Whether you want to start a sole proprietorship or a company, Partena Professional helps you start your business 100% digitally with personal assistance by our experts.
Have you been appointed co-owner, active partner or self-employed helper and you want to register as a self-employed person?
want to know more about our services or want to chat with our experts? Visit one of our offices near you.
Increase your chances of success with our experts' help.
Our experts will give you the answers you seek.
Alter your business details via our one-stop shop for entrepreneurs.
Discover our practical tool for your social insurance dossier.
Want to know more about our services or want to chat with our experts? Visit one of our offices near you.
and reap the benefits of our social secretariat's support.
Take advantage of Partena Professional's expertise and knowledge
Discover the benefits we can give you as an accountant.
Are you considering shaking up your career path and starting in a liberal profession? With the right preparation and knowledge, you can get off to a successful start, and it will be a piece of cake. On this page, you will find all the essential information on what it means to work in an intellectual profession: the steps to follow as well as the advantages and disadvantages.
Liberal professions exclusively consist of intellectual services and concepts for the general public. All industrial professions are effectively excluded, but the same goes for commercial functions.
Liberal professions encompass four major fields of work: health, law, finance, and engineering.
To start in a liberal profession in Belgium, you must follow these five steps:
Register your enterprise with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (CBE). You will then be assigned a company number that identifies you to official governing bodies.
For most liberal professions, it is necessary to activate a VAT number with the tax authorities. You use this number for filing your VAT declarations and for invoicing your customers.
For some liberal professions, you will need specific licences or approvals before you can start working. These must be requested from the competent authorities.
As a practitioner of a liberal profession, you are required to affiliate to a social insurance fund. This ensures that you pay social security contributions, with which you then accrue rights, such as the right to a pension and to health insurance.
It is important to properly insure yourself and your enterprise. Consider professional liability insurance, legal expenses insurance and disability insurance.
Ready to start working as a liberal professional? Stop by one of our enterprise counters or go through all the necessary steps online.
Below is a non-exhaustive list of professions that are eligible to practice as liberal professions:
You can practise liberal professions as a natural person or in the capacity of a company. Each status comes with advantages and disadvantages.
In other words, you have a choice between an unlimited liability cooperative (which, as the name suggests, entails your personal liability) and a limited liability company (BVBA).
Would you like personal advice on the legal status or form best suited to your situation? We are here for you. Contact us.
If you work in a liberal profession, you fall under a specific Joint Committee, namely the Joint Committee for Liberal Professions. This Committee is responsible for setting terms of employment and for representing the interests of employees and employers in the liberal professions’ sector.
The main difference between an intellectual profession and other self-employed professions is the nature of the activity and the degree of regulation. Liberal professions are based on intellectual performances and are governed by specific ethical codes and regulations, while other self-employed professions are often more commercially oriented.
Starting up in a liberal profession? As an accredited enterprise counter and social insurance fund in Belgium, we offer this A-to-Z solution, where our experts are always just one click away from providing you the help you need. Make an appointment or start working in your liberal profession with just a few clicks.