How are stock spinoffs taxed at the level of the common shareholder / Belgian individual ?
Is the distribution by a company (parent) A of the shares of the subsidiary (spin-co) B to the Belgian investor taxable as a dividend, subject to Belgian withholding tax at the rate of 30% (if it is paid to a Belgian securities account) ? And if that is the case, what is the taxable basis?
In a remarkable ruling dated 14 January 2022, the Court of appeal of Mons considered that the taxable dividend must be limited to the mere increase of the value of the participation (in A and B) after the spinoff (i.e., 28.995 €). The judges rejected the position of the Belgian tax authorities, according to which the full value of the shares of spin-co (i.e., 389.181 €) distributed to the shareholder must be taxable.
Read the itw of Denis-Emmanuel Philippe in the Belgian economic newspaper De Tijd.
