Recupel's activities are financed in the first place by the importers and manufacturers. They pay Recupel for all product groups in which they are active, a Recupel contribution for each appliance they market.

That is why Recupel must have the quantities available that you market in Belgium split into the product groups in accordance with the appliance lists.
On the basis of this information, the amount of the Recupel contributions is calculated and invoiced to the importer or manufacturer.
Furthermore Recupel is to annually report this information to the supervising authorities.

How to submit a declaration

Refunds are not possible for appliances with an administration fee (professional appliances)!

The monthly/quarterly declaration includes a number of electrical and electronic appliances that were marketed for the first time in Belgium in the course of the month/quarter preceding the sending of the declaration.
The declaration of the appliances in the 'marketed' column matches the number of appliances that was either imported or produced for the Belgian market.
In most cases the sales invoice or stock movements can be taken as a basis, however, account must be taken of the fact that in a number of cases goods that do not appear on the sales invoice must be declared (e.g., goods intended for own use and activated in the company's balance sheet).
In the second column on the declaration form the number of appliances must be entered in title to refund,
either for export,
or because the goods were shipped back to the original foreign importer,
or as a result of the sale with foreign VAT.

More Information (French/Dutch)

For all categories of professional appliances (other than domestic) the declaration must also include the weight, in addition to the number of appliances marketed in Belgium. Refund is not possible for appliances with an administrative contribution (professional appliances).

If a member is a member of several Recupel sectors, under no circumstances may compensation take place between the amount they owe to one sector and the amount they are owed in another sector.

The various secretaries are separates legal entities (with their own VAT number, their own bookkeeping, etc.). Consequently no compensation can be granted between the debts and claims of the various entities.

If you have made an error in the declaration of the marketed goods or in your requests for a refund it can be rectified.
If the error took place for a declaration for a monthly or quarterly declaration in the current calendar year you can do so using the electronic declaration form, by completing the column(s) market correction and/or refund correction.
If the error took place in the previous calendar year and you have not yet submitted your annual declaration, you can convey the correction through your annual declaration.
If the correction cannot be conveyed in one of these ways, you are requested to contact Recupel, in order to examine whether correction is still possible and if so, what the appropriate correction method is.

Refunds are not possible for appliances with an administration fee!

Correction of a submitted declaration that has not yet been invoiced by Recupel:
All you need to do is replace the submitted quantities with the correct quantities on the declaration form.
Correction in the current calendar year of a declaration already invoiced
If you have not yet submitted your annual summary, you can introduce the correction in this declaration.
If you have already submitted your annual summary, we recommend that you contact Recupel in order to check whether a correction is still possible and how it can be implemented.

All declarations are to be submitted in theory by the importers or manufacturers.

However, the importer can mandate one or more foreign suppliers to satisfy their declaration obligation, with respect to the goods delivered by the relevant supplier.

With respect to the other goods they still have to submit their own declaration.

No, if a wholesaler or retailer pays contributions to their Belgian supplier, they do not have to declare said contributions to Recupel:
it has to be done by the importer or manufacturer.

Be that as it may the same merchant can be the importer of other appliances subject to the Recupel obligation, which they do have to declare.

The quarterly (monthly) declarations must be submitted before the 20th day following the end of the quarter (month) to which the declaration refers.

Quarterly, before the 20th day following the end of a quarter, you are to submit the declaration form to Recupel referring to the goods marketed during the previous quarter. You can still opt for a monthly declaration. However, the option for submitting monthly declarations can only be chosen once and has to be chosen before submitting the first declaration. This choice is irreversible.
If you became a member late, you have to remember to submit your declaration in order to pay the retroactive Recupel contribution.

The quarterly (monthly) declarations must be submitted before the 20th day following the end of the quarter (month) to which the declaration refers.

If you become a member of Recupel we will automatically activate the quarterly declaration for you. You can still opt to submit monthly declarations on the condition that you submit an electronic declaration. Address your request in writing to the Declarations & Control department (fax 02/706 86 80).

Before 30 June of each year, an overall declaration is to be submitted with respect to all goods that you have marketed during the previous calendar year (even if you have already declared these goods by means of a monthly or quarterly declaration).

