Table of Contents
The business counter is the central contact point for start-ups and existing businesses to complete all administrative formalities
If you want to set up your activity as a sole proprietorship, the business counter is your first point of contact. In the case of a company, you first need to go to a notary, then to the registry of the company court and finally to the business counter.
Contacting a Business Counter
Currently, eight organisations are accredited as business counters. They have about 153 offices around Belgium. You are free to choose any business counter, regardless of where your business is established.
More information on business counters and their offices.
Role of the Business Counter
The business counter performs a variety of tasks:
- It checks whether you meet the legal requirements to be allowed to carry out your intended activity;
- It arranges your (mandatory) registration with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises;
- It can take care of certain administrative formalities on your behalf, such as:
- completing your identification with the VAT administration or the NSSO;
- requesting various authorisations (FASFC, SABAM, etc.).
The business counters also offer other services, such as:
- affiliation to a social insurance fund for the self-employed (each business counter has an associated social insurance fund);
- affiliation to an associated social secretariat;
- advice on setting up your project;
- drafting of dossiers for subsidy applications;
- training;
- support during the first months of activity, etc.
For these additional services, the counters are free to set their own rates.
Registration with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises
The Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (CBE) is a database containing all basic identification data of registered entities (hereinafter referred to as entities) and their establishment units. Registered entities include all legal persons under Belgian law and natural persons exercising a professional activity in Belgium on a self-employed basis.
The distinction between craft, commercial and non-commercial companies under private law has been abolished since 1 November 2018. These capacities were replaced by the status of “company subject to registration”.
The Enterprise Number
When registering with the CBE, each entity receives a unique identification number, which is the enterprise number. The number consists of 10 digits and starts with 0 or 1.
The entity must use its enterprise number in all contacts with the administrative or judicial authorities. For example, the enterprise number is also used for identification purposes with the VAT administration and the NSSO.
All companies subject to registration must state their enterprise number on all deeds, invoices, announcements, communications, letters, orders and other documents.
Market stalls used to carry out the economic activity of the company subject to registration, as well as the means of transport, which is primarily used in the context of itinerant activities or, in the case of employers, as part of a civil or utility construction activity or an interior cleaning activity of buildings, must visibly display the company number.
The Establishment Unit Number
Each establishment unit of an entity also receives a unique identification number. This establishment unit number is different from the enterprise number. It consists of 10 digits and the first digit is between 2 and 8.
An establishment unit is a place that can be geographically identified by an address in Belgium, where at least one of the entity's activities is carried out or from which the activity is carried out (e.g. workshop, retail unit, warehouse, sales outlet, office, head office, headquarters, agency, branch and subsidiary). An entity with several places of business activity will therefore have several establishment unit numbers. The NaceBel Codes are used to register the activities carried out.
Companies subject to registration must register their establishment units with the CBE via an accredited business counter. However, they can change the address of their establishment units themselves, free of charge, by using the "My Enterprise" application. It should be noted that non-commercial companies under private law (which have become companies subject to registration) can use this application to register their establishment units and register and modify their activities. On the other hand, non-profit associations can enter, modify and remove data relating to their establishment unit themselves via the same application.
Registration of a Sole Proprietorship
After having verified, if necessary, your entrepreneurial capacities, the business counter will register your entity which is registered as a natural person in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises, and will register it as a company subject to registration. You will then be assigned an enterprise number.
The counter may refuse to register your entity registered as a natural person if it does not meet the conditions for access to the profession or if a required document is missing. Reasons must always be given for such a refusal. In the event of refusal, you may submit a new application that meets the required conditions or lodge an appeal with the competent region, if the refusal is based on the absence of the skills needed to gain access to the profession.
However, it should be noted, that it is the professional body to which you belong (order, institute or chamber) which, in certain cases, is responsible for verifying whether you meet the conditions for exercising the profession concerned and which, if necessary, submits the authorisation granted at the CBE.
The cost of registration is 105.50 euros, including one establishment unit, plus 105.50 euros for each additional establishment unit. These are the prices applicable at the beginning of 2024. They are indexed annually.
Registration of a Company
Companies with legal personality are registered with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises when the deed of incorporation is filed (electronically or at the Registry of the enterprise court). At the same time, the company receives its enterprise number. It must then go to a business counter to register with the CBE as a company subject to registration.
A company without legal personality, as well as any organisation without legal personality that pursues a distribution objective or actually carries out a distribution to its members or to persons exercising a decisive influence on the organisation's policy, must go to a business counter, which will register it with the CBE and enter it in the CBE as a company subject to registration.
The counter may refuse to register your entity if it does not meet the conditions for access to the profession, or if a required document is missing. Reasons must always be given for such a refusal. In the event of refusal to register as a company subject to registration with the CBE by the business counter, you can lodge an appeal with the competent region.
When this operation is not free of charge, the cost of registration is 105.50 euros, including one establishment unit, plus 105.50 euros for each additional establishment unit. These are the prices applicable at the beginning of 2024. They are indexed annually.
In addition to the status of the company subject to registration and the establishment units, the counter enters other data such as the activities and bank account numbers.
Registration with the CBE of Foreign Entities Established in Belgium
Foreign entities wishing to carry out activities in Belgium and to establish themselves in the country have various options: they can set up a branch, a subsidiary or an establishment unit.
Branch
From a legal perspective, a branch is not a separate entity from the company under the Companies Code. The branch and the foreign entity are one and the same entity.
An entity that establishes a branch in Belgium, receives an enterprise number if it does not already have one. This number is issued by the registry of the competent enterprise court, at the time of filing prior to the opening of the branch.
It must then go to the business counter of its choice to register as a company subject to registration.
The Subsidiary
Legally, the subsidiary is a separate entity from the foreign entity. It has a legal personality (unlike the branch). The legal form chosen is that of a company under Belgian law.
The subsidiary established in Belgium obtains an enterprise number when it is registered with the CBE by the notary or the registry of the competent company court. It must then go to the business counter of its choice to register as a company subject to registration.
The Establishment Unit
Certain foreign entities may carry out their activities from an address in Belgium without having a branch or subsidiary. In such cases, these entities carry out their activities in Belgium from an establishment unit (e.g. workshop, factory, shop, sales outlet, office, etc.).
An entity that has an establishment unit in Belgium obtains, if it does not already have one, an enterprise number via the business counter when registering its establishment unit with the CBE.
What Should I Do If My Registered Entity's Situation Changes?
If your situation changes (e.g. the address of the establishment unit or your telephone number changes, you start a new activity, etc.), you have one month to request a change to your registration as a company subject to registration. You are in fact responsible for the accuracy of the data registered with the CBE.
These changes can be made either via a business counter or, in some cases, via the "My Enterprise" application, 24 hours a day and free of charge.
Please note that if you are unable to make the changes yourself via My Enterprise, you can use the application to identify the competent service to contact.
Economic Activity - NACE Code
The business counters use NACE codes to register activities in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises.
Business counters may face interpretation problems in selecting NACE codes for certain specific activities. In such cases, they contact the FPS Economy, which will advise them on the NACE codes to be applied.
See the list of activities for which the FPS Economy has already issued an advice (FR) (PDF, 387.86 KB).
Or perform a search using the Nacebel code search engine:
