To begin with
You mutually agree on what happens to certain assets if one of you dies. The one who remains acquires the agreed right of the other. That is how an accrual clause works, provided the conditions are met.
“Only let the magnitude of your decisions reflect what you truly know.”
Your questions, step by step
Would you like to protect each other if one of you dies? We will examine whether an accretion clause suits your situation and what the consequences are.
Why do I go to the notaire for this?
With an accretion clause, certain rights may transfer to the other party upon death. The civil-law notary assesses whether the mutual opportunities, contributions and form are legally appropriate.
How can an accretion clause protect my partner?
Determine which property and persons are involved.
Compare the arrangement with a will and other protection.
Have conditions, termination and fiscal consequences prepared before signing.
How does this proceed and how long does it take?
Discuss this preferably before a joint purchase. The preparation depends on the property and the chosen structure; there is no fixed processing time.
Which documents should I provide to the notaire?
Prepare what you already have. You do not need to wait until your folder is complete to make an appointment.
Is a document missing or do you not know where to find it? Check the help for each document. We will discuss what the office can obtain for you and what you still need to provide yourself.
Where can I find this?
Search in your deed folder, Izimi or Mijn akten. Cannot find the deed? Provide the address, estimated date and possibly the previous notarial office; we will see how to request a copy.
Where can I find this?
Provide the report with date and name of the appraiser. If there is no valuation yet, do not order one without consultation: first discuss what valuation is needed.
Where can I find this?
Provide the complete version with date, attachments and later amendments. Do you not have this document or do you not know if it exists? Select “Help needed” and discuss it with the office.
Where can I find this?
Provide the full text and any amendments. Look in your deed folder or Mijn akten. Not everything is digitally available; if necessary, indicate which office drafted the deed.
Where can I find this?
Provide the complete version with date, attachments and later amendments. Do you not have this document or do you not know if it exists? Select “Help needed” and discuss it with the office.
These check marks only remain on the opened page and are not sent to the office.
Open the checklist: ready, need help or not applicableWhat does the notaire do and investigate?
- Are the mutual opportunities and contributions sufficiently balanced?
- Which property and form are involved?
- How does the arrangement work in case of death, sale or breakup?
- What inheritance and fiscal consequences apply to your situation?
We agree on which searches the office will conduct and which information you, your bank or another expert will provide.
What should I pay attention to before I sign?
Check whether the clause operates automatically or requires a choice, what happens on sale and how you can terminate it later.
Is a passage still unclear? Feel free to ask for an explanation with an example from your own situation. Only sign when you understand what you are agreeing to.
What else must I arrange afterwards?
Keep the deed with the involved property. Have the arrangement reviewed upon marriage, breakup or change of assets.
Which practical tips can help me?
Do not assume the same consequences as with a will. Request a comparison for your own family and property.
What do these words mean?
- Accretion Clause
- an agreement whereby rights accrue to the surviving party according to the agreed conditions.
- Chance Contract
- an agreement where the outcome depends on an uncertain event.
Where can I find more explanation or help?
You do not have to phrase your question in legal terms. Tell what concerns you, what you want to arrange and if an important date is approaching.
We will look together at the next step. We agree in advance on how the office will assist you and what costs are involved.
Ask your question to the officeMake an AppointmentGeneral explanation for your preparation. The rules and documents that apply to you are determined based on your file.
On this page
Accrual Clause in Plain Words
01
You mutually agree which rights of the first deceased pass to the surviving partner, under certain conditions.
When you purchase together, you each hold a share. An accrual clause adds an agreement: the survivor can acquire the agreed right of the other. Each gives up a chance on their own share and gains a chance on the other’s share. Therefore, the mutual chances and contributions must be carefully assessed.
Where does this protection end?
You enter into a binding agreement, not a freely revocable will. A relationship breakup does not automatically terminate it. The rights of children, the precise assets, and taxation also require attention. Real estate and money do not follow the same fiscal treatment.
Relate it to your life: Do you want this mutual binding also to remain if your relationship or financial situation changes?
A mutual agreement with an uncertain outcome
02
In an accrual clause, for example, you agree that the share of whoever dies first goes to the surviving partner. You do not know in advance who that will be. Each of you gives up a chance on your own share and gains a chance on the other’s share. For this reason, this is called a chance contract.
