“Quarter of government proposed tax returns contain errors”
A quarter of proposed tax returns sent out by the authorities contain errors says the Christian trade union, the ACV. The union helps its members fill out tax returns and this is their conclusion. They urge taxpayers who receive a ready-made tax return proposed by the tax department to check it carefully. So what should you check (or have checked)?
Since yesterday taxpayers can fill in and submit their tax returns. About 4 million people have already received a proposal of a simplified return called VVA. This is a tax return on which a whole series of details have already been filled in using the data that the finance ministry is already aware of.
The VVA is sent out to people who receive a salary, a pension or benefits, but get no other "special" income from, say, real estate or from activities as a self-employment person.
This year, the number of people receiving a VVA has risen. This year’s proposals also include childcare costs. These costs are included provided they have been forwarded to the finance department in time by the childcare organisations.
People receiving income from the share economy (e.g., second-hand websites) or from voluntary work can also expect to receive a proposal that has already been filled in.
1 in 4 proposed tax returns may contain errors
Although the VVA is a handy instrument, it's good to take a good look at it. It is not uncommon for mistakes to creep in, says the Christian trade union, which helps its members fill out their tax returns. "When we check returns, roughly 1 in 4 of them require us to make adjustments. So 1 in 4 returns may contain errors that can be to people's disadvantage," says Ive Rosseel, one of the union’s tax consultants.
"The taxman is not always, or not always in time, aware of all your income and expenses that need to be taken into account for tax purposes," Rosseel says. He makes it clear that not every mistake is the tax department’s fault. "There are things that the tax authorities don't know about but which have tax consequences. For example, if you have shares or dividend payments, you can recover some of the withholding tax through your tax return, but the tax authorities don't have that information at their fingertips. People still have to fill that in themselves if they wish to benefit."
In addition, there is information that the taxman does know about, but which is difficult to integrate into the tax return, Rosseel says. "For example, dependent children who are not correctly declared in cases of co-parenting, loans and long-term savings.... That all makes a big difference."
There are sometimes also problems with child care expenditure. This year, however, this expenditure already appears in the simplified tax returns. "We will now check whether this information is actually correct," says Rosseel.
Personal responsibility
As a taxpayer, you are personally responsible for your tax return, even if it is a simplified return proposal. "If you don't adjust anything in Tax-on-web, that proposal is just going to be accepted after the filing deadline has passed. If you notice an error when you receive the assessment notice afterwards, you can still file an objection within the deadline to get it corrected. If you don't discover it until a year or two years later, then that's already much more difficult."
What is the best way to check your simplified tax return?
The union offers some tips when scrutinising the return proposed by the tax authorities:
Are all children and all other family members who are dependents listed? Children who do student jobs or people working in subsidised jobs are not always included. This also goes for live-in parents or other dependents.
Some taxpayers who are entitled to 'severe disability' don’t have this marked, while others who do not qualify are down for it.
If you bought, sold or inherited a house or land in 2022 or 2023, check the cadastral income very carefully. Chances are that the tax authorities have not yet taken it into account.
If you have repaid unemployment or disability benefits, you must manually add and/or deduct them from the assessment for the last calendar year in which you received any amounts.
Gifts are not always listed. Maintenance payments paid or received must be added manually. If you have shares and received dividends on them, you can often recover the withholding tax: you must also add that to the tax return yourself.
Last year, you had to add childcare expenses yourself; as of this year, these costs should already be filled in but it is still advisable to check this carefully.
Loans, debt insurance and long-term savings are sometimes listed, sometimes not. You can optimise the tax benefit by listing the maximum amount on the return of the partner with the highest income, and the balance on that of the other partner.
If it is applicable, you should also look at the exemption from employer's contribution to the costs of commuting, the lump sum for distant travel, job seekers’ union contributions and the additional supplement to the tax-free sum for those who are married or legally cohabiting with a partner with little or no income.
If you have a foreign bank account, salary, pension or second home, you must also always add these yourself, as the tax authorities only fill in the Belgian data.
Finally: have your tax return checked by someone who knows about these things. This can be done at your local finance department office, at your union or by an accountant or a tax expert...