact
On a reference income of €40,000, the normal VAPZ maximum rises from €3,268 to €3,400; at the cap, from €4,086.34 to €4,251.39.
Action today
Ask your provider for your 2026 maximum at 8.50%, top up if you were billed at 8.17%, and pay in the first half of December.

Sources

  1. 01Law of 20 July 2026 amending the programme law (I) of 24 December 2002, Belgian Official Gazette 12.10.2026, numac 2026007037
  2. 02Chamber of Representatives, doc 56-1611/001: bill and explanatory memorandum
  3. 03Programme law (I) of 24 December 2002, art. 42, 44 and 46: VAPZ
  4. 04FPS Finance circular 2026/C/93 (15 October 2026): maximum deductible VAPZ contribution for 2026
  5. 05Xerius: VAPZ maxima and conditions (provider page)

Pay your 2026 VAPZ so that it is on your provider's account by 31 December 2026. A law published on 12 October 2026 raises this year's ceiling to 8.50% of your reference income, up to €4,251.39 for a normal VAPZ, and to 9.78%, up to €4,891.60, for a social VAPZ. If your provider billed you at the old 8.17%, you can still top up before the end of the year.

The same law opens the VAPZ to self-employed people in a secondary activity (bijberoep) whose social contributions are due on at least €1,922.16 of income. If you could not open one before because your side activity earned too little, look again this year.

How much can I pay into my VAPZ for 2026?

The ceiling is a percentage of your reference income, with an absolute cap:

PercentageMaximum 2026Before the new law
Normal VAPZ8.50%€4,251.398.17%, €4,086.34
Social VAPZ (with solidarity cover)9.78%€4,891.609.40%, €4,701.54

Your reference income is the income your provisional social contributions for 2026 are based on: normally your net taxable professional income of three years ago, revalued. If you started recently, it is the minimum income your contributions are calculated on. Your social insurance fund or your VAPZ provider can give you the figure.

The absolute maximum is what 8.50% (or 9.78%) gives on a reference income of €50,016.36. Above that income, the cap applies.

What does that mean in euros?

Three examples, each with a reference income that is already revalued:

  • Reference income €40,000. Normal VAPZ: up to €3,400 (it was €3,268 at 8.17%). Social VAPZ: up to €3,912 (it was €3,760).
  • Reference income €60,000. That is above the cap, so €4,251.39 for a normal VAPZ or €4,891.60 for a social one: €165.05 or €190.06 more than the old maxima.
  • Secondary activity, reference income €8,000. Eligible now, provided contributions are due on at least €1,922.16. Normal VAPZ up to €680, social VAPZ up to €782.40.

The premium is deductible from your professional income. At the 50% top rate, €3,400 of VAPZ saves €1,700 in personal income tax, plus the municipal surcharge on that amount. Because it lowers your net professional income, it also lowers the income your final social contributions for 2026 are calculated on.

When does the payment have to arrive?

The deduction follows the year in which you pay. To count for 2026, the premium has to be on your provider's account by 31 December 2026, a Thursday. A transfer sent on the last day may only arrive in January, and then it counts for 2027, not 2026. Pay in the first half of December.

Whatever you pay above your 2026 maximum is not deductible.

I have a secondary activity. Can I open a VAPZ now?

Yes, if your social contributions are calculated on at least €1,922.16 of annual professional income, the amount for 2026. Until this law, a VAPZ in a secondary activity was only possible if you paid at least the minimum contributions of a full-time self-employed person. People who have just started a secondary activity, who were excluded before, now qualify on the same condition.

The law also makes explicit that you may always pay the minimum premium, even when the percentage gives less. Several providers set that minimum at €100.

What should I do before 31 December 2026?

  1. Ask your provider for your 2026 maximum at 8.50% (or 9.78%). A premium notice sent before October may still show 8.17%.
  2. Decide how much you want to pay. A VAPZ is paid out at retirement, so put in only money you will not need before then.
  3. Pay early enough for the premium to be on the provider's account by 31 December 2026.
  4. If you have a secondary activity, check whether your contributions are due on at least €1,922.16, and if so, open a VAPZ this year.
  5. Make sure your social contributions for 2026 are paid. If you were granted an exemption from contributions for part of the year, the premium for that year is in principle not deductible; your fund can confirm.

