Tax
ATN
Avantage de Toute Nature (benefit in kind, BIK, VAA in Dutch)
By the Finances Indépendants editorial teamUpdated on 3 min readAlso known as: Benefit in kind, BIK, VAA
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Contents
What is a benefit in kind?
A BIK is a benefit in kind granted by the company to its director or to a member of staff, free of charge or at a price below its value. The tax authorities regard it as a form of remuneration and tax it accordingly.
It is not valued at the actual cost borne by the company but according to a tax scale: a flat rate for most benefits and a formula for the car. The amount used can therefore differ considerably from the actual expense.
Benefits valued at a flat rate
For everyday benefits, the scale sets an amount that does not depend on actual cost, which simplifies reporting and makes the benefit predictable.
- Smartphone or tablet: €3 per month for the device, plus €4 per month for the phone subscription, making €7 per month in total.
- Laptop: €6 per month. Internet connection: €5 per month, counted only once whatever the number of devices.
- Heating: €2,560 per year for a director, €1,150 for any other beneficiary.
- Electricity: €1,280 per year for a director, €580 for any other beneficiary.
The car, the heaviest benefit
The company car does not follow a flat rate but a formula: BIK = catalogue value × [5.5% + (CO₂ − reference emissions) × 0.1%] × 6/7 × age coefficient
The amount therefore depends on the catalogue value, on CO₂ emissions compared with a reference level revised every year, and on the age of the vehicle. A floor of €1,690 per year applies whatever the result of the calculation.
Housing provided by the company
The housing BIK is calculated on the indexed cadastral income, using the formula: Indexed cadastral income × 100/60 × 2
The indexation coefficient for cadastral income is 2.3000 for income year 2026. The multiplier of 2 has applied uniformly since 2019, whatever the amount of the cadastral income. The amount is increased by 5/3 if the property is furnished. A company making a property available is one of the items most closely scrutinised in a tax audit, because the gap between the declared benefit and the real rental value can be large.
What a BIK really costs the director
The BIK is added to taxable remuneration and is therefore taxed at the director's marginal rate, up to 53.75% including municipal surcharges. A benefit valued at €3,000 a year thus costs several hundred euros in extra tax, with no visible cash outflow.
The trade-off is assessed by comparing this cost with the cost of the same expense paid privately, out of euros already taxed and subject to contributions. The BIK is often still the better option, but only after this calculation, not as a matter of principle.
Not to be confused with
The terms close to ATN and what sets them apart.
- ATN and expense claims
- An expense claim reimburses a business expense genuinely incurred for the company: it is not taxable. A BIK covers private use and is taxable income.
- ATN and employer's own costs
- Employer's own costs reimburse expenses the director pays upfront on behalf of the company. Unlike a BIK, they are not taxed in the director's hands.
Further reading
ATN: frequently asked questions
A good or service that the company provides to its director free of charge or at a reduced price: car, housing, heating, phone. It is valued using a tax scale, added to taxable remuneration and taxed under personal income tax.
At a flat rate, in two separate lines: €3 per month for the device and €4 per month for the subscription, making €7 per month. The flat rates for a laptop and an internet connection are separate and add to it.
€1,690 per year, whatever the result of the formula. Below that floor, this amount is used as the taxable benefit.
The company bears the actual expense, deductible under the rules specific to each item. The BIK, for its part, is taxed in the director's hands. These are two separate levels, and you need to add them together to assess the full cost.
Yes, in part. A personal contribution paid to the company is deducted from the taxable benefit, and can cancel it out entirely if it matches the amount. The payment must be real and documented.
Official source
- FPS Finance, benefits in kind. View (new tab)(Official source, accessed on 2026-09-19)