Mobility budget: a circular brings (some) clarity!

Since 1 January 2024, the Royal Decree establishing the calculation formulas for the mobility budget has been in force. We announced this change in an previous Infoflash. However, areas of uncertainty remained. A tax circular now brings some clarity. Below is an overview of the main clarifications it provides. 

Mobility budget - a brief reminder

The mobility budget, accessible to employees with a company car, is a budget that allows the total cost of the car to be reallocated to other forms of transportation. Divided into three pillars, it allows beneficiaries to choose an environmentally friendly car, sustainable means of transport and to receive the balance in cash, subject to a 38.07% contribution.

Entry into force: when to apply the new formulas?

The Royal Decree was rather succinct on the entry into force of the new calculation formulas. It specified entry into force on 1 January 2024. But is there a transitional period? Should all amounts be revised?

Your mobility budget was already in force on 31 December 2023

In the absence of official formulas, employers who had already implemented mobility budgets had to determine for themselves how to calculate the mobility budget's total cost of ownership (TCO). For all employees whose agreement was concluded before 1 January 2024, the amount of the mobility budget remains unchanged. 

The amount may be indexed if the employer has provided for it. If an employee who already benefits from a mobility budget changes positions and is entitled to a larger budget, this new budget must be calculated according to the new legal (actual or fixed) formulas. 

For employees who had not yet concluded an agreement, the formula based on the actual costs or, if applicable, the fixed formula must be used as of 1 January 2024. The employer cannot continue to use his "in-house" formula. 

As for pillar 1 cars, for all agreements concluded before 1 January 2024, the formula based on the actual costs must be used every 1 January. The employer's choice to use the fixed formula from now on applies only to new entrants. The employer cannot continue to use his "in-house" formula either. 

For new agreements concluded from 1 January 2024, employers will be able to opt for the fixed formula. 

Your mobility budget enters into force from 1 January 2024.

For all agreements concluded from 1 January 2024, the employer can choose to apply the formula based on the actual costs or the fixed formula. He can also make this choice for the calculation of pillar 1 cars. It is no longer possible to create your own calculation formula. 

Impact of teleworking or moving?

As the name suggests, the fixed formula provides for calculating the cost of the mobility budget and the pillar 1 car on a fixed basis. This formula specifies how to calculate the cost of the car itself (fixed part) and the fuel cost (variable part).

For fuel costs, the legislator has set a fixed rate of 6,000 kilometres for private travel. For commuting, the commuting distance must be multiplied by 2 and by 200. This number (200) is also a fixed number. Therefore, it does not need to be adjusted if the employee performs part of his work at home (teleworking). 

When an employee moves, the commuting distance changes. This has no impact on the amount of the mobility budget for which an agreement has already been concluded. However, for the calculation of pillar 1 cars, the new distance will only be taken into account at the next calculation, on 1 January of the following year. 

Next steps

Do you want to check if your mobility budget meets legal requirements? Do you want to introduce a new mobility budget? Please contact Legal Partners.

Source: Circular 2024/C/16 on the mobility budget - formulas to calculate the amount of spending in pillar 1 and the amount of the mobility budget itself.