Banking and compliance - Belgium
Business Bank Account in Belgium
An AML-ready file and the right account sequencing: the Art. 7:12 deposit before an NV/SA's deed, or the statutory fallback after a refusal.
- No state fee for opening the account itself
- NV/SA: the account is a gate, not a convenience (Art. 7:12 CSA)
- Statutory fallback after three refusals
A Company Account, Not a Personal One
This page covers a Belgian company's own bank account: opening one, sequencing it against incorporation, and the statutory route if banks refuse. A founder's personal or expat account is a separate question with its own rules and its own guide.
What's Included in Our Business Bank Account Service
Five things happen before an account opens, and one line about where the service stops. Substance evidence, including giving a Belgian company a registered seat without renting an office, is one of four things a bank tests before it opens a file.
-
The AML File a Bank Actually Tests
UBO identification and the shareholding chain, documented source of funds and wealth, the economic rationale for a Belgian entity, and substance evidence.
-
Sequencing Against Incorporation
The NV/SA's Art. 7:12 deposit, EUR 61,500, must exist before the notarial deed. A BV/SRL's Art. 5:9 deposit follows the same mechanism, with no fixed minimum.
-
Advice on Institution Class
Only a credit institution under Art. 4(1)(1) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 can hold the Art. 7:12 deposit. An electronic money institution cannot.
-
The Statutory Fallback Application
Where at least three credit institutions have refused a registered, or registration-pending, enterprise, we prepare and file the application to the Basic Banking Service Chamber at the FPS Economy.
-
Timing the UBO Filing
Filed complete and accurate before, not after, the bank conversation: since 1 September 2026 banks can read the register's supporting documents directly.
-
What This Service Does Not Include
Not a bank, and no promise that an account will open. Not the Basic Banking Service Chamber. Not a fix for a company that does not exist yet.
How the Process Works
- Decide the form. An NV/SA's Art. 7:12 deposit, EUR 61,500, must sit on an EEA credit institution's account before the deed. A BV/SRL follows the same Art. 5:9 rule, no minimum.
- Assemble the AML file before approaching anyone. Identity and UBO documents, the shareholding chain, documented source of funds and wealth, the economic rationale, and substance evidence. Duration: days to weeks, driven by the client.
- Choose the institution. For the Art. 7:12 deposit, a credit institution under Regulation (EU) No 575/2013, established in the EEA, not necessarily Belgian; an electronic money institution cannot hold it.
- Open the account and obtain the certificate. The bank issues the deposit certificate for an NV/SA; funds are returned on request if the company is not incorporated within one month (Art. 7:12 CSA).
- The deed. The certificate goes to the notary, in paper or, since 25 July 2021, electronically with a qualified electronic signature.
- File and register the UBO. Filing within 30 days of the deed; legal personality on filing; the online route in 10 or 5 working days. UBO filing follows within 30 days, before the bank conversation.
- If banks refuse: the statutory route. Once three credit institutions have refused a registered, or registration-pending, enterprise, apply to the Basic Banking Service Chamber. The statute allows about a month once the file is complete; the FPS Economy states two months, then ten working days to open. Not a fix for a company that does not exist yet.
Documents You Need to Provide
A ready-made company does not skip this step: see shelf company belgium; its account still needs its own AML file.
- Identity and proof of address for every director and beneficial owner
- The shareholding chain up to the natural persons
- The Belgian UBO filing itself, complete, via ForReg if no Belgian eID
- Documented source of funds and source of wealth, not asserted
- Evidence of the economic rationale: customers, suppliers, contracts
- Substance evidence: a local director, a real address, real activity
- For an NV/SA, the EUR 61,500 capital deposited before the deed
- For the statutory route: KBO proof, the three refusals, the sworn declaration
No statutory document list exists for an ordinary account, and no bank publishes a binding one; the items above describe what AML supervision requires a bank to establish.
Not Sure Whether an NV/SA or a BV/SRL Changes Your Deposit Rule?
The deposit rule follows the company form you choose, not a separate decision.
What the Belgian State Charges
Belgium charges nothing for opening the account itself, stated here next to what the adjacent steps actually cost.
| What | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Opening the business bank account itself | Nothing | No state fee attaches to opening the account |
| Statutory basic banking service (three-refusal route) | Charged or free | At the designated provider's discretion; no tariff published |
| KBO/BCE registration, per establishment unit | EUR 111.50 | 2026 tariff, indexed annually |
| Moniteur belge, incorporation, electronic filing | EUR 236.50 excl. VAT / EUR 286.17 incl. | Tariff from 1 March 2026 |
| Moniteur belge, incorporation, paper filing | EUR 292.90 excl. VAT / EUR 354.41 incl. | Same tariff page |
No fee of ours appears in this table.
