What documents are needed to domicile a company in Belgium?
One of the first questions entrepreneurs ask when considering domiciliation for their company is simple: what documents do I need to provide? The answer depends on your situation — creating a new company or transferring an existing registered office — but in all cases, the list is short and the process is accessible. In Belgium, domiciliation is governed by the law of 29 March 2018, which imposes precise obligations on both the provider and the client regarding documentation. In this article, we detail each required document, explain why it is necessary, and describe exactly how the process works at Office Factory.
Why are documents required?
Company domiciliation in Belgium is not merely an administrative formality: it is a legal act governed by precise obligations. The law of 29 March 2018 requires domiciliation providers registered with the SPF Économie to verify the identity of their clients and the beneficial owners of the domiciled company. These requirements form part of the anti-money laundering (AML) regulatory framework, which aims to prevent the misuse of legal structures for illicit purposes. In practical terms, this means your domiciliation provider is legally required to collect, verify and archive a number of documents before providing its service. This process also protects your own company: it ensures that your domiciliation is compliant, enforceable against all Belgian authorities, and cannot be challenged at a later date on procedural grounds.
The 5 essential documents for domiciling your company
Here is the complete list of documents you will need to provide to your domiciliation provider, whether you are creating a new company or transferring a registered office:
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1. Copy of the identity document of legal representatives
Every legal representative of the company — the manager of an SRL/BV, a director of an SA/NV, or any other person authorised to bind the company — must provide a legible copy of a valid identity document. This may be a Belgian or European national identity card, or a passport for non-EU nationals. This requirement flows directly from the KYC (Know Your Customer) obligations imposed by AML regulations: the provider must be able to identify with certainty the natural persons behind the domiciled legal structure. The copy must be legible on both sides and the expiry date must be later than the date of signature of the domiciliation agreement.
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2. Articles of association or deed of incorporation
The company's articles of association — or, for a company in the process of being incorporated, the draft deed of incorporation — are required to establish the legal nature of the domiciled company, its corporate purpose and the identity of its directors. For an already incorporated SRL/BV or SA/NV, this means the most recent coordinated articles, as published in the Belgian Official Gazette (Moniteur Belge). For a company being newly incorporated, the articles drafted by the notary are sufficient at this stage, even before official publication. This document allows the provider to verify that the intended activity is compatible with the domiciliation service conditions, and to ensure the overall compliance of the file.
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3. BCE extract (for existing companies)
If your company is already registered in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises (BCE/KBO), you will need to provide a recent BCE extract — preferably dated within the last three months. This official extract, freely accessible on the BCE website, contains the company number, corporate name, legal form, current registered office address, and identification data for directors and managers. It allows the provider to verify the information declared and to ensure consistency between the documents submitted and the public data on record. In the case of a newly incorporated company, this extract is not yet available and is therefore not required at this stage.
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4. Signed domiciliation agreement
The domiciliation agreement is the legal contract that formalises the relationship between your company and the domiciliation provider. This document, required by the law of 29 March 2018, sets out the domiciliation address, the duration of the contract, the services included, the mutual obligations of the parties, and the termination conditions. At Office Factory, we prepare and submit the domiciliation agreement to you: you simply read it carefully, ask any questions you may have, and then sign it. The contract must be retained by both parties throughout the domiciliation period and for at least five years after the contract ends. This is the document that makes your domiciliation legally enforceable and allows you to justify your registered office address to the BCE, the tax authorities, and the courts.
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5. Proof of statutory modification (transfers only)
If you are transferring the registered office of an already existing company — that is, changing the address of your registered office — you will need to provide proof that this modification was decided in accordance with your articles of association and published in the Belgian Official Gazette (Moniteur Belge). Depending on the legal form of your company, this transfer may require a decision of the extraordinary general meeting, a notarial deed, or a simple management decision, depending on what your articles provide. Publication in the Belgian Official Gazette makes the modification enforceable against third parties. Without this proof, the address update at the BCE cannot be carried out. Office Factory can assist you in managing these formalities and refer you to the appropriate professionals if needed.
Creating a new company: what to bring to the notary
If you are incorporating a new company (SRL/BV, SA/NV, ASBL/VZW, etc.) and wish to have its registered office domiciled at Office Factory from the outset, the process is particularly smooth. You first sign your domiciliation agreement with Office Factory, which provides you with the official address to include in your articles of association. You then bring to the notary your financial plan (mandatory for SRL/BV and SA/NV under the 2019 Code of Companies and Associations), your draft articles of association including the domiciliation address, and the identity documents of the founders. The notary drafts the deed of incorporation, which is published in the annexes of the Belgian Official Gazette, after which your company is registered at the BCE via an accredited enterprise counter. The entire process typically takes between a few days and two weeks depending on the notary's availability and the complexity of the file.
Transferring an existing registered office: steps and formalities
Transferring the registered office of an existing company involves several precise administrative steps. First, you must decide on the transfer in accordance with the procedures set out in your articles of association: for an SRL/BV whose articles delegate this power to the management, a simple management decision suffices; for an SA/NV or a company whose articles require a general meeting decision, it must be convened and held. The transfer decision must then be published in the Belgian Official Gazette — this can be done through an accredited enterprise counter or by a notary. Once publication has been carried out, the address update at the BCE can be processed. At Office Factory, we support you throughout this process and can refer you to our partners (notaries, enterprise counters) to ensure the transfer takes place quickly and without complications.
Timelines: how long does domiciliation take?
Once your complete file has been submitted to Office Factory — signed agreement, copies of identity documents and articles of association — your domiciliation address is operational within 24 to 48 business hours. This timeframe is sufficient for you to use the address in your dealings with the notary, the BCE, or any other authority. The effective update at the BCE — whether for a new registration or an office transfer — then depends on the enterprise counter you mandate, and typically takes an additional 1 to 3 business days. In urgent situations, do not hesitate to contact us directly: our team makes every effort to process your file on a priority basis when your circumstances require it.
Conclusion: a simple, fast and regulated procedure
Domiciling a company in Belgium requires very few documents — five at most, some of which are only required in specific circumstances. The process is fast, transparent, and governed by clear regulations. At Office Factory, we guide every client through the necessary steps, check the completeness of the file together, and handle the administrative formalities so that you can focus on what truly matters: growing your business.