In order to make it easier for you, you will receive an annual declaration template from Recupel,

-          which on the one hand, includes an overview of the goods that you have marketed during the previous calendar year, indicating the categories to which the goods belong, and

-          on the other hand, a correction column in which you can enter the required corrections.

• If you make use of the electronic declaration system you are to confirm the accuracy of the reported amounts or to enter the required corrections through the declaration system and subsequently forward the electronic summary to Recupel electronically.
• If you submit the declarations via post, the annual summary is to be approved by a sworn statement by the person mentioned as being in charge on the ID sheet.

In in the event that we still have not received confirmation or corrections by 30 June, this shall be considered to be equal to the approval of the data mentioned on the annual summary.
In such a case Recupel may have an audit carried out of is data.

In addition, a penalty will be charged in these cases, equal to 10% of the total amount mentioned on the annual summary (possibly taking into account any corrections resulting from the audit) for a minimum of EUR 50 per annual summary (i.e., per Management Organisation and per year).

The 13th month (=CO) or the 13th box in the electronic declaration is the field in which the correction resulting from an audit can be entered. This 13th month (=CO) does not exclusively referres to the 12 previous months, but can also refer to the previous years, going back to 1 July 2001.

The 14th month (=JJ) is for corrections conveyed through the annual summary.

Yes, missing annual summaries will be sanctioned with a fine, equal to 10% of the total amount mentioned on the annual summary (possibly taking into account any corrections resulting from the audit of the annual summary) for a minimum of EUR 50 per annual summary (i.e., per management organisation and per year).

Preferably, complete your declaration form by means of the electronic declaration form.

To do this, you will receive a username and a password, after concluding an Entry Agreement.

The submission of an electronic declaration allows for the automatic processing of said declaration, which reduces errors to a minimum.

You can also submit your declaration via post, or fax or e-mail.You can request this form from the Declarations & Control department (fax 02/706 86 80). In these cases, you may be charged EUR 1.50 excluding VAT for administrative costs.

When a company is a member of several product groups, it has to submit a collective declaration for all product groups.

There is no combination or compensation possible between the various product groups.

However, if you submit electronic declarations, after logging on, you will see the collective declaration form for the various product groups on the same page.
In this way, the declaration for the various product groups can be submitted at the same time and in one operation.
Recupel asbl will issue a combined invoice for the product groups which were declared.

Please note that it is always possible to further process the non-invoiced declaration.

Preferably, complete your declaration form by means of the electronic declaration form.

To do this, you will receive a username and a password, after concluding an Entry Agreement.

The submission of an electronic declaration allows for the automatic processing of said declaration, which reduces errors to a minimum.

You can also submit your declaration via post, or fax or e-mail. You can request this form from the Declarations & Control department (fax 02/706 86 80). In these cases, you may be charged EUR 1.50 excluding VAT for administrative costs.

If you submit your declarations too late, a fixed declaration procedure will be implemented.

Co-contractors are in principle, obliged to comply with declaration submission rules.

In addition, Recupel aims to treat all itscontracting partners in the same way by invoicing them in accordance with the same payment terms.

If by the last day of the month or quarter (depending on whether you submit monthly or quarterly declarations), you have not yet submitted your declaration, Recupel will draw up a fixed declaration to replace the declaration that was not received.

The quantities on this declaration are calculated on the basis of the average of the three most recent monthly declarations or the most recent quarterly declaration submitted by the Co-contractor.The declaration is made available on the Recupel website, just like any other declaration.

You will also receive an e-mail about it (at the address indicated on the identification sheet).

You can adjust this fixed declaration proposal before the 20th of the month.
On the 21st, an invoice will be drawn up to be paid within 10 days, either in compliance with the fixed declaration proposal, or in compliance with the data corrected by you.

The 10-day payment term implies that you will have to pay your invoice at the latest on the same day as co-contractors who have submitted their declaration on time.

If you do not adjust the fixed declaration, the invoice that you will receive will be for the amount of the fixed declaration proposal, increased by a fine of 25%.

It is therefore recommended to submit your declarations in a timely manner.Members can find further information on the start page "Declarations".

