Donation tax certificates: a guide for approved non-profits (2026)

Published on 11/06/2026 · Updated on 28/09/2026 · By Antoine Lemmens, Eazyclick. Rules taken from the FPS Finance pages on donations (individuals) and donation certificates (non-profits), consulted in September 2026.

At the start of each year, approved associations must send tax certificates to their donors and submit the same data to FPS Finance. This guide explains who can issue a certificate, the minimum amount, recent changes (national number, tax relief rate), deadlines and how to avoid the year-end admin burden.

What is a donation tax certificate?

A donation tax certificate (form 281.71) is the document an approved institution gives a donor for monetary donations made during the year. It allows the donor to claim tax relief. The same data is submitted to FPS Finance, which pre-fills it in the donor's tax return.

Donors do not need to attach the certificate to their tax return; if the institution has submitted the data, the certificate is normally also available on MyMinfin.

Which associations can issue tax certificates?

Only an institution designated by law or approved by FPS Finance may issue certificates that qualify for tax relief. An unapproved ASBL (Belgian non-profit association) cannot. Approval is requested from FPS Finance for specific categories set by law (such as social assistance, culture, the environment, development cooperation or scientific research).

FPS Finance describes the procedure on its “Approval: step by step” page. Until approval is granted, do not issue any tax certificates: a simple donation receipt offers no tax benefit.

What donation amount requires a tax certificate?

A certificate is due once a donor's monetary donations to your institution reach at least €40 in a calendar year. The threshold applies per year and per institution: several small donations from the same donor add up. Below €40, donations do not qualify for tax relief.

For donors, tax relief is 30% for donations made from 1 January 2025 (previously 45%). Total donations taken into account are capped at 10% of net income and €408 130. These are the amounts published by FPS Finance; they may be indexed.

Do you need the donor's national number?

Yes. For donations made since 1 January 2024, the institution must request the donor's Belgian national register number and include it on the certificate. This is a legal obligation (Article 323/3, § 3, of the Income Tax Code 1992); § 4 authorises the institution to request and use it for this purpose only. Explain this at the point of donation so donors are not surprised.

In practice, the simplest approach is to request the national number in the online donation form, with a sentence explaining why, and store it securely: it is sensitive personal data that must only be used for the certificate.

When should tax certificates be sent?

Certificates for a year's donations must be sent to donors by post or email before 1 March of the following year. By the same date, the institution must submit the certificate data to FPS Finance through Belcotax-on-web, which generally opens in early February.

A typical timeline for 2026 donations:

1. January 2027: close the 2026 donation records and check for missing national numbers and addresses.
2. February 2027: generate certificates and prepare the Belcotax file.
3. Before 1 March 2027: send certificates to donors and submit to Belcotax-on-web.

FPS Finance provides exceptions to electronic filing, particularly for the first two calendar years of approval, when paper submission remains possible (FPS Finance).

Which tax certificate mistakes should you avoid?

The most common mistakes are issuing a certificate for an ineligible donation (a donation with something in return, a membership fee or a donation in kind), missing national numbers, failing to combine donations from the same donor, and sending certificates after 1 March. A clean donor database maintained throughout the year prevents almost all of them.

Other points to watch:

• A membership fee is not a donation. A fee that provides benefits (access, services, a magazine) is not a gift.
• One donor, one record. Duplicates (the same person with two email addresses) produce two incorrect certificates.
• Keep a record of every payment received and every certificate sent.

How do you manage donations and certificates with Eazyclick?

Eazyclick's Donations & memberships module collects one-off and monthly donations on your association's website, with campaigns and targets, and prepares tax certificates at year-end. The donation form asks for the national number, with an explanation, when your organisation is approved and the threshold is reached.

At the end of the financial year, send all certificates in one click and export the file for submission to Belcotax-on-web. Mollie processes donations directly into the association's account: Eazyclick takes nothing from donations; Mollie's transaction fees apply, and donors can choose to cover them. National numbers and addresses are encrypted at rest.

The module costs €24/month over 12 months or €19/month over 24 months excl. VAT, with no setup fee. For your association's website, see our non-profits and football clubs pages, and to manage your members and donors, our CRM guide.