Margin VAT on furniture

Second-hand furniture is the textbook example of margin goods.

A second-hand cabinet, table or chair is tangible movable property that can be used again. That clears the tax authority’s test in a single sentence.

What sets furniture apart from, say, books is that work usually happens to it before it goes back in the window. And that is exactly what the exclusion list has something to say about.

What the Belgian tax authority says about furniture

Buy from a private individual, from an estate or from a colleague who works under the margin themselves, and you receive no deductible VAT. The margin scheme was made for that situation.

The age of the furniture does not matter. A Danish chair from 1960 and a kitchen table from 2015 follow the same rule, as long as both are used and usable again.

That is the whole test, and it is a test about the goods, not about your trade. Alongside second-hand goods, FPS Finance explicitly names works of art, collectors’ items, antiques and second-hand means of transport. The scheme sits in article 58, § 4 of the Belgian VAT Code and is worked out in Royal Decree no. 53 of 23 December 1994. This page describes the Belgian scheme; the four-country panel below shows where the Dutch, French and UK rules diverge.

When furniture fall outside the scheme after all

The tax authority excludes renovated goods, and goods processed so heavily that at the point of sale you can no longer establish this is the same piece. For furniture that is not an edge case: an armchair stripped back to the frame and fully reupholstered comes close to that line.

A second case common in this trade: new furniture arriving as end-of-line stock or a showroom model. New goods are named on the exclusion list, even when you bought them cheaply.

The same piece, four countries

Whether furniture fall under the scheme is answered the same way in all four countries: it is European law. The rate and the calculation method are not.

Where it goes wrong with furniture

• You treat a showroom model as second-hand

  A never-used piece from end-of-line stock is new goods. That it came in at a discount changes nothing.

• You deduct reupholstery costs from the margin

  The margin is selling price minus purchase price. Materials and hours sit outside it, however large the bill.

• You buy from a dealer with VAT on the invoice

  Then it is not a margin purchase but an ordinary one with deduction. That is no mistake in itself — but the resale has to follow the same route.

• You keep no register of purchases from private individuals

  Without proof of purchase your margin cannot be demonstrated. Royal Decree no. 53 requires those registers explicitly.

Written on 8 September 2026. The scheme, the definition of second-hand goods and the exclusions were measured on 8 September 2026 at Belgium’s FPS Finance, Regeling van belastingheffing over de marge, which names article 58, § 4 of the VAT Code and Royal Decree no. 53 of 23 December 1994 as its basis. Since 1 January 2026 the law of 19 December 2025 excludes goods bought at a reduced rate from the margin scheme — explained in circular 2026/C/14 of 13 January 2026, measured via eur-lex.europa.eu on 31 August 2026. FPS Finance has not yet updated its own page on that point — re-checked on 10 September 2026.

This is an explanation, not tax advice. Whether the margin scheme is the right choice in your case, and how to enter it in your return, is a question for your accountant.

Frequently asked questions

• Does second-hand furniture fall under the VAT margin scheme?

  Yes. Belgium's FPS Finance defines second-hand goods as tangible movable property suitable for further use as it is or after repair. A second-hand cabinet, table or chair fits without reservation. The scheme sits in article 58, § 4 of the Belgian VAT Code and in Royal Decree no. 53 of 23 December 1994.

• Can I sell a reupholstered armchair under the margin scheme?

  A repair does not take a piece out of the scheme; the definition itself speaks of goods usable again as they are or after repair. But renovated goods are on the exclusion list, as are goods processed so heavily that they can no longer be identified as the same piece at the point of sale. A full rebuild on a bare frame sits against that line.

• Does the scheme apply to new furniture from end-of-line stock?

  No. New goods are expressly on the tax authority's exclusion list. A showroom model or end-of-line piece that has never been used is sold with ordinary VAT on the full selling price.

• How much VAT is due on a sideboard bought for €220 and sold for €620?

  In Belgium, €69.42. The margin is €400, and €400 × 21/121 gives €69.42. Charge 21% on top of the margin and you land on €84 — almost €15 too much.

Other types of goods

The same question, a different kind of piece. The answer differs more often than you would expect.

Every type of goods at a glance

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