What will change for your money in July?

In July, some things will change again that could have an impact on your finances. Like every month, we highlight the most important changes.

Building a retirement bonus

You can build up a retirement benefit from 1 July if you defer your pension and continue working.

• The bonus can be accumulated for a maximum of three years with a maximum of 312 days per year and 936 days in total. Time credit days, professional leave and Flemish care credit are not counted.
• Your retirement benefit can increase significantly each year. One year of overtime means a net bonus of €3,775, two years €11,325 and three years €22,650.
• There is a ceiling on the total of the statutory pension, supplementary pension and retirement benefit. This may not exceed a total of €7,969.68 per month. If the total amount is higher due to the retirement bonus, the bonus will be automatically determined.

The social rate for electricity decreases and increases for natural gas

The social rate for electricity will decrease from July 1, while the social rate for natural gas will increase. This is shown by calculations made by the Federal Energy Regulatory Authority CREG.

• Compared to the second quarter, the social rate for electricity decreased by 5.5%, and increased by 2.9% for natural gas and heat.

KBC Basic Account is no longer free

The basic KBC account will no longer be free for adults as of July 1. The formula remains free for customers under 24 years of age. Even for customers with a paid KBC Plus account, a KBC Basic account with matched account holders remains free.

• All other customers must pay 2 euros per month to the current account from the beginning of the summer holidays.
• According to the financial institution, this price adjustment is necessary because customers want to use additional services and functions. “We want to meet this demand, but in order to continue to ensure the overall service at the same high level and develop new applications that save customers money and time, KBC is adjusting the account offer,” KBC said.

The amount of mobility premiums exempted by the RSZ increases

The maximum amount of the RSZ-exempt mobility bonus will be increased on July 1 to EUR 0.1929 per kilometre. This was reported by the HR service provider Acerta.

• A commuting allowance is a fixed compensation for employees who have to travel to non-fixed workplaces, such as shipyards.
• The increase in the ceiling does not mean that the amount at the sectoral level automatically increases, as it is not mandatory to grant the maximum amount. The minimum amount is determined in the sectoral collective labour agreements.

Financial compensation for cancer patients

Two new measures are supposed to ease the social and financial consequences for people facing cancer from 1 June.

• There will be better reimbursement for dental care for people with cancer. This relates to difficult dental repairs such as a metal frame, bone graft, abutment, bridge or crown.
• In addition, the government will reimburse up to 120 euros for the purchase of head accessories for hair loss after chemotherapy or radiotherapy.

Last chance to file your tax return

Anyone who completes their tax return on paper has until June 30 to do so.

• The deadline will be pushed back to July 15 for those using Tax-on-web. The tax authorities expect the complex returns to reach their mailbox by October 16 at the latest.
• Tax authorities announced last week that more than half of the tax returns that must be filed online via MyMinfin have already been filed. “800,000 out of a total of 2 million online ads have not been received yet,” said Francis Adens of FPS Finance.

Flemish road tax hike

Flemish road tax will increase by 3.4% on July 1. This is the result of annual indexation. Last year the index was 5.2%.

• The registration tax (BIV) will also increase by 3.4 percent. The minimum amount ranges from €53 to €54.78, and the maximum from €13,249.15 to €13,694.25.

In Brussels, BIV rates are rising

Brussels residents who register a new car from July 1 will have to pay a higher BIV. The Brussels government has agreed to increase these rates by 20.79 percent.

• The BIV is only due when the vehicle is registered, and road tax must be paid every year. The latter tax has been indexed annually for some time.

Increased contribution to (youth) football.

Voetbal Vlaanderen will increase the so-called union contributions per player from July 1.

• The federation contribution is the amount that clubs must pay to the federation for each player. In concrete terms, for a 9-year-old footballer, this concerns an increase from 4.3 to 12.4 euros. An 18-year-old paid 10.10 euros last season, and it will be 16.5 euros next season.

Do you want to stay up to date with everything happening in the financial world? Niels Silens, a journalist with a passion for finance, follows everything closely. You can subscribe to his daily newsletter via this link.