In 2023, the Belgian Treasury amassed nearly €16 million from unclaimed inheritances, according to data released by the Ministry of Finance.
The tax authorities can stake a claim to an estate in the absence of known heirs, or when known heirs reject their inheritance. Under such circumstances, the court of first instance favours the state.
As a result, the Belgian State cashed in on 71 expired inheritances last year, yielding €16.4 million.
Like any other heir would, the Ministry of Finance paid inheritance tax to the regions, totalling €14.7 million in 2023. Of this sum, €8.8 million went to Flanders, €5.3 million to Wallonia, and a mere €600,000 to the Brussels-Capital Region.
However, heirs of a vacant or unclaimed succession have a window of thirty years to stake their claim.
Should a potential inheritor come forth within this timeframe and prove their familial connection to the descendent, the state will return the estate, even if it has been definitively claimed.
