The Legal 500 > Loyens & Loeff > Brussels, BELGIUM > Lawyer profiles

Loyens & Loeff

WOLUWE ATRIUM, RUE NEERVELD 101-103, 1200 BRUSSELS, BELGIUM

Tel:: Work +32 2 743 43 43
Fax:: Fax +32 2 743 43 10

Email:

Web:: www.loyensloeff.com

Amsterdam, Brussels, Hong Kong, London, Luxembourg, New York and 5 more

Gunther Valkenborg

Tel:: Work +32 2 743 43 39
Email:

Web:: www.loyensloeff.com

Profile
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Work Department

Employment & Benefits

Position

Counsel

Career

Gunther is member of the Employment, & Benefits Practice of Loyens & Loeff and leads the Compensation & Benefits team. He is also a member of the Automotive Team in Belgium.

Gunther is specialised in national and international tax and social security issues with respect to all types of remuneration. He has in-depth experience in international mobile employees and directors and more particularly with salary splits, secondments and the special tax status of foreign executives as well as with respect to international payroll set-ups. He has also extensive knowledge of tax and social security issues relating to bonus pension plans, stock option plans, group insurances and the termination of employees and directors. He also assists Belgian taxpayers with the preparation and filing of their (non)resident income tax return. His clients are individuals, small and middle sized companies as well as multinationals looking for assistance in the tax and social security treatment of their existing remuneration structure or in the conception and implementation of a new structure.

Gunther frequently speaks at seminars on topics which include the setting-up of a management company, secret commission tax, payroll administration and the employer’s and employee’s tax reporting obligations, the company car, international employment, and any other tax related topic involving remuneration for individual taxpayers. He has written several articles which include the tax treatment of severance payments, company cars and the tax and social security impact, in a broad sense, on one’s remuneration structure when on an international career path.

Gunther has been member of the Brussels Bar since 2005.

Languages

Dutch, French, English

Member

Gunther is member of Celia Alliance in Belgium.

Education

Gunther holds a master in law of the Universiteit Antwerpen (Belgium 1999).

Belgium

Tax

Within: Tax

Loyens & Loeff's team, which delivers 'value for money', is praised by clients for being 'responsive, flexible and creative'. It forms part of a larger group that has a strong Benelux presence. In addition to having a first-rate reputation in corporate tax, the firm fields specialists in various other areas. Christian Chéruy, Marc Dhaene, Caroline Docclo and Bert Gevers are experienced in assisting clients with filing tax returns, the checking process by the Belgian Tax Administration, administrative appeals and criminal litigation. Practice head Natalie Reypens leads a team that advises clients on a wide range of transfer pricing issues. Saskia Lust and Nicolas Bertrand are particularly knowledgeable about issues specific to family businesses, entrepreneurs and high-net-worth individuals. Gunther Valkenborg specialises in compensation and benefits issues. On the transactional side, Chéruy and senior associate Jérôme Wauthier advised CTH on the tax aspects of its $2.8bn acquisition of Nestlé's US confectionery business in 2017.

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Legal Developments by:
Loyens & Loeff

New reporting obligations for Luxembourg securitisation vehicles

Recognising the close links between the securitisation activities of financial vehicles corporations engaged in securitisation transactions (FVCs) and monetary financial institutions, the European Central Bank (ECB) has adopted on December 19, 2008 Regulation (EC) No 24/2009 concerning statistics on the assets and liabilities of FVCs (the ECB Regulation).

- Loyens & Loeff

Legal Developments in Belgium

Legal Developments and updates from the leading lawyers in each jurisdiction. To contribute, send an email request to

Posting of workers to Belgium: Notification of the liaison officer through the LIMOSA declaration

The Act of 11 December 2016 transposed the Enforcement Directive (2014/67/EC) into Belgian law. This act made some modifications to the Act of 5 March 2002 concerning the working, remuneration and employment conditions in case of posting of workers in Belgium and the compliance with it. One of the novelties was the obligation for a foreign employer to appoint a liaison officer (physical person) in Belgium to act as a contact person with the Belgian inspectorate. The Royal Decree of 14 September 2017 that was published yesterday in the Belgian State Gazette states that the liaison officer must be appointed through the LIMOSA declaration. The Royal Decree enters into force on 1 October 2017.

- Claeys & Engels law firm
Court of Justice ruling regarding the habitual place of work in “Ryanair-case”

In its ruling of this 14 September the European Court of Justice confirms its earlier case-law with regard to employees who simultaneously work in various Member States. These employees can bring proceedings before the courts of the place from where they perform the essential part of their duties for their employer. The national court must determine this place in concreto in the light of all relevant circumstances. For the cabin crew in the aviation industry, the ‘home base’ can therefore be a significant indicator, without being equated with it.

- Claeys & Engels law firm
Discrimination on the basis of religion? A new European decision

The issue of discrimination based on religion continues to occupy the European courts.

- Claeys & Engels, member of Ius Laboris
The Constitutional Court rekindles the debate on the necessity of a hearing prior to a dismissal in

The Constitutional Court rekindles the debate on the necessity of a hearing prior to a dismissal in the public sector

- Claeys & Engels law firm
The Code on the well-being of workers is published

The Code on well-being of workers, which coordinates the various texts concerning well-being in the workplace by grouping them in a single instrument, was published in the Belgian Official Gazette on 2 June 2017 and will enter into force on 12 June 2017. This will make it easier to find specific regulations concerning well-being of workers. It is useful to inform all the stakeholders, who play a role in the company policies on well-being of workers of this recent publication.

- Claeys & Engels law firm
Binding effect of E101 certificate (current A1 form) reconfirmed by the Court of Justice

On 27 April, the Court of Justice of the European Union pronounced again on the binding effect of an E101 certificate (now A1 form). This binding effect is applicable, even if it is found by the competent institution or the courts of the host Member State that the conditions under which the worker concerned carries out his activities do not correspond to the conditions to be subject to the social security of the other Member State.

- Claeys & Engels law firm
The deadline to conclude a departure agreement is fast approaching

The Act of 15 May 2014 relating to various provisions modified the concept of “departure” in the Act of 28 April 2003 relating to occupational pensions and the tax regime of these pensions and of certain occupational benefits regarding social security (“AOP”) and has introduced a definition of “multi-organizer pension schemes” (“MOPS”).

- Claeys & Engels law firm
Stock options and management companies

Direct grant of stock options to the director of the management company (2)

- Claeys & Engels law firm
Supreme Court pronounces on Article 30 AOP: a deficit must be covered, no matter the cause

The Supreme Court ruled in a judgment of 6 March 2017 that the organiser of a pension promise must cover deficits of the vested reserves, as well as deficits regarding the minimum guaranteed return, no matter the causes of the deficits.

- Claeys & Engels law firm
Increase in the credit of additional hours for certain part-time employees

In line with earlier announcements in the framework of the Workable and Agile Work project of Secretary of Employment Kris Peeters, the legislator - in view of more flexibility for certain part-time employees - has increased the so-called “credit of additional hours”. An RD of 23 March 2017 (Belgian State Gazette of 5 April 2017) provides the necessary amendments to the RD of 25 June 1990 in this regard. Please also see our newsletter .

- Claeys & Engels law firm

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