Are you a content creator on TikTok, living in Belgium, and you’ve amassed a nice following? Is it starting to pay off? Maybe with free products to try, sponsorships from companies, or via affiliate marketing? Congratulations! Sadly, we’ve got some news you probably don’t want to hear… you have to declare all this income to the tax authorities. We’ll also explain whether or not you’ll need to register as self-employed.
As a content creator, if you promote a product or business on your TikTok account and receive products or services in return, you generally have to report them. This also includes products you receive without asking for them, unless you return them.
If this is something that doesn't happen regularly, you don't need to become self-employed right away. In your tax declaration, you can mention these gifts under the category ‘avantages de toute nature’ / ‘voordeel alle aard’ (‘benefits in kind’).
For the reference value to mention in your declaration, this is the amount you would have paid for the item in a store. The company offering the gift also needs to provide you with a tax form. They can then deduct the product as a cost. With this form, you have the exact amounts and the necessary documents for your declaration.
💡 Accountable tip: If you promote products that have been gifted to you, always follow the rules to correctly indicate sponsored content (page available in French/Dutch) to avoid fines.
All income you earn as an influencer via TikTok must be declared to the Belgian tax authorities. The exact way to do so depends mainly on how much you earn with TikTok.
We’ll look at these situations in more detail below.
As soon as you regularly earn money online as an influencer, you must register as self-employed to carry out those activities. This generally involves becoming subject to VAT.
According to the Federal Public Service (FPS) Finance (page available in French/Dutch/German), ‘regular’ means that it’s not a one-off activity but that, for example, you make daily, weekly or monthly posts of a promotional nature for which you are paid.
There’s one exception where you don’t need to be a freelancer: you can take on a temporary assignment via a payroll service or workers' cooperative. If you choose this route, a company like Liantis or Smart will take care of the admin and you work under the status of employee.
💡 Accountable tip: If you’re a minor or a student and want to make money as a TikToker, take a look at this important information from the tax authorities (page in French/Dutch/German). It’s also worth noting that this can have significant consequences on the family allowance payments and the tax advantage for dependent children (page in French/Dutch/German) that your parents receive.
When you regularly earn money via TikTok, you therefore need some form of business. Often, it’s worth considering starting out being self-employed in a secondary occupation or as a student entrepreneur. If your taxable income remains below €25,000 per year, you can opt for the VAT exemption scheme for small businesses, which means you won’t have to charge VAT to your customers.
However, you will still need to issue invoices. You’ll also need to register with a social insurance fund. They can help you get registered with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (CBE).
If you earn enough, you become self-employed as your main activity at a later stage. From that point on, you’ll have to pay more social security contributions. And when you earn more than €25,000 per year, you become subject to VAT and need to charge VAT to your customers.
When things start going really well, it might be time to think about setting up a company. This has the advantages of better covering your risks and optimising your salary. Belgian corporate tax is only 25%, whereas when you’re self-employed with a sole proprietorship, you quickly reach the highest tax rate of 50%.
Unfortunately, there’s no easy answer, as it will depend on your status and income. But here are some things to keep in mind:
All this tax and admin isn’t exactly fun. There’s a lot to think about when you want to start making money with TikTok. Probably not what you had in mind when you started your creative endeavour. But don’t worry, we’re here to help – because digital progress hasn’t stopped at social media and video technology. We’ve made great strides in accounting software too.
With the Accountable app, for example, you can easily send invoices, quickly process your expenses and submit VAT and tax returns. You can manage your accounting completely by yourself with no risk, because Accountable guarantees all tax returns generated by the app. Our tax coaches are also always at your disposal.
Try Accountable now for free for 14 days!
Author - Valesca Wilms
As content marketing lead at Accountable Belgium, Valesca writes about freelancing, self-employment, and taxes based on her own experience as a freelancer.
Who is Valesca ?Thank you for your feedback!
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