Almost all companies are experiencing the consequences of the worldwide spread of the Covid-19 virus on a daily basis. In order to alleviate the economic suffering, the federal government has developed a series of support measures.
One of these measures concerns NSSO contributions: on the one hand, a deferral of NSSO contributions is provided for, on the other hand, a repayment plan.
Postponement of payment of social security contributions
The NSSO grants until December 15, 2020 Deferral of payment of all NSSO contributions (employer contributions, employee contributions and special contributions) still due as of March 20, specifically:
- the contributions concerning the 1ste quarter 2020
- the contributions concerning the 2the quarter 2020
- The annual contribution for workers' annual leave (normally collected during the month of April)
- any outstanding contributions as a result of a regularization of contributions;
- the monthly instalments of an already running amicable repayment plan that an employer may have obtained from the NSSO.
Note: this is a postponement of payment, but not a postponement of the NSSO declarations that still need to be filed within the normal legal deadlines (by your social secretariat).
There are several types of procrastination:
1. Mandatory closing: automatic deferral of payment
If your company belongs to one of the sectors affected by compulsory closure, such as the catering industry, recreational activities (culture, sport) and non-essential stores, an automatic extension is granted. You can immediately see whether your company benefits from this automatic postponement by entering your company number on the following page of the NSSO website: https://www.uitstelrszbetalingen.be/covid
2. Company's decision to close: postponement after prior declaration
Companies that close because they cannot apply the necessary sanitary measures at work ('social distancing'), or for any other reason (e.g. closure of their suppliers) which has forced them to stop their entire production and sales , will be able to obtain deferment of payment based on a 'declaration in honor' from the company.
If your company wants to take advantage of this deferral, you must fill out this "declaration on honor" in the online form on the website www.socialsecurity.be. Please note that this is a secure application that requires you to sign in to that portal with your company's account (so if your company does not already have an account, your company must first register on that site to gain access).
3. Other companies?
For other companies that are not targeted by a mandatory closure, but whose economic activity is falling sharply before the second quarter of 2020, the NSSO says it will issue instructions on the extent to which they may be able to obtain a deferral of payment.
Amicable repayment plan
Your company can also choose to apply for an instalment plan with the NSSO if your company has payment difficulties due to the spread of the coronavirus. An instalment plan allows your company to pay the NSSO contributions relating to the 1ste and 2the quarter 2020 over a longer period of up to 24 months to be paid through monthly payments.
The application for an installment plan may be submitted through a online form on the portal www.socialezekerheid.be. In the application, state how many monthly payment installments your company requires and justify how your company is affected by the spread of the Corona virus.
In principle, the NSSO communicates within a period of ten working days of its decision on the requested installment plan in writing.
Note: even if your company has obtained instalments from the NSSO, the legally determined sanctions will be charged in the event of payment of contributions after the normal due date, i.e. contribution surcharges (10%) and interest on arrears (7% per year) calculated on the principal amount of the NSSO contributions still due. It is therefore in your interest to limit the number of instalments as much as possible. After all, interest on arrears and contribution surcharges are charged for as long as social security contributions are owed.
On the other hand, if your company has obtained an instalment plan approved by the NSSO and as long as the monthly instalments of that plan are observed, no arrears will be reported to the NSSO (important, among other things, in relation to the NSSO's obligation to withhold taxes from the principal who uses a company to carry out real estate work).
In short:
- If your company falls within the scope of the postponement of payment of social security contributions until December 15, 2020 (after about 9 months of postponement, you then pay the social security contributions still due in one go without any additional costs), it is advisable to make use of it.
- If you anticipate that your company will need an extended period of time to make the NSSO contributions of the 1ste and 2the quarter 2020, it is best to apply for an instalment plan from the NSSO whereby you can pay for a maximum of 24 months (but with additional costs taken into account). If your company does not fall within the scope of the deferred payment, an instalment plan can also provide temporary relief.
If you need help or advice to use any of the above support measures, we will be happy to help. Contact us at 051 26 82 68 or by email to info@titeca.be.
Finally, we would like to inform you that we at Titeca have taken all the necessary measures in connection with the coronavirus and are closely following the recommendations of the FPS Public Health. In order to avoid contamination of employees and customers within the offices, we have all digital tools deployed so that our employees from home be able to work.
We stay as always reachable on the known phone number and/or via mail. In addition, we also provide permanency in the offices from Monday through Friday.