Problems This Page Solves That No Bank or Provider Page Does
-
The Incorporation Dependency Nobody States
For an NV/SA, the account exists before the company does. None of the pages we reviewed on this topic state that an unopened account is a blocked incorporation, not just an inconvenience.
-
The Statutory Basic Banking Service, Sourced End to End
Three refusals, a sworn declaration, the Chamber inside the FPS Economy, the designation clock, what it covers. No page in our review of this topic mentions it at all.
-
The EMI Question, Answered Precisely
Art. 7:12 CSA names a credit institution an electronic money institution is not. For a BV/SRL there is no statutory obstacle; what banks accept in practice is not settled, and this page says so.
-
We Do Not Rank Banks
What decides the outcome is the AML file and substance: UBO clarity, source of funds, the economic rationale, a real local footprint. Not the brand.
-
Honest, Labelled Timing
The hard official numbers (10 or 5 working days, 30 days, the one-month Art. 7:12 return) sit beside market claims of two to four weeks or two to six, each labelled as a market claim.
Why Work With Us
From our practice. Aurelie Lambert leads tax, licensing and compliance. Her practice answers the questions a Belgian bank asks before it opens a business account, working the AML file alongside the VAT, UBO and licensing filings the same company needs.
Related Services
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a Belgian company need a bank account before it is incorporated?
In substance yes, for both forms: cash paid up at the deed must first sit on a special account with an EEA credit institution, and the proof goes to the notary (Art. 7:12 CSA for an NV/SA, EUR 61,500; Art. 5:9 CSA for a BV/SRL, no fixed minimum). The federal portal's own sequencing places the account before the deed.
What is the bank certificate the notary asks for?
The bank's proof that the Art. 7:12 deposit sits on the special account: it is handed to the notary before the deed is signed, in paper form or, since 25 July 2021, electronically with a qualified electronic signature, and it is what lets the notary proceed at all.
What happens to the money if the company is never incorporated?
The funds stay at the exclusive disposal of the company being formed, and are returned on request if incorporation does not follow within one month of the account being opened (Art. 7:12 CSA). It is the single hard deadline on this page.
Can an electronic money institution account replace a bank account?
Not for the Art. 7:12 deposit, which names a credit institution within the meaning of Art. 4(1)(1) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013, and an EMI is not one. For a BV/SRL there is no statutory obstacle, but whether an EMI IBAN is accepted for ordinary company banking generally is not settled.
Can I open a corporate bank account in Belgium as a non-resident?
Yes in principle: the Companies and Associations Code imposes no residence requirement on directors or shareholders. In practice the obstacle is the bank's AML file, not company law: UBO clarity, documented source of funds and wealth, and evidence of a genuine economic rationale for a Belgian entity.
What do three refusals from banks get me?
The statutory basic banking service: an application to the Basic Banking Service Chamber at the FPS Economy, open to an enterprise registered in the KBO or applying to be, once at least three credit institutions have refused. It covers deposits, withdrawals, transfers, standing orders, direct debits and card payments.
Is the statutory basic banking service free?
The FPS Economy states it may be provided charged or free, at the designated provider's discretion; no tariff is published anywhere we have found. This page does not promise a free account, and no ranking Belgian page states the state's own position on the point either.
Which documents does a Belgian bank ask a foreign-owned company for?
No statutory list exists, and no bank publishes a binding one. What supervision requires a bank to establish is the AML file: identity and UBO documents, the shareholding chain up to the natural persons, documented source of funds and wealth, the economic rationale, and substance evidence.
How long does opening a business bank account in Belgium take?
No Belgian authority publishes a service level for opening the account itself. Market sources say two to four weeks and two to six weeks or more, both labelled here as market claims, alongside the hard official numbers for the adjacent steps: 10 or 5 working days for the online incorporation route, 30 days to file.
Do I need a Belgian company registration number (KBO/BCE) before I can open the account?
No, not for the ordinary route: the federal portal's own sequencing puts the account before the deed, and so before KBO registration can even exist. For the statutory basic banking service specifically, the enterprise must already be registered in the KBO, or have applied to be.
Can I use a European (non-Belgian) bank account for the Art. 7:12 capital deposit?
Yes: Art. 7:12 CSA requires a credit institution established in the EEA, not specifically a Belgian one, which is a genuine planning option for founders who already bank somewhere in the EEA. The account itself need not be opened in Belgium.
Which bank is best in Belgium for foreigners?
This page does not rank banks: no official source supports such a ranking, and the comparison pages that publish one are written for a resident, not a foreign-owned company. What actually decides the outcome is the AML file and substance: UBO clarity, source of funds, and a real local footprint.
Ready to Open a Belgian Business Bank Account the Right Way?
One enquiry sequences the account against your incorporation and prepares the file a bank will actually test.