Effective giving in Belgium: combining impact and tax deductibility

Donating to impactful charities is a powerful way to address some of the world’s most pressing problems. Effective altruism encourages donations that are not only well-intentioned but also supported by robust evidence of impact. This article explores how to choose which organisations to support and how tax deductibility in Belgium can amplify the value of your contributions.

For Dutch speakers, we highly recommend visiting Effectief Geven’s website for more information on effective giving and tax deductibility. Their site offers comprehensive resources as well as an online platform to make donations.

What is effective giving?

Effective altruism is about doing the most good by focusing on the world’s most urgent problems. For many people, this means not only contributing their time and skills but also making financial contributions to charities that create a significant positive impact. Effective giving directs resources to organisations tackling these critical issues in a highly cost-effective manner, guided by rigorous empirical evidence. While the global challenges we face are vast and varied, the Effective Altruism community primarily focuses on funding charities working on these key cause areas:

• Animal welfare: Addressing factory farming and developing alternative proteins to reduce reliance on animal agriculture.
• Global health and wellbeing: Supporting efforts to alleviate poverty, prevent diseases, and improve living conditions in the world’s poorest communities.
• Climate change: Financing initiatives to reduce carbon emissions, develop sustainable energy sources, and mitigate climate-related risks.
• Reducing global catastrophic risks: Investing in research and projects to safeguard humanity from existential threats, such as AI safety, biosecurity, and nuclear weapons.

Deciding where to donate

Deciding where to donate can be challenging, but independent evaluators like GiveWell (focusing on global health and development) Animal Charity Evaluators (specialising in animal welfare) and Founders Pledge make the process easier. These organisations conducted thousands of hours of rigorous research to identify the charities with the highest impact, offering well-founded recommendations that guide donors towards the most effective organisations.

Alternatively, you can contribute to funds like Let’s Fund, Effective Altruism Funds or Giving What We Can, which allocate money to important global issues. These funds are designed to make it easier for individuals to support a range of impactful causes.

Tax benefits versus impact

It is understandable to prefer making tax-deductible donations given that donations above 40€ are eligible for a 45% tax reduction, which essentially almost doubles the impact of your contribution. However, there is often a challenge: the most effective charities do not always have a tax-deductible status in Belgium, as many of them do not operate directly within the country.

But perhaps tax deductibility shouldn’t be the primary focus here. Research shows that the impact of charities can vary significantly. Charities recommended by GiveWell, for instance, are estimated to be up to 100 times more effective than the average charity. This suggests that even without tax deductions, donations to top international charities can often achieve much greater impact than larger, tax-deductible contributions to less effective local organisations. That being said, fortunately, there is a way to support some highly impactful international charities while still benefiting from tax deductibility.

Fortunately, Belgian donors no longer have to choose between impact and tax advantages, thanks to a new system launched by Effectief Geven.

How to give to impactful charities with tax deductibility

Until recently, Belgian donors could only access a handful of top charities with tax deductibility, for example via Transnational Giving Europe (TGE). This meant that only a few highly effective organisations like the Against Malaria Foundation, GiveDirectly, and Unlimit Health were reachable with fiscal certificates.

Now, thanks to Effectief Geven’s collaboration with the King Baudouin Foundation and High Impact Athletes (HIA), the list of effective charities that are tax-deductible in Belgium has expanded significantly.

How it works

• With tax deductibility:
  • Donations are routed via the HIA Fund at the King Baudouin Foundation (KBS).
  • HIA ensures your donation is passed on to the charities or funds you selected.
  • You receive a Belgian tax certificate each February for your previous year’s donations - as long as you meet a set of conditions.
  • A 5% processing fee applies (dropping to 3% once the fund processes €100,000+ annually).
• Without tax deductibility:
  • You can donate via Doneer Effectief, where 100% of your donation goes directly to the charities.
  • Payments are easy via Bancontact and other providers.
  • No fiscal certificate is provided.

Each donation gets a unique personal code from Effectief Geven, ensuring full transparency as the funds move through the system.

👉 You can explore the full list of eligible charities and instructions at eabelgium.org/charities.

You can make a difference

Effective giving empowers each of us to contribute meaningfully to solving global issues, regardless of the size of our donations. By carefully selecting high-impact charities and taking advantage of Belgium’s tax-deductibility benefits, we can maximise the reach and effectiveness of our contributions. Every donation, no matter the amount, has the potential to drive significant change when directed thoughtfully.

For those looking to commit to long-term impact, consider taking the 🔸10% pledge from Giving What We Can. This initiative encourages individuals to pledge at least 10% of their income to the world’s most effective charities, creating a lasting commitment to help solve critical global challenges. By embracing effective giving, whether through one-time contributions or long-term pledges, we can all play a part in building a better, more compassionate world.