How is it possible that a microscopic organism has caused the whole world to reset? The health crisis caused by COVID-19 has hit our well-being hard with an unprecedented socio-economic and social impact. Never before has the economy had to downscale itself so drastically without an economic reason to do so. As a result, this year, the Belgian economy is heading for the biggest economic contraction in its post-war history. The question is whether we – as [...]
BDO integrates Sustainable Development Goals As a consultancy firm with over 700 employees, we are more conscious than ever of our responsibility towards our employees, customers and stakeholders. ‘People helping people’ expresses our purpose and is completely in line with our DNA: BDO is committed, pragmatic, personal and respectful. Author: Michaël Van Cutsem, Partner BDO Public Sector Image: https://sdgs.un.org/goals Based on this vision, our strategy has integrated the Sustainable Development Goals [...]
How do you budget in times of corona? For many companies, it’s time to get to work on the annual budget. However, the economic impact of the COVID-19 health crisis is not making it any easier to define plans and budget for the coming year. After all, companies must anticipate various scenarios and take into account specific risks and opportunities within the business environment. But because lack of certainty is a poor advisor, we will attempt to answer [...]
All about the ‘carry back scheme’ Tax support promotes solvency during the COVID-19 crisis For many entrepreneurs, the coronavirus crisis is having a significant impact on their financial forecast for the current financial year. To avoid needlessly increasing costs, the government has launched the so-called carry back scheme. This is an early loss deduction for corporate, personal tax and non-resident income tax (companies/natural persons). Let us explain. Authors: Amber Van Landeghem, Advisor, Liesbeth Debusschere, Manager BDO [...]
How is Belgium interpreting the European DAC6 directive? BDO develops DAC6 reporting tool in a previous edition of To The Point (03/2019), we took a closer look at the reasoning behind, and implications of, the new DAC6 tax reporting obligation as set out in the European Directive 2018/822. Belgium transposed this directive into Belgian legislation in the nick of time. The tax administration subsequently published a list of Frequently Asked Questions to further clarify the reporting obligation. [...]
Do's and don’ts of the group contribution scheme, or tax consolidation The so-called Summer Agreement of 2017 on corporate tax reform introduced the group contribution scheme. Belgian legislation hereby gained a tax consolidation system, albeit in limited form. Author: Mady Francken, Senior Advisor BDO Tax Profit transfers The group contribution scheme centres on the idea of a profitable company within a corporate group transferring all or some of its profits to an affiliated company that [...]
“My accountant powered by BDO” – The Aion story Polish ‘banking Netflix’ links accountancy to banking Accountancy goes far beyond simply dealing with your VAT administration and drawing up a balance sheet. Our experts apply much of their time and know-how to making customers’ administrative processes optimal, automated and ‘dummy-proof’, and this also applies to our customers’ customers. Polish fintech firm Vodeno and its digital bank Aion offer SMEs a single integrated online platform for accounting and [...]
Searching for the X factor in tomorrow’s leadership In a world of exponential change, accelerating digital transformation and the COVID-19 crisis, human connections are an increasingly essential part of leadership. However, many managers struggle to connect deeply with their people and what motivates them. Jan De Schepper, executive director at BDO Digital, and Paul Van Den Bosch, coach to elite athletes, recently co-authored a book that explains how to do things better. Author: Laurien Van Nieuwenhove, Content [...]
Resumption of social elections process Due to the COVID-19 crisis, few or no employees have been physically present in the workplace, which has severely disrupted normal operations at many companies. As implementing the usual social election process was no longer feasible, the Group of Ten (the top employer and trade union negotiators) collectively decided to suspend the process. What happens now? Authors: Charlotte Van Braeckel, Junior Consultant, Johannes Pannus, Advisor BDO Social Legal On 17 March [...]
Teleworking from a legal, tax and ‘change’ perspective With working from home mandatory or recommended during the Covid-19 pandemic, companies are considering how to reorganise their work so as to structurally incorporate teleworking in the future. A survey by BDO reveals that, since the lockdown, 9 out of 10 Belgian employees and managers would like to work from home between one and three days a week. Do you want to embed teleworking in your organisation? If so, [...]
