FURTHER EXPLANATION · 2 MIN READ
Who owns the building when you bought the land together?
People who buy a plot of land together generally also own what is built on it together. This is called accession: ownership of the land extends to the building. That ownership does not change merely because each person pays their own contractor invoices or orally agrees which apartment will later belong to whom.
In VB 26057, two owners had each bought half of the land. They then built a small building with two apartments. Each paid the invoices for the apartment they wanted to receive. VLABEL nevertheless ruled that the land and building were still owned half by each of them. Before construction, there was no deed of division that legally defined the private apartments.
What does a deed of division do?
A deed of division is the notarial deed that divides an apartment building into private parts, such as the separate apartments, and common parts. It also states the share in the common parts attached to each apartment. In this case, the deed was only drawn up after the building had been completed and put into use.
The planned deed would give one apartment to one owner and the other apartment to the other owner. VLABEL treated this as a genuine division of the existing property. Division duty was therefore due on the full value being divided: the land and the apartments already built. The tax did not apply only to the land value.
When can the VAT exemption be possible?
The ruling mentions a possible exemption from division duty when the transaction genuinely falls under the VAT rules for a new building and its adjoining land. This is not an automatic choice. The building and transaction must satisfy the VAT conditions, VAT must be due on the transfer and the parties must be able and willing to apply that regime.
The exemption must also be expressly requested in the notarial deed and the statutory statements and formalities must be followed. VAT previously paid on separate construction invoices is therefore not automatically enough. The timing of first use, the capacity of the parties and the precise transaction may matter.
One general possibility and your preparation
One general possibility is that two friends buy land together, each pay to build one apartment and later each receive one apartment through a deed of division. This example does not automatically make each of them the sole owner beforehand and gives no automatic right to an exemption. The purchase deed, the construction timing and the proposed deed remain decisive.
Prepare the purchase deed, the overview of ownership shares, the construction invoices, the permit, the date of completion and first use, and a draft of the intended division. Notariaat Wellens can then explain what remains jointly owned in law, what may be taxed and which VAT question must still be answered before the deed.