Other news for November

«Country by country» declaration

Companies that are part of an international group may be required to carry out tax reporting before the end of the year, by subscribing to a so-called «country by country» declaration for 2020 financial year. More specifically, this declaration must mainly be subscribed by companies required to draw up consolidated financial statements and which, during the financial year preceding that which is the subject of the declaration, achieve a consolidated turnover greater than or equal to 750 million euros. Since the declaration must be filed within 12 months of the end of the financial year, companies whose financial year coincides with the calendar year must submit it, for 2020, by 31 December 2021 at the latest.

Use of restaurant vouchers

In June 2020, the government relaxed the conditions for the use of restaurant vouchers. A measure intended to revive the activity of cafes and restaurants that had to remain closed for several months in order to fight against the spread of the Covid-19 epidemic. These relaxations, which were supposed to end at the end of August 2021, are finally extended by 6 months. Thus, until February 28, 2022, in restaurants, hotel-restaurants or pubs assimilated to them:

- the daily limit of payment in restaurant vouchers is increased from € 19 to € 38.

- all employees can use them on Sundays and public holidays.

On the other hand, other businesses accepting restaurant vouchers, such as fruit and vegetable shops, are not affected by these new easing measures.

Time limits for tax claims

If a company discovers that it has committed an error (tax base or calculation) in its tax statements or it has failed to claim in its declaration a tax advantage, such as a tax reduction, it can obtain relief from the corresponding tax share by filing a claim with the tax authorities. But on 31 December, this possibility will be time-barred for certain taxes. Thus, companies have until the end of 2021 to contest the taxes of 2019 (VAT, income taxes ...) and/or the local taxes of 2020. They must therefore check that they do not have to lodge a complaint before that date.

Medical examination of employees

Due to the Covid-19 health crisis, the public authorities are once again allowing the occupational physician to postpone certain medical examinations of employees. So, medical visits and examinations scheduled to take place before 30 September 2021 may be postponed, including initial information and prevention visits, i.e., those carried out at the time of recruitment, unless the employee concerned (disabled worker, employee under 18 years of age, etc.) benefits from appropriate medical follow-up; periodic information and prevention visits and medical examinations for renewal (excluding workers exposed to ionising radiation classified in category A) and intermediate visits.

This postponement may take place within the limit of one year.