Wallonia revises tax reform (again) to support families and electric vehicles

The Walloon government has ratified an adaptation to its road tax reform that will take effect in July this year. The adaptation will ease the burden on households and promote green mobility.

Installed under the previous government, the new taxation scheme primarily targets larger and heavier cars. This move impairs families and individual buyers who are investing in electric mobility. The new government is now trying to alleviate some of those shortcomings.

In its first reading, Wallonia’s government approved a draft decree modifying the vehicle registration tax (TMC), initially introduced by the previous administration. This revision aims to tailor taxation to current economic and environmental realities while maintaining its focus on surcharging polluting SUVs.

Meeting midway?

With the MPV segment eclipsed by big SUVs, often the only choice for larger families, one of the key measures in this reform is the expansion of family tax reductions. Those large families will now benefit from an increased reduction of €250 on the TMC, up from the previous €100. This reduction applies to all vehicles, whether new or used, regardless of engine type.

In the example of a seven-seater Nissan X-Trail with mild hybrid technology, the tax rises from €1,239 to €1,778. But for a family father granted the allowance, the price drops to €1,528, or midway.

Improved support for single-parent families will also be available, with an unprecedented €250 reduction in TMC. This benefit will be available to those receiving the supplemental ‘single-parent’ family allowance at registration.

However, this cannot be combined with the considerable family reduction, and is limited to one vehicle per single-parent household. To ensure the automatic implementation of this measure, its rollout is scheduled for July 1st, 2026, allowing time for system interconnection between taxation and family allowance databases.

‘Higher living costs’

Wallonia’s Minister of Mobility and Infrastructure, François Desquesnes, welcomed the reform as a necessary step toward fairer taxation that aligns with today’s challenges. “This reform is a significant step toward a fairer and more relevant taxation system. The government aims to provide better support to single-parent families, who face proportionally higher living costs and large families requiring larger and more expensive vehicles”, he added.

As part of its strategy for greener mobility, the Walloon government is also backing down on the revised TMC for most fully electric and carbon-neutral vehicles. This change involves reducing the energy coefficient, a key factor in tax calculation, which drops by 0.08 points.

For a midsize and versatile vehicle like a Volkswagen ID.4, the tax will drop from €601 under the first reform to €334 under the new ruling. But bear in mind that under the old fiscal mechanism, a contribution of barely €61.50 was demanded, or five times less.

Annual road tax remains

The tax adjustments will have a significant budgetary impact on the treasury. In 2026, the considerable family reduction will lead to a €7.5 million decrease in tax revenue, while support for single-parent families will result in a €2.5 million reduction. The easing of taxation on electric vehicles will amount to a €4 million decrease.

The new government, which took office last summer, left the annual road tax untouched.