How social contributions themselves are calculated is in the guide to Belgian social contributions. The other dates that take money out of your account this year are in the cash-flow calendar for 2026.

The law of 20 July 2026 amending the programme law (I) of 24 December 2002 (Belgian Official Gazette 12 October 2026, numac 2026007037) raises the VAPZ ceiling from 8.17% to 8.50% (social VAPZ 9.78%) and opens the VAPZ to secondary-activity self-employed with contributions due on at least €1,922.16. Per the explanatory memorandum, both apply to the 2026 contribution year. 2026 maxima: €4,251.39 normal, €4,891.60 social. The premium must be on the provider's account by 31 December 2026.

Which law, and from when?

Law of 20 July 2026 amending the programme law (I) of 24 December 2002 (FPS Social Security), Chamber doc 56-1611, adopted in plenary on 16 July 2026, published in the Belgian Official Gazette of 12 October 2026, numac 2026007037.

Art. 4 sets entry into force on the day of publication: 12 October 2026. The explanatory memorandum (doc 56-1611/001, on art. 4) states that the changes apply for the first time to the VAPZ contribution for income year 2026, both the higher rate and the extension to secondary activity, and that contributions already paid for 2026 may still be increased to the new maxima.

What changes in the programme law?

ProvisionChange
Art. 44 §2/3, second para., and §2/5 a) and b)8.17% becomes 8.50%
Art. 46 §1 (unchanged)Social VAPZ stays 15% above the normal ceiling: 8.50% × 1.15 = 9.775%, rounded to 9.78% (was 9.40%)
Art. 44 §2, new para.Where the percentage gives less than the minimum contribution of §2/3, the minimum applies
Art. 42, 3°, b)Secondary-activity threshold moves from art. 12 §1 second para. of RD no. 38 (the full-time minimum) to art. 12 §2 first para. (the secondary-activity threshold): €1,922.16 for 2026
Art. 42, 3°, f)Replaced; refers to art. 13bis §2, 1°, 2°, 4°, 7° and 9° of RD no. 38. Per the memorandum, this admits secondary-activity starters (13bis §2, 4°), previously excluded, on the same €1,922.16 condition

The memorandum adds that main-activity self-employed under art. 37 of the general regulation (RD of 19 December 1967), assimilated to secondary activity, are admitted on the same threshold.

What are the 2026 maxima?

RateAbsolute maximum 2026Previous 2026 figure
Normal VAPZ8.50%€4,251.39€4,086.34 (8.17%)
Social VAPZ9.78%€4,891.60€4,701.54 (9.40%)

The rate applies to the income on which the 2026 provisional contributions are based, in principle the net taxable professional income of three years earlier, revalued. The absolute maxima correspond to a reference income of €50,016.36. These are the amounts the providers now apply; the FPS Finance replaced its earlier 2026 figures (circular 2026/C/53) with circular 2026/C/93 of 15 October 2026.

Worked figures

Reference incomeNormal VAPZSocial VAPZ
€40,000€3,400 (was €3,268)€3,912 (was €3,760)
€60,000 (capped)€4,251.39 (+€165.05)€4,891.60 (+€190.06)
€8,000, secondary activity€680€782.40

At a 50% marginal rate, a €3,400 premium reduces personal income tax by €1,700 before the municipal surcharge. The premium also reduces net professional income, and so the base of the definitive 2026 social contributions.

Payment date and deduction

  • The premium is deductible as a social contribution in the year of payment. For 2026 it must be on the provider's account by 31 December 2026 (a Thursday). Later receipt moves it to 2027.
  • Any amount above the 2026 maximum is not deductible.
  • The deduction assumes the client's social contributions are in order. For a year with an exemption from contributions, the premium is in principle not deductible; providers check this before issuing the tax certificate.

For the file

  • Clients billed at 8.17% before 12 October 2026: recompute at 8.50% (or 9.78%) and offer a top-up before 31 December.
  • Secondary-activity clients, including starters, with contributions due on at least €1,922.16: newly eligible for 2026.
  • Record the date the provider booked the premium, not the transfer date.
  • If a client quotes an older page or premium notice with 8.17% or €4,086.34 for 2026, point to the law in the Official Gazette of 12 October 2026.

Contribution mechanics are in the guide to Belgian social contributions; year-end dates in the cash-flow calendar for 2026.