Brussels Reporter
  • Home
  • Brussels
  • Europe
    • Europe

      Russians mark sixth anniversary of opposition figure Nemtsov’s…

      February 27, 2021February 27, 2021

      Europe

      Romania donates COVID-19 vaccines to Moldova

      February 27, 2021

      Europe

      Israelis celebrate Purim with parade amid tighter COVID…

      February 27, 2021February 27, 2021

      Europe

      UN Security Council unanimously adopts resolution demanding COVID…

      February 26, 2021February 27, 2021

      Europe

      Gunmen kidnap hundreds of girls from boarding school…

      February 26, 2021February 27, 2021

  • Globe
  • Lifestyle
  • Business

Brussels Reporter

  • Home
  • Brussels
  • Europe
    • Europe

      Russians mark sixth anniversary of opposition figure Nemtsov’s…

      February 27, 2021February 27, 2021

      Europe

      Romania donates COVID-19 vaccines to Moldova

      February 27, 2021

      Europe

      Israelis celebrate Purim with parade amid tighter COVID…

      February 27, 2021February 27, 2021

      Europe

      UN Security Council unanimously adopts resolution demanding COVID…

      February 26, 2021February 27, 2021

      Europe

      Gunmen kidnap hundreds of girls from boarding school…

      February 26, 2021February 27, 2021

  • Globe
  • Lifestyle
  • Business
Home Brussels Former Belgian commissioner De Gucht loses appeal against tax ruling
Brussels

Former Belgian commissioner De Gucht loses appeal against tax ruling

by editor May 5, 2019
May 5, 2019
Karel De Gucht, former federal minister and European commissioner, has lost a legal battle with the tax authorities over what they claimed was tax evasion.
The tribunal of first instance in Ghent was ruling on a dispute between De Gucht and his wife Mireille Schreurs on one side, and the tax authorities on the other. De Gucht had claimed tax relief in Belgium for losses made by the couple’s agricultural concern in Italy.

The taxman said that was not possible, and De Gucht was ordered to pay back the tax relief as well as a 50% penalty. De Gucht and his wife took the decision to court.

The court this week ruled in favour of the tax authorities. And, although the ruling states that De Gucht did not wilfully deceive the tax authorities, it did uphold a penalty, cutting it from 50% of the sum owed to 10%.

The case relates to 40,000 euros of losses made by the Italian company in 2010. The tax inspectors said those losses could not be deducted from Belgian taxable income, but the lawyer for De Gucht and Schreurs argued that a previous tax case involving the couple held that income from another company in Italy could be taxed. What applied for profits ought, the defence said, to apply equally for losses.

The other case remains to be adjudicated finally. In that case, dating back to 2005, De Gucht had made a profit of 1.2 million euros on the sale of shares in a zinc company. The tax authorities handed him a bill for more than 976,000 euros, which he contested. In February this year a court ruled the calculation had been based on improper investigation of the couple’s financial affairs, and struck it down. In the meantime, with delays and interest, the sum owed had run up to 1.5 million – more than the entire income from the sale in the first place.

However the Belgian state has appealed that ruling, and it will now be up to the court of appeal in Ghent to give a final ruling on whether or not De Gucht and his wife must pay.

Alan Hope
–
previous post
Brussels region celebrates its 30th anniversary
next post
Investigative journalism in focus at World Press Freedom Day in Brussels

Related Posts

Belgium to launch contact-tracing app in September

July 7, 2020

Police descend on Jehovah's Witness HQ after abuse...

May 1, 2019

The use of identity politics in Belgium’s labour...

February 25, 2019

Wallonia’s parliament passes key climate-change draft

December 19, 2018

Between 50 and 100 Gilets Jaunes demonstrate in...

December 23, 2018

Majority of Belgians oppose the arrival of refugees

May 4, 2019

Belgium’s population to top 13 million by 2070

January 24, 2019

Police intercept hundreds of kilos of drugs because...

May 23, 2019

Belgium and UK now connected by high-voltage cable

December 6, 2018

Belgian PM Alexander De Croo vows to “leave...

February 24, 2021
Promotion Image

Recent Posts

  • Russians mark sixth anniversary of opposition figure Nemtsov’s killing
  • Romania donates COVID-19 vaccines to Moldova
  • Pompeii: Archaeologists unveil ceremonial chariot discovery
  • Israelis celebrate Purim with parade amid tighter COVID restrictions
  • Venice: Low tides leave canals dry
Promotion Image

GO!

Lifestyle

  • Scientists are using satellites to count elephants from space for the first time

  • France: Hospital workers demand more resources to fight COVID-19

  • Alexei Navalny: Millions watch jailed critic's 'Putin palace' film

  • Covid vaccine: WHO warns of ‘catastrophic moral failure’

  • Belgium looks good in white

Popular Posts

  • 1

    Beware of scammING. Dirty money of famous bank

    October 6, 2020
  • 2

    Amazon rainforest plots sold via Facebook Marketplace ads

    February 26, 2021
  • 3

    North Korea: Russian diplomats leave by hand-pushed trolley

    February 26, 2021

Editor’s Choices

  • European Parliament will set up vaccination centers for MEPs, staff and locals

    January 21, 2021
  • Why ‘equal access’ to coronavirus vaccines is failing poor countries

    January 20, 2021
  • Merkel era may only just be beginning

    January 16, 2021

Opinions

  • Romania donates COVID-19 vaccines to Moldova

    February 27, 2021
  • In deal with Belgium, UK won’t vaccinate some British diplomatic staff at NATO and EU missions

    February 26, 2021
  • Ireland’s hotel quarantine plan dubbed ‘a holy mess’

    February 25, 2021

@2018-2021 - Brussels Reporter (www.brusselsreporter.com). All Right Reserved.