Traditionally, the husband is the first to file a joint tax return and only then the wife. That will no longer always be the case from now on. “In the next tax return, we will first look at age and no longer at gender,” says Minister of Finance Vincent Van Peteghem (CD&V).
If the woman is older than the man, she will therefore be first from this year. “In this way we still ensure the neutrality of the tax return,” says Van Peteghem. “The tax return must keep up with the times,” says the minister. “Times are changing and our tax system must adapt to society.”
In same-sex couples, the eldest partner is already in the left column. According to Radio 1, about 23 percent of the declarations will change as a result of the intervention.