A hypothetical example: you each own half of a certain asset. If the agreed clause takes effect at the first death, the surviving partner can also get the other half. The agreement can concern other rights or require a choice. The text of the agreement determines what actually transfers.
This is not a freely revocable will. You enter into an agreement with each other and must consider the agreed duration, termination, and conditions. Even during your lifetime, the clause can limit your freedom to sell or otherwise dispose of your share.
For the intended treatment as a contract for consideration (each receives counter-performance for their commitment), the ratio of chances must be balanced. In Flemish fiscal assessment, among other things, similar life expectancies and equivalent contributions matter separately. A higher contribution does not simply compensate a clearly worse survival chance.
Does the accrual end when we separate?
03
Do not assume otherwise. A relationship breakup and termination of an agreement are different events. The deed may contain a termination option or link to your relationship, but that must have been expressly agreed. You must also consider marriage or divorce alongside the clause’s wording.
Without a proper exit arrangement, after a breakup you may still be bound by an agreement you no longer wish to maintain. Therefore, discuss at the conclusion how you can terminate, what notice periods apply, and what happens if one of you wants to take over or sell the property.
The accrual does not automatically divide your loan, renovation costs, or other shared goods. In case of a breakup, each of these must be reviewed regarding ownership, liability, and necessary settlements.
What does the surviving partner receive and what do the heirs receive?
04
If a valid accrual clause under contract for consideration takes effect, the survivor acquires the rights described in the agreement. These generally do not pass as inheritance to the heirs of the first deceased. Therefore, the consequences for children must be discussed in advance.
That outcome assumes the agreement is genuinely valid and correctly qualified. For example, if the arrangement turns out to be a gift, different rules may apply, including those protecting heirs. The term “aanwas” on a document alone is therefore insufficient.
Check whether the clause operates automatically or requires a timely choice. Furthermore, the property may be subject to debts. The tax consequences differ between cash or investments and real estate: falling outside inheritance tax does not mean that other taxes are never owed.
Even after the first death, a question remains: to whom does the property pass when the surviving partner later dies? This is not automatically governed by the original aanwas. A separate will or other planning may be necessary.
What does this mean in your situation?
05
Select your situation. You will find two fictional examples each time. They illustrate which questions matter; your own documents, family and assets will determine the outcome.
YOUR SITUATION
Single
Aanwas is not only for couples. There must be a mutual agreement between multiple parties, with suitable assets and balanced chances.
Example 1: Can I arrange this with my sister?
Two sisters jointly own a holiday home. They want the survivor to have the agreed right of the other.
What happens in practice?
The sisters can consider a mutual agreement about the holiday home. Each then acquires a chance of the other’s agreed right, in exchange for the chance to relinquish their own right upon earlier death. Their contributions and survival chances must be evaluated. The consequences for any children also count. For real estate, the agreement is recorded in a notarial deed.
Example 2: Can I thus later give everything to my child?
A parent wishes to benefit a much younger child through aanwas. The child contributes hardly any assets.
What happens in practice?
If the child contributes very little and clearly has much greater survival chances, the arrangement is not simply a balanced exchange of chances. Calling it aanwas does not change that. The parent primarily wants to give something here. Therefore, we examine whether a gift or will matches that intention, with consequences for personal means, other children and tax.
What does this mean for your choice?
A favourable intention does not make an unbalanced agreement into a valid contract of chance.
To pause and consider
What does each party actually contribute and which right can each obtain?
YOUR SITUATION
De facto cohabiting
For de facto partners without automatic inheritance rights, a suitable aanwas clause may be an option to mutually protect certain assets.
Example 1: Does my partner get my half of the house?
Partners purchase together and want the survivor to obtain the relevant housing rights.
What happens in practice?
The deed must specify whether the survivor receives full ownership or, for example, only usufruct, the right to live there or receive rent. That distinction helps determine whether the survivor can later independently decide to sell. It must also be clear if a choice is required. Sale rights may be payable on real estate; protection and costs must therefore be compared together.
Example 2: Can we also include an investment account?
Partners want to protect a specifically designated portfolio alongside the house.
What happens in practice?
A clause for the house does not automatically include a securities account. For the portfolio, it must be specified which investments and contributions are covered by the agreement. Also, consideration must be given to what happens upon sale and reinvestment. Tax rules for cash and securities differ from those for real estate. Both parts therefore require a separate assessment.
What does this mean for your choice?
A relationship break does not necessarily automatically end the clause. Discuss duration, termination and sale beforehand.
