USE
Another 2% salary increase for civil servants
Public sector wages will increase by 2% in April due to the overshoot of the central index in February. The month following this excess, allowances and pensions are indexed by 2% in order to adapt them to the cost of living. Salaries for civil servants follow a month later.
This is the second time this year that the salaries of civil servants have been indexed. This had also happened in February following the overshoot of the central index in December.
According to the Planning Office, a third overshoot of the central index is possible this year.
These frequent overruns are linked to significant inflation. It reached 8.04% in February, its highest level since March 1983, driven by high prices for energy products.
Increase in minimum income
The minimum wage will increase by 76.28 euros (excluding indexation) from April 1. This is the first step in the four-phase minimum wage increase negotiated between the Group of 10 social partners. In two subsequent phases (January 2024 and 2026), 35 euros gross will be added each time. It was then a question of an increase bringing the Guaranteed Average Monthly Minimum Income (RMMMG) to 1,700 euros per month during the first phase. But, the amount will be higher due to the various indexations since the pivot index has been exceeded three times since the date of signature of this agreement. Consequently, this will ultimately be 100 euros higher than expected and will amount to 1,806.16 euros.
Extension and strengthening of the employment bonus
The mini-taxshift that the federal government reached in early February also included an extension and strengthening of the employment bonus from April 1. This consists of a reduction in personal social security contributions for workers. The Minister of Social Affairs, Frank Vandenbroucke, says he wants to “reward more” those who work. The advantage is concentrated on the lowest wages: the lower the wage, the higher the benefit of the employment bonus. The upper limit of eligibility for this bonus has been expanded. From now on, people who earn up to 2,848 euros gross per month can also benefit from it, whereas the maximum limit was previously 2,772 euros. Concretely, this extension means that workers with a gross salary of 2,775 euros, who until recently did not meet the required conditions, will receive a net increase of 170 euros on an annual basis.
The bonus is also reinforced, which will increase the annual income of full-time workers whose gross monthly salary is between 1,800 and 2,750 euros by at least 160 euros. The peak even reaches 284 euros, for a person with a gross monthly salary of 1,850 euros.
The Vivaldi coalition has invested an additional 100 million euros in this bonus. “With this adaptation, we are increasing the purchasing power of those who work and more people will be able to benefit from the employment bonus and have more net money at the end of the month”, welcomed the minister on Sunday. Vandenbroucke.
This measure is in addition to the adaptation of the minimum wage which also comes into force on April 1: it will now be 1,806.16 euros gross per month. An additional amount of 35 euros gross will still be added in April 2024 and 2026. A fourth increase in the minimum wage is possible in April 2028.
MONEY
VAT on gas and electricity increases to 6%
VAT on gas and electricity will drop from 1 April from 21% to 6%, in accordance with the federal government’s agreement to reduce the bill for households faced with a sharp rise in energy prices. The measure will be in effect until September 30. The feds have already promised a reassessment and possible extension following that date if market prices remain high. Suppliers already have to reduce the VAT on the monthly installment invoice. The introduction of a single automatic reduction on the bill of 200 euros per home for all households that heat with oil or propane/butane gas is also planned, with retroactive effect from 1 January.
The extended social tariff, which benefits one million of the most vulnerable households, is also extended until September 30.
Petrol stations will have to display the average cost of fuel per 100 km
Service station owners will have to put up a poster indicating the average cost per 100 kilometers from next April 1. This new obligation applies to service station owners who offer at least three of the following types of fuel: petrol 95, diesel, LPG, electricity, hydrogen and CNG.
The poster must be updated quarterly and affixed in a clearly visible place at the pumps as well as in the stores of the service stations.
It was the European Union that initiated this measure aimed at better informing consumers regarding the prices of different types of fuel.
A maximum amount of 250,000 euros in the BNP Paribas Fortis savings account
BNP Paribas Fortis has decided to cap the maximum authorized amount of the regulated savings account at 250,000 euros from 1 April, compared to an unlimited amount currently. If the savings account exceeds 250,000 euros, the excess amount will then be made available on another deposit account already existing or opened for the occasion, with the same management parameters as the account at the origin of the transfer.
The account receiving the amount that exceeds the authorized threshold will have a credit interest rate of zero (0%).
According to the bank, more than 99% of BNP Paribas Fortis customers, Hello bank! and Fintro are however not affected by this measure.
ECOLOGY
Obligation to display in the “pesticides” section of garden centers and DIY stores
From April 1, garden centers and DIY stores will have to display a series of posters in the “pesticides” section to warn of the dangers of plant protection products on the environment and health. One of these posters takes up the general precautions for use (wearing gloves, spraying without human presence, use of recyparcs, etc.). The other three briefly present effective alternatives to protect once morest invasive weeds, insects or diseases in the garden.
Each of these posters will be equipped with a specific QR-code referring to a web page with more complete explanations.
A fund to clean up soil polluted by oil tank leaks
Operational from April 1, the Promaz fund will provide financial support to owners of defective oil tanks to clean up the soil. This fund is intended for any owner in Belgium or end user of an oil tank presenting or having presented a sealing problem (coming from the tank itself or its pipes), with proven soil pollution. Fuel oil tanks which have been taken out of service but which have caused pollution may also be the subject of an intervention. The aid covers buildings with a residential function (houses, apartments) but also non-residential (such as offices).
The text was published at the end of February in the Belgian Monitor following twenty years of negotiations with the oil sector, which finances the fund.
Applicants can register on the website www.promaz.be and check if they are eligible. The fund will then contact them.
Reduced VAT for solar panels, heat pumps and solar water heaters
The federal government has decided to reduce VAT to 6% for the purchase and installation of solar panels, heat pumps and solar boilers from April 1. This reduced rate already exists for houses over 10 years old. From April 1 to December 31, 2023, it will also apply to housing less than 10 years old, including newly built housing and housing rebuilt following demolition. The federal government recently decided to release 1.16 billion euros to reduce energy dependence on fossil fuels and accelerate the transition to sustainable energies. The investment package accompanies the decision to extend the life of the two most recent nuclear power plants.
The 1.16 billion released by the government are also intended, among other things, for the expansion of offshore wind capacity in the North Sea and the extension of the reduction in VAT to 6% on demolition and reconstruction.
VOYAGES
The boarding tax will come into force on April 1
The tax on boarding an airplane will come into force on April 1. It aims to encourage alternatives such as the train, for example, instead of “chip jump” flights. This tax, which concerns all the country’s airports, will be 10 euros for a passenger whose destination is not located more than 500 km as the crow flies from the busiest Belgian airport in the country (Brussels Airport at Zaventem), two euros for a passenger whose destination is further away but is located in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom or Switzerland, and four euros for a “long-haul” passenger whose destination is more than 500 km away and is located outside these various European countries.
Air Belgium, Brussels Airlines and TUI, however, regret this particularly unwelcome tax as the sector “tries to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, the most costly crisis and the most serious in its history.” Airlines are also concerned regarding the terms of implementation of such a measure.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Voo raises some of its rates
The Walloon telecom operator Voo will increase some of its tariffs from April 1 in order to adapt to the acceleration of inflation. These price increases will vary between 1 and 2.50 euros per month. In all, 35 rates will be increased. The subscription to cable television will for example increase from 22 euros to 23.50 euros per month, an increase of 18 euros per year. For offers marketed since November 2019, the increase will be between 1 and 2.50 euros. It will be between 55 cents and 2 euros for previous offers.
Voo usually adapts its prices on July 1st, but due to the acceleration of inflation, the operator had to adapt its timetable. All updated prices can be found on the operator’s website in the tariffs section
