Tax
Year end for the self-employed: what should you settle before 31 December?
By the Finances Indépendants editorial teamUpdated on 4 min read
Summarise this article with
Contents
Which deadlines fall before 31 December?
Four payments must have arrived by 31 December at the latest: the provisional social security contribution for the fourth quarter, the PLCI premium you want to deduct this year, the pension savings payment and, if you trade through a company, the annual company contribution. Each counts for the year in which the money is paid, not the year in which you decide.
Allow a few days for a bank transfer: a premium paid on 31 December but credited in January may slip into the following year. The last advance tax payment and the November VAT return also fall in December; their exact dates are in the tax and social security calendar.
Who it concerns
What is at stake
Q4 social security contribution
Every affiliated self-employed person
3% surcharge if unpaid, PLCI deduction lost
PLCI/VAPZ premium
Self-employed with an agreement
Business expense in the year of payment
Pension savings
Every taxpayer
Tax reduction for the year
Company contribution
SRL/BV and other companies
Surcharge for each month late
Why pay your social security contributions before your PLCI?
Because the PLCI premium is only deductible if all social security contributions due for the year have been paid by 31 December. A premium paid while a quarter is still outstanding is not lost for your pension, but it no longer reduces your tax. The order matters: the social insurance fund first, the insurer second.
The costliest trap of 2026 comes from the crisis measures. The NISSE spells it out: a contribution exemption, even for a single quarter of 2026, prevents the deduction of 2026 PLCI premiums, and a payment deferral cancels the deduction of the premium paid this year. Before applying for either, weigh what you save against the tax avoided on a premium that can reach €4,086.34.
The amount you can pay depends on your revalued income from three years earlier: the PLCI/VAPZ page explains the rule and the PLCI/VAPZ simulator works out your own ceiling.
Pension savings: until when can you pay for 2026?
Until 31 December: the tax reduction applies to amounts paid during the calendar year, as shown on the 281.60 certificate. In 2026 you can pay up to €1,050 with a 30% reduction, which is €315 less tax, or opt for €1,350 at 25%, which only pays off above €1,260.
Only one contract counts per year: a second payment into another contract adds nothing. Pension savings can be combined with the PLCI, which remains the better deal for a self-employed person; the comparison PLCI or pension savings shows in which order to fill both.
Should you increase your provisional contributions at year end?
Yes, if your 2026 income is clearly higher than three years ago. Your provisional contributions are based on that older income; the NISSE lets you voluntarily pay higher instalments to avoid a large top-up when contributions are adjusted two to three years later.
The opposite is risky: lowering your instalments without justification leads to surcharges in the final statement. And for someone self-employed alongside a job, paying more than is due opens no extra social rights. The contributions simulator helps estimate the gap, and the page on how contributions are calculated explains the adjustment.
With a company: what is still left to pay?
The annual company contribution is due by 31 December at the latest, on top of the director's personal contributions. A company set up in October, November or December has until the last day of the third month after it was formed. Late payment triggers a surcharge for each month.
On the tax side, a personal income tax reform bill presented by the government plans to abolish the surcharge for insufficient advance tax payments for the self-employed without a company. Until FPS Finance confirms that it applies, treat the current rule as in force for your 2026 income. For the director's pay, see taking money out of your SRL/BV.
Further reading
The pages on this site that explore each of the points covered here in more depth.
- PLCI/VAPZ: the supplementary pension for the self-employedCeilings, social PLCI and tax on payout.
- PLCI/VAPZ simulatorWork out the maximum deductible premium before 31 December.
- PLCI or pension savingsIn which order to fill the two year-end envelopes.
- Unpaid social security contributionsSurcharges, repayment plans and effects on your rights.
- Investment deductionThe other deduction that depends on the purchase date.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. The NISSE states that a contribution exemption, even for a single quarter of 2026, prevents the deduction of 2026 PLCI premiums. A payment deferral has the same effect on the premium paid during the year. So compare what the exemption saves you with the tax the PLCI would have let you avoid.
You can, but only one contract gives entitlement to the tax reduction for a given year. The second payment does not lower your tax. In 2026 the ceiling is €1,050 with a 30% reduction, or €1,350 with a 25% reduction if you explicitly choose the higher ceiling.
By 31 December of the contribution year at the latest, into the account of the company's social insurance fund. A company set up in October, November or December has until the last day of the third month after it was formed. This contribution comes on top of the director's personal contributions and gives the director no rights.
The fund applies a 3% surcharge on the unpaid part at the end of the quarter, then again each following quarter. Above all, the year's PLCI premium is no longer deductible, since all social security contributions due must be paid by 31 December. Ask the fund for a repayment plan before arrears build up.
Topics covered
Topics covered: self-employed before 31 December Belgium · year end self-employed tax Belgium · pay PLCI before 31 December · pension savings deadline payment · Q4 social security contribution self-employed · company contribution 31 December · contribution exemption PLCI deduction.
Official sources
- NISSE, La pension libre complémentaire pour les indépendants (PLCI), c'est quoi?. View (new tab)(Official source, accessed on 2026-10-15)
- NISSE, Difficultés suite à la crise énergétique: facilités de paiement. View (new tab)(Official source, accessed on 2026-10-15)
- NISSE, Quand dois-je payer la cotisation à charge des sociétés?. View (new tab)(Official source, accessed on 2026-10-15)
- FSMA, Quel montant de cotisations peut-on verser ?. View (new tab)(Official source, accessed on 2026-10-15)
- FPS Finance, Épargne-pension. View (new tab)(Official source, accessed on 2026-10-15)
- news.belgium.be, Réforme du Code de l'impôt des personnes physiques – deuxième lecture. View (new tab)(Official source, accessed on 2026-10-15)
Read next
On the same topic
Tax
Investment deduction: how much extra can a self-employed person deduct?
Basic, thematic or technology deduction: what the self-employed deduct on top of depreciation when they invest, the exclusions and how to use form 276U.Social contributions
Unpaid social security contributions: what late payment costs and how to get out of it
An unpaid quarter costs 3% per quarter of delay, then 7% on 1 January. Worked example, waiver of surcharges and repayment plans for the self-employed.Statutory pension
When a self-employed person dies: survivor's pension or transition allowance for the spouse?
Self-employed spouse deceased: survivor's pension or transition allowance by age, 18 to 48 months, a 12-month claim deadline and a tax trap to plan for.