To pause and consider
Do you mainly want to keep living there, be free to sell, or have access to cash?
YOUR SITUATION
Legal cohabitation
Legal cohabitation does not exclude aanwas. Compare the arrangement with what your partner can already receive under the law or a will.
Example 1: Besides our limited inheritance right, do we still need aanwas?
Legally cohabiting partners want more independence for the surviving partner regarding the family home.
What happens in practice?
The statutory inheritance law can grant the surviving partner the right to use the family home, while ownership without that use lies with other heirs. A reapportionment clause can under certain conditions grant other rights, for example full ownership. This can offer more freedom of decision, but also entail different taxation. The useful question is what extra freedom the couple actually needs.
Example 2: Can we postpone the decision until later?
A couple wants an optional reapportionment so that the surviving partner can later decide whether to use it.
What happens in practice?
An option allows the surviving partner, according to the agreed conditions, to choose whether the reapportionment is used. The agreement must specify how and when that choice is made. It must also clearly state what happens to the deceased partner's share without that choice. This allows the surviving partner to compare the consequences; a choice option does not automatically make every outcome advantageous.
What does this mean for your choice?
The exemption from inheritance tax for the family home is not an exemption from transfer tax on reapportionment.
To pause and consider
What does your partner receive without this clause, and what changes with this clause?
YOUR SITUATION
Married under the statutory regime
A reapportionment clause cannot simply be applied to goods within the matrimonial property regime. Separate assessment is needed for own goods that you hold jointly undivided (you own the same good together, each for a share).
Example 1: Can we put reapportionment on our joint home?
Spouses under the statutory regime want a reapportionment clause on their communal home.
What happens in practice?
A home that belongs to the matrimonial community follows the rules of that communal property. You cannot easily apply the same reapportionment clause as on two separate ownership shares outside that community. A choice clause in the marriage contract can then offer another possibility. This gives the surviving partner pre-defined choices over the involved matrimonial assets.
Example 2: We each owned a separate share before marriage.
A couple has a property that may have remained outside the community and wants a mutual arrangement.
What happens in practice?
If the shares from before the marriage remained outside the community, ownership can differ from that of an asset acquired jointly during the marriage. This must first be established from the deeds and origin. After that, contributions, survival chances and the consequences of a reapportionment clause can be assessed. Two names on a document alone do not provide the full answer.
What does this mean for your choice?
Removing assets from the community to then agree on reapportionment also requires assessment of the full transaction and possible tax abuse.
To pause and consider
Is it really about own goods outside the community?
YOUR SITUATION
Married with separation of property
In separation of property, each may own a share in the same home or account. This can leave room for a reapportionment clause. If you have later included those goods under a joint arrangement in your marriage contract, the rules of that arrangement must first be examined.
Example 1: Can our jointly purchased home reapportion?
Spouses with separation of property each own a share in their home.
What happens in practice?
With separate ownership shares, a reapportionment clause can under conditions agree on what the surviving partner receives. We examine the purchase deed, contributions and survival chances. Then we compare the result with what the spouse already inherits and any agreements in the marriage contract. This makes clear what the clause really adds, and what commitment or costs are associated.
Example 2: Our investments are in an additional joint estate. Does that make a difference?
A couple calls the assets joint, but the deed places them under a common section.
What happens in practice?
An Added Internal Joint Estate, abbreviated TIGV, is an additional joint section spouses agree on in their marriage contract. Assets therein are not simply the same as a home or account in which each holds a separate share. Therefore the deed must be read first. Agreements within the marriage contract may fit for the joint part; the reapportionment clause for separate shares may not simply be copied onto it.
What does this mean for your choice?
Separation of property does not mean each asset lies outside every community. Also read later amendments to the contract.
To pause and consider
Which assets belong to me alone, which do we each own shares of, and which fall under the joint agreements in our marriage contract?
Five questions before you sign
06
- Which asset and which right?
Have the asset described exactly and ask whether full ownership, usufruct or another right is transferred.
- Why is this balanced?
Discuss contributions, health and life expectancy when concluding the agreement.
- How can I exit?
Read termination, sale and relationship breakdown before you assess protection upon death.
- What if the asset changes?
A new account or replacement home does not automatically fall under every formulation.
- What does this mean for my children?
Examine both the first and second death and the assets that remain outside the clause.
What do I ask the notaire?
