At Community Help Service (CHS), our mission is to provide vital support, counselling, and resources to those who need them most in our community. Every day, we see the profound difference that a listening ear and professional guidance can make in a person’s life.
If you are considering how to leave a lasting impact, we invite you to think about including CHS in your will.
A bequest, no matter how small, ensures that our services remain available for future generations who may need us.
One way to structure your gift is through a “Gift in Duo” (Duoligaat) arrangement. This is a thoughtful approach to estate planning that allows you to support a charitable organization like CHS while potentially optimizing the inheritance tax burden for your other heirs, particularly if they are not members of your family.
By structuring your bequest in this way, you can ensure that your generosity benefits both the causes you care about and the people you love.
Because inheritance law is complex and subject to regional regulations in Belgium, we strongly recommend discussing your wishes with a notary. They can guide you through the process, explain the current tax implications for your specific situation, and help you draft a will that accurately reflects your intentions.
If you would like to have a confidential conversation about how your gift can support our future work, please reach out to us at office@chsbelgium.org or 02.647.6780.
Thank you for considering CHS in your final plans. Your support helps us continue to be there for our community when they need it most.
Inheritance tax rates are set at a regional level so the first question is to establish whether you are tax resident in Flanders, Brussels Capital or Wallonia. Just note that the “Gift in Duo” arrangement is no longer available in Flanders. Needless to say, rates of tax differ from region to region but there are two general principles that are common between them – firstly, the more distant the connection between the person giving the legacy and the person receiving it, the higher the tax rate, and secondly, the larger the legacy on a sliding scale, the higher the tax rate. Of course, tax rates do change, but as an example using today’s (October 2026) rates, if you are living in Brussels and wish to leave a close friend €500,000 in your will, the excess over €175,000 will attract inheritance tax at the highest rate of 80% and give rise to a total tax liability of €358,750.
Not at all. The benefit of a “Gift in Duo” arrangement is that it enables you to leave more money, net of inheritance tax, to a distant relative or friend. But if you simply wish to include CHS as a beneficiary in your will, that can be done through your notary. Depending on the residence of the person making the gift, organizations such as CHS would pay inheritance tax at the rate of 0% for a gift made by a resident in Flanders, 7% in Wallonia and 25% in Brussels Capital.Â
With a “Gift in Duo” legacy, you bequeath a portion of your estate to CHS and the remainder to, for example, a godchild or a friend. (Note: You could equally leave a portion of your estate to a closer relative such as a niece, but as the inheritance tax rates that apply to this category of beneficiary are somewhat lower than a godchild or friend, the “Gift in Duo” legacy is a little less interesting). It is customary for the split to be 50:50 but this is not essential. However, as CHS becomes responsible for paying inheritance tax—not only on its own share of the estate but also on the portion left to your other beneficiary, it needs to receive a sufficiently large sum so as not to be out of pocket. Your notary will advise on this.
Let’s take a simple example. You are resident in the Brussels Capital region and wish to give €500,000 to your friend. The inheritance tax on this amounts to €358,750 leaving your friend with just €141,250. With a “Gift in Duo” arrangement you leave €250,000 to your friend and €250,000 to CHS on the understanding that CHS pays the full inheritance tax liability of both your friend and itself.
The inheritance tax on the gift to your friend of €250,000 amounts to €158,750. The inheritance tax on the gift to CHS is €62,500. CHS pays both amounts. As a result, your friend receives €250,000 – significantly more than the €141,250 they would have received without the duo legacy arrangement – and CHS retains a net amount of €28,750 – the original gift of €250,000 less your friend’s tax of €158,750 and CHS’s tax of €62,500.
The end result is that your friend receives a larger net amount, while CHS also benefits. It is a win-win arrangement, whether you reside in Brussels or in Wallonia.
Setting up a “Gift in Duo” legacy requires your will to be drafted with great precision to ensure that your wishes are upheld by the tax authorities. It is essential to consult a notary to validate the specific clauses that allow the beneficiary organization to pay inheritance taxes on behalf of your friend or distant relative.
Beyond the tax benefits, choosing a “Gift in Duo” legacy (a bequest shared between a chosen beneficiary and a charitable organization) is an act of lasting generosity toward the most vulnerable. Your bequest directly helps fund our work. By including CHS in your estate planning, you transform your legacy into a powerful force for helping those in need.
Yes, at any time. By stating in your new will that you revoke all previous wills, the most recently drafted will becomes the only valid one.
You are not required to notify CHS that you are drafting a will. However, you may choose to inform us of your intentions so that we can thank you and answer any questions you might have.
Yes, you can leave bequests to several causes or organizations. Depending on your wishes, you can specify a percentage of your estate or a particular distribution of your assets for each cause. However, do remember that, in Belgium, there are forced inheritance rules for children, spouses and co-habitees that need to be followed. Your notary can advise.
Your family can consult a notary of their choice, who will then get in touch with us if you have included CHS in your will.
You can draft a will at any point in your life, provided you are capable of expressing your wishes in a legally valid manner. It is advisable to consider this whenever you feel that the distribution of your estate as provided for by law does not align with your own wishes.
If you include a “Gift in Duo” legacy in your will, and you are resident in either Wallonia or the Brussels capital region, it would be wise to incorporate a safeguard clause, known as a subsidiary provision, to account for any potential future changes in legislation. This allows you to establish an alternative arrangement from the outset, in the event that new regulations, introduced before your passing, were to strip the “Gift in Duo” legacy of its benefits in Wallonia or Brussels.
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Disclaimer
Whilst we have made every effort to provide correct information in these FAQs, you should not rely on this. Before taking any decision or action you should take independent professional advice from a notary in Belgium.
