Question about Dividend BE/Morocco

bru1234 · Dec 22, 2022

Hi guys,
i own a company in morocco, legit, providing b2b services and with employee/substance.
I never had any salary of it and now i wanted to get some money out of it.
But i don't know exactly how much i would have to pay in morocco and then in Belgium (where i live) if i distributed some dividend to myself...

As far as i remind, there is 15% tax to be paid in morocco.
Then the basic dividend tax in belgium is 30%.
Do i have to pay those 15+30% or are the first 15% withdrawn from the 30%?

So for 1000 itr would mean:
1* (1000-15%) -30%= 595€ left
2* (1000-15%) - (30%-15%)= 722.5€

First case is really bad. Second, i could accept if there is no other option.
Let me know your thoughts !

Sols · Dec 22, 2022

The amount you to pay and where you pay depend on whether there's a tax treaty between Morocco and Belgium and, if so, what the details of that treaty are. There seems to be a tax treaty between Morocco and Belgium, so the situation is probably not too bad (no double tax).

It's best to ask a tax adviser in Belgium, and maybe another one in Morocco as well. Belgium in particular has very complicated tax laws.

bru1234 · Dec 23, 2022

Hi,
there is a treatey indeed but it's not clear to me.
I Contacted a tax adviser and even if they know the answer, they are not going to answer me until i take an appointment and they can invoice me several hours for several lawyers (which means at least 2k€)... I am bored of such behaviour.

yomboloz · Dec 23, 2022

The dividend would be paid on the amount left AFTER the corporate tax.
So you would pay dividend (30%) on the 850 EUR left after the 150 EUR tax (from 1k EUR)
1000 EUR x 15% Corp tax = 850 EUR after tax, *30% dividend = 595 EUR

Make sure to check if there's a treaty between the 2 countries, you may be able to pay less.

bru1234 · Dec 23, 2022

Hi Tomyz,
there is indeed a treaty between both countries. However, it seems to complicate for me to really understand it.
I understand your calculation which is indeed the worst case. I wonder if the amount pay abroad (MO) could not be deducted from the amount paid here (BE)...

Sols · Dec 23, 2022

bru1234 said:
I Contacted a tax adviser and even if they know the answer, they are not going to answer me until i take an appointment and they can invoice me several hours for several lawyers (which means at least 2k€)... I am bored of such behaviour.

Ask around for quotes, but good tax advice isn't cheap.

I'm not sure what your options are, though. Belgium has some of the most convoluted tax laws in Europe. You can try reading the treaty and relevant laws yourself, but I know if I were in your position, I'd just pay an expert for it. As long as the dividend is big enough, it's cheaper to pay for advice than do something wrong.