07
You do not need to memorise these terms. Bring the questions that suit you. Feel free to ask to see the answer with your own home, your money and the people you want to protect.
Click on a question for an initial explanation or practical tip. You do not need to have an answer to everything yet.
Exactly what does the surviving partner receive, and what do the heirs then not receive?
Specifically identify the property involved and the rights thereto.
Why are our contributions and opportunities sufficiently balanced?
Ask how ownership, financing and survival chances are assessed in your situation.
Can I terminate the agreement if our relationship changes?
Have the exit possibilities and any deadlines explained before you sign.
What costs and taxes are there in the event of death?
Request a comparison with what happens without the clause, not just a single tax rate.
The details that make a difference.
FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO READ FURTHER
View the conditions, possible variants and legal basis for your question.
Which goods are involved?
Is it about a house, savings or investments? And whose goods are they? The answer determines which arrangement you can explore. Your deed of purchase and, if you are married, your marriage contract help clarify that.
What conditions must our agreement meet?
You cannot simply apply a survival clause to all your possessions. You must define the involved goods. Each party gives something in exchange for the chance to acquire the other's right. Therefore both your contributions and your chances of surviving the other must be sufficiently equivalent. More contributions do not compensate for a difference in life expectancy. Age and health may be taken into account. This assessment is made when you enter into the agreement. These are conditions from standpoint SP 17044 of the Flemish Tax Administration (VLABEL).
For real estate an authentic deed (here: a deed the notaire draws up according to legal rules) is required. Between spouses the clause cannot apply to community property. With a valid survival clause VLABEL accepts no inheritance or gift tax; with immovable property registration fees remain applicable.
Value increases and replacement goods can also fall under the arrangement. You must be able to demonstrate how they relate to the original goods. This is called object substitution. The tax administration may also investigate whether a combination of agreements constitutes fiscal abuse.
Source: SP 17044, current published version: decision 17 April 2023, publication 11 May 2023.
Which choices do you set out in the agreement?
Full ownership or usufruct
Do you want the surviving partner to become owner, or mainly to retain use and income? That choice also determines which rights remain with others. Discuss sale, management and maintenance.
Automatic survival or an option
With an optional arrangement the surviving partner must make a choice. The form, term, scope and consequences of failure to choose must be clear from the agreement. A term in another deed is not a general statutory rule.
What if the relationship breaks down?
Discuss duration, extension, termination and the fate of the clause in case of de facto separation, divorce or simultaneous death. A mutual agreement cannot be treated as if it were a freely revocable will. Legal rules on the underlying undivided property remain to be examined.
What does a fiscal ruling not state?
A prior ruling answers tax questions regarding one described file. It does not automatically confirm that every agreement is also valid under civil law. That law determines, for example, who becomes owner and what protection children have. In a published file first the applicant’s arguments appear and then VLABEL’s decision. Only the actual decision section shows what the service has accepted.
The notaire also considers whether the mutual agreement is valid and whether it truly constitutes an exchange of chances. If it actually concerns a gift, then the rules on reserved portions may apply. Children can contest an arrangement when they have legal grounds to do so. So only the name survival on the deed does not guarantee the outcome.
Source: VB 24117, paragraphs 12–14.
Frequently Asked Questions
FROM READING TO PREPARATION
Already a first answer.
Must I first find all the documents?
You can already ask your question with what you have. Note which agreements you remember and what has changed since. Using the checklist on this page, you can see what to gather and what still needs to be discussed with the office.
How do I prepare a conversation with my relatives?
First explain what you want to achieve or avoid. Give everyone space to express expectations and practical limits. Note what you agree on and which questions remain open, so that the conversation also takes into account who bears the consequences.
What if I am unsure between different solutions?
Write down for each option what you hope to achieve and what you do not yet understand. Bring existing documents. The consultation is meant to compare possibilities and consequences with your own situation before making a choice.
EASY PREPARATION
Your checklist: examining an accretion clause
Which documents do you prepare, where do you find them and when can the office assist? Indicate what you have and where you need support.
Useful websites on this topic
RELIABLE CONTINUED READING
FROM FIRST QUESTION TO NEXT STEP
You do not have to figure it out alone.
First your situation
Explain what is happening, who is involved and what you want to avoid.
Weighing possibilities
We discuss your questions, the available documents and the consequences of possible choices.
Your Next Step
We record what you want to have prepared and what follow-up is appropriate.
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