It's time for the tax return!
You remember that famous letter from the Tax Administration (Administration des Contributions Directes - ACD), asking you to fill in your tax return. You…
Not everyone needs to fill in a tax return! There are certain cases in which an employed or retired taxpayer is obligated to fill in a tax return. Those who do not fall into this bracket are free to decide if they want to make one or not.
In general, it is advisable to fill in a tax return, when, for example, you have taken out insurance products or others that grant entitlement to a tax allowance. Now, you can also enter the amount paid to your home purchase savings plan or a private pension scheme on your tax card. This way, you don’t need to report them separately.
First, let’s have a look at the five most common situations in which a taxpayer must fill in a tax return: (source : myguichet.lu au 24.05.2023) :
the annual taxable income at source in Luxembourg exceeds EUR 100,000; or
in case of multiple income streams or pensions taxable at source in Luxembourg, the annual income exceeds EUR 36,000 for tax classes 1 or 2, or exceeds EUR 30,000 for tax class 1A.
Examples:
taxpayers employed concurrently by several employers;
pensioners receiving several pensions;
married taxpayers taxed and filing jointly, both of whom are employed or receive a pension; or
taxpayers whose taxable income in Luxembourg is not subject to tax withholdings, such as:
earnings from self-employment;
rental property income;
wages or salaries paid by a foreign employer, or pensions paid by a foreign pension fund; or
taxpayers whose taxable income includes more than EUR 1,500 in net investment income subject to withholding tax, such as dividends;
taxpayers whose taxable income includes more than EUR 1,500 in directors’ fees;
spouses who are not separated, one of whom is a resident taxpayer and the other a non-resident, who chose to be jointly taxed and who provisionally obtained tax class 2 on their tax card.
The taxpayer is also required to declare their income if the Luxembourg Inland Revenue (Administration des contributions directes - ACD) so requests.
Taxpayers who do not satisfy the conditions for filing an income tax return may, under certain conditions, submit a request for an adjustment of tax withholdings by way of the annual adjustment procedure.
Il est notamment dans l’intérêt du contribuable de déposer un décompte annuel lorsque (source myguichet.lu 24.05.2023) :
il débute sa carrière professionnelle au Luxembourg en cours d’année à la fin de ses études, ou ;
il travaille en intérim et a des rémunérations mensuelles variables ou nulles, ou ;
il exerce son activité professionnelle au Luxembourg une partie de l’année seulement (arrivée ou départ en cours d’année) et ses revenus perçus à l’étranger sont proportionnellement inférieurs aux revenus luxembourgeois, ou ;
il a des dépenses déductibles à faire valoir, tels que des :
frais d'obtention (certaines dépenses en relation avec l'exercice d'une activité salariée) ;
rentes versées au conjoint divorcé, pensions alimentaires ou autres rentes permanentes ;
cotisations et prélèvements de sécurité sociale obligatoire ;
cotisations et primes d'assurance ;
primes versées à un contrat de prévoyance-vieillesse ;
cotisations versées à un plan d’épargne logement ;
cotisations pour un régime complémentaire de pension ;
dons ou libéralités, etc.), ou ;
il veut faire la demande du crédit d’impôt monoparental, ou ;
il veut faire la demande d'une modération d'impôt sous forme de dégrèvement fiscal, etc.
The taxpayer who is not obliged to file a tax return, however, has the option to voluntarily file a tax return.
Taxpayers who (source myguichet.lu 24.05.2023) :
house scheme savings contributions ;
insurance premiums,
interest on a consumer loan,
annuities paid in connection with a divorce,
donations made to charitable or non-governmental development organisations, etc.
or extraordinary expenses (sickness, disability costs borne by the taxpayer, etc.).
The deadline for filing income tax returns for resident and non-resident individuals is 31 December of the year following the tax year concerned.
Couples who are in a civil partnership can opt for joint taxation, according to tax class 2, but only if the partnership has existed throughout the taxation year!
Our advisors are at your disposal if you wish to invest in fiscal products that are adapted to your personal situation and allow you to ease your tax burden. If you have questions about your taxes, follow Sophie and Marc’s example and contact a tax consultant. Finally, there are different useful websites that you can consult, such as www.impotsdirects.public.lu or www.guichet.lu.
Another option is to file your tax return with myTax, VIREO's digital tax assistant, available in your Tax Area on S-Net Desktop.
With myTax, you will only have to answer some simple questions and your tax return is generated automatically. It is simply impossible to make a mistake!
At the end of the questionnaire, your myTax report tells you whether you are obliged to file a tax return or whether it is in your interest to do so.
It also includes advice on whether you should be taxed collectively or individually and how much you should reclaim or will need to pay.