If you've never submitted any declarations, Recupel can draw up a fixed declaration proposal. Recupel will be able to draw up this fixed declaration proposal based on the assumed quantity of products put on market by the Co-contractor during this period based on the most available information (e.g. VAT-declaration, sales figures, etc.).

If you only have submitted one or two declarations, the quantities of the fixed declaration proposal will be calculated on the basis of these declarations.

Declaration

A foreign supplier, located in an EEA country, can become a member of Recupel in order to take over the obligations of their Belgian customers based on the entry agreement.

Although this leads to administrative obligations for foreign suppliers (they will have to charge Recupel contributions on their sales invoices to Belgian customers and submit declarations to Recupel), this could be a commercially advantageous decision.

In a number of cases, foreign suppliers can be competitively disadvantaged since they deliver from abroad, and therefore force their Belgian customers to declare the imported electrical or electronic appliances.

However, foreign suppliers may not spontaneously start making declarations and charging Recupel contributions to their Belgian customers.
To do so they would have to be mandated by their customers.
Recupel provides a form for this mandate.

Mandate to foreign supplier

In theory, foreign companies do not have obligations vis-à-vis Recupel.

Their customers residing in Belgium, however, are importers of electrical or electronic appliances and must comply with the acceptance obligation.
To this end, they can become a member of Recupel.

However, if the foreign company is prepared to become a member of Recupel, they can be mandated by their Belgian customers and take over their declaration obligation for Recupel.

On the condition, however, that the foreign supplier is located in an EEA country.

As a foreign supplier member you are to comply with the provisions in the entry agreement. This includes, among others, that you are to charge Recupel contributions when marketing electrical or electronic appliances and that you are to submit declarations to Recupel. A foreign supplier, however, has to take into account specific provisions:

• The annual summary is to be submitted with details for each Belgian customer of the marketed quantities (split into product categories, as provided for on the declaration form)
• A list must be transmitted annually of Belgian customers for whom the declaration obligations were taken over (mentioning at least name, address, VAT number)
• The foreign supplier is to inform their co-contractor of the facts that they are still individually liable for payment of Recupel contributions, should the foreign supplier not fully comply with their obligations vis-à-vis Recupel.

The annual summary is to be approved and signed by the company's commissioner.

If there is no commissioner, you can call on a corporate auditor or external accountant.

The annual summary from a foreign supplier is to be submitted with details for each Belgian customer of the marketed quantities (split into product categories, as provided for on the declaration form).

This in order to enable Recupel to make further claims from the relevant fellow members if the foreign supplier does not comply with their obligations and/or in order to carry out cross checks on the quantities provided by the foreign supplier.

• both the importer and the foreign supplier must sign the affiliation agreement;
• a mandate must be signed, called a ’notification form – foreign suppliers‘ ;
• in order to be exempt from declaration (a mandate without declaration, contrary to a mandate with declaration), the principal must confirm in writing that he has no other foreign suppliers/no other import or production activities.

Co-contractors are ultimately responsible for the accuracy of the declarations, and this also applies if they have mandated a third party to submit the declaration and make the payments.

If a foreign supplier therefore doesn't comply with their obligations vis-Ã -vis Recupel, the latter will turn to the co-contractor to collect the Recupel contributions, even if they are already charged by the foreign supplier on their invoices.

Recupel is contractually bound to confidential treatment of all financial or commercial information it receives as a result of the execution of the Entry Agreement.

This obligation, however, does not detract from Recupel's notification obligation on the basis of any legislative provision or on the basis of the environmental policy agreements.

No. Recupel commits to the strictest confidentiality regarding financial and business-related information of which it has become aware directly or indirectly.

This confidentiality obligation does not conflict with the obligation to provide information held by the managing body on the basis of laws, government decrees or agreements.

Recupel does not spread information with respect to the number of marketed appliances by a specific company.

 Recupel may nonetheless reveal that a company is a member, but it may not provide further information.

One of the goals of the annual summary is that you thoroughly check your declarations to Recupel.

However, Recupel also carries out checks on the submission of the declarations.

How to submit the annual summary?

The management organisation has checks carried out in order to test the accuracy of the information submitted in the declarations.

The supervising authorities also make sure that Recupel organises such checks.

These checks are carried out by Recupel vzw appointees or by designated third parties.
These persons are bound by the confidentiality obligation, vis-à-vis the management organisation.

In order to guarantee confidentiality, strict procedures are observed, in order for the information you provide not to fall into the hands of unauthorised parties (whether they are competing companies or not).

The goal is to carry out checks among members in order to test the accuracy of their declarations, and the way they are submitted. Furthermore, it is checked whether regulations are complied with (appliance list applied correctly, acceptance obligation, etc.).

Checks among members are in theory scheduled every three years.
Exceptionally, where necessary, additional interim checks are carried out.

Checks on Recupel contribution refunds are typically planned on a regular basis.

Since checks are primarily aimed at testing the accuracy of the declarations, it is important that during the check, the declaration procedure can be explained in detail (electronically or with the help of documentation.

Checking the codes assigned to EEA in the administrative system is also very important, since they often co-determine the accuracy of the submitted declarations.

The data requested in the framework of the checks must obviously always be in the interests of testing the accuracy of compliance with the acceptance obligation and may not exceed this framework.

Checks can be carried out both on the premises of the contracting partner and remotely.

No, a contracting partner may not refuse a check.

You may, however, request that the check not be carried out by a Recupel vzw appointee or by a designated third party (other than an official corporate auditor).

In this case the check will be carried out by a recognised corporate auditor appointed by Recupel and the relevant fees will be charged.
To this end Recupel will invoices the amount charged by the corporate auditor, increased by 10% administrative fees.

It is important to note that it is not necessary to request a check by a corporate auditor for reasons of confidentiality, as everyone who carries out checks is bound by a confidentiality obligation.

Typically checks are carried out at the company's registered office or in the accounting department, where the documents are presumed to be kept.

If this is not the case, i.e., if the documents relevant to the check are kept elsewhere (for example, at the administrative headquarters), the check will be carried out there.

If a mandate was issued, the check will be carried out at both the principal and mandator.
In every case, it is important that the contacts in charge of declarations be present.

The auditing fees are typically borne by the management organisation that has requested the check, except in the following cases:

• The additional amounts owed due to the check total 10% or more of the amounts paid for the checked period
• No cooperation is provided for remote checking (despite two registered letters). Despite the appointments made, no checks can be carried out in situ as a result of circumstances due to the contracting partner (e.g., absence or unavailability of the documents, absence of the right contacts, etc.)
• The accuracy of the annual summary was not confirmed in a timely manner.

If the audit fees are borne by the contracting partner, Recupel will draw up an invoice for EUR 1,800.

In principle, the audits will be limited to periods that have not yet been checked.

If however, specific items require additional follow-up, as a result of the findings in a previous check, previously checked periods (for specific aspects) will be checked again.
Recupel will not carry out further audits for expired periods, i.e., after seven years.
For example, from 2009 no further checks will be carried out for 2001.

In a number of special situations, described in the entry agreement, prescription is suspended and Recupel maintains the right to carry out audits.

The application of a minimum and/or maximum total amount has no impact whatsoever on the declaration system. For professional appliances with an administrative contribution you need to fill in the number of pieces put on market as well as their weight.

In order to determine what annual total amount each member has to pay, Recupel assigns each member at the beginning of each year (year 'n') after closing off the declarations for the 4th quarter of year ""n-1"" (period 12), to 1 of the groups mentioned here below and this based on the declarations of the number of pieces of year ""n-1"" x PRO contribution of year ""n"".

As of January 1st 2012, the annual minimum total amount per member amounts to 100 euro. The annual maximum total amount amounts to 10,000 euro.

Based on the current minimum and maximum total amount we distinguish 3 types of groups.

i. Group A: members who have declared <100 euro.
ii. Group B: members who have declared between >100 euro and 10,000 euro.
iii. Group C: members who have declared > 10,000 euro.

New members who do not yet have a complete annuall declaration are assigned to a group based on a questionnaire.

Click here for more information on the invoicing of the administrative contribution with application of a minimum and maximum total amount.