belgiquelex.be - Carrefour Bank of Legislation 23 NOVEMBER 2015. - An Act to approve the Headquarters Agreement between the Kingdom of Belgium and the Benelux Union, made in Brussels on 3 February 2012 (1) (2) (3)
PHILIPPE, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The House of Representatives adopted and sanctioned the following:
Article 1
er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 74 of the Constitution.
Art. 2. The headquarters agreement between the Kingdom of Belgium and the Benelux Union, made in Brussels on 3 February 2012, will come out with its full effect.
Art. 3. This Act is effective February 3, 2012.
Promulgate this law, order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels, 23 November 2015.
PHILIPPE
By the King:
Minister of Foreign and European Affairs,
D. REYNDERS
The Minister of the Interior,
J. JAMBON
The Minister of Justice,
K. GEENS
Minister of Social Affairs and Public Health,
Ms. M. DE BLOCK
The Minister of Finance,
J. VAN OVERTVELDT
Seal of the state seal:
The Minister of Justice,
K. GEENS
____
Notes
(1) House of Representatives (www.lachambre.be):
Documents: 54-1082
Full report : 02/07/2015
(2) See Decree of the Flemish Community/ Flemish Region of 31/05/2013 (Belgian Monitor of 03/07/2013), Decree of the French Community of 18/12/2013 (Belgian Monitor of 20/03/2014 (Ed.2)), Decree of the German-speaking Community of 02/11/2015 (Belgian Monitor of 03/12/2015 ), Decree of the Walloon Region of 09/01/2014 (Belgian Region of 22/01/2014),
(3) Effective date: 1
er February 2016.
Headquarters Agreement between the Kingdom of Belgium and the Benelux Union
The Kingdom of Belgium, referred to as "Belgium",
represented by:
- the Federal Government,
- the Government of the French Community,
- the Flemish Government,
- the Government of the German-speaking Community,
- the Walloon Government,
- the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region;
and
The Benelux Union, referred to as the Benelux;
In view of the Treaty for the Revision of the Treaty establishing the Benelux Economic Union signed on 3 February 1958, made at The Hague on 17 June 2008, referred to as the Treaty,
Considering Article 18 of the Treaty, under which the General Secretariat Benelux is established in Brussels;
Having regard to Article 29, § 1 and § 2, of the Treaty;
Having regard to the Benelux Union's Protocol on Privileges and Immunities, done at The Hague on 17 June 2008, referred to as "the Protocol";
Desiring to conclude an agreement to determine the privileges and immunities necessary for the functioning of the General Secretariat Benelux and for the successful completion of the mission of the General Secretariat Benelux and its staff;
The following agreed:
Article 1
erFor the purposes of this Agreement, "agents of the General Secretariat Benelux" are members of the General Secretariat Benelux who are employed in accordance with the Staff Regulations and the Organization's organic framework as decided by the Committee of Ministers of the Benelux Union under Article 20.2 of the Treaty.
Article 2
Without prejudice to the obligations that arise for Belgium of the treaties relating to the European Union and the application of the legal and regulatory provisions, the terms and conditions for the application of Article 5 of the Protocol shall be determined by the competent Belgian authorities.
Article 3
1. No direct or indirect tax exemption is granted for the income of the General Secretariat Benelux from an industrial or commercial activity that would be carried out by the General Secretariat Benelux or by an authority or body of the General Secretariat Benelux or by one of its agents on behalf of the General Secretariat Benelux or an authority or body of the General Secretariat Benelux or an agent of the General Secretariat Benelux.
2. Without prejudice to Belgium's obligations with respect to European Union treaties and the application of legal and regulatory provisions concerning public order, security, health and morals, the General Secretariat Benelux can import all goods and publications intended for its official use.
3. The General Secretariat Benelux is exempt from any indirect taxes in respect of official publications intended for it or sent to it.
Article 4
1. Under Article 9 of the Protocol, the Secretary-General and the Under-Secretary-General shall, respectively, enjoy the immunities, privileges and facilities recognized to a Chief of Diplomatic Mission and to the diplomatic staff of diplomatic missions. Their legal partner and their minor children, dependant and living in their homes, benefit from the benefits recognized to the spouse and minor children of diplomatic personnel.
2. The Secretary General, the Under-Secretary-General and the staff of the General Secretariat Benelux, recruited for a period of at least one year, shall be exempted from any tax on the salaries, emoluments and allowances paid to them by Benelux on the day that these revenues will be taxed for the benefit of Benelux, created by the States members of the Benelux under a Decision of the Committee of the Ministers § 2 Belgium reserves the opportunity to take into account these salaries, emoluments and allowances for the calculation of the amount of tax payable on taxable income from other sources.
3. The provisions of paragraph 2 shall not apply to pensions and annuities paid by Benelux to its former agents in Belgium or to their rights, salaries, emoluments and allowances paid by Benelux to its agents engaged for a period of less than one year or who do not occupy a Benelux employment within the meaning of Article 1 of this Agreement.
Article 5
1. Without prejudice to the obligations that arise for Belgium of the treaties relating to the European Union and the application of the legal and regulatory provisions, the agents of the General Secretariat Benelux, apart from those mentioned in Article 4.1 of this Agreement, shall enjoy the right during the twelve-month period following their first taking of functions to import or acquire, free of customs duties and the Value-added Tax, furniture and a car.
2. The Minister of Finance shall determine the limits and conditions of application of this Article.
Article 6
1. The General Secretariat Benelux notifies the arrival and departure of its officers to the Federal Public Service Foreign Service Protocol Directorate and also notifies the information specified below with respect to all its agents:
(a) name and name;
(b) place and date of birth;
(c) sex;
(d) nationality;
(e) Main residence (community, street, number);
(f) civil status;
(g) household composition;
(h) the social protection system chosen by the staff member.
2. Any changes to the data specified above shall be reported within two weeks to the Federal Public Service Foreign Service Protocol Directorate.
3. The Benelux General Secretariat will issue a specification sheet to all beneficiaries by 1 March of each year in addition to their name and address, the amount of salaries, emoluments, allowances, pensions or annuities paid by the Benelux or the Benelux General Secretariat during the previous year. Similarly, the double sheets will be transmitted directly by the Benelux before the same date to the competent Belgian tax administration.
Article 7
Belgium is not required to grant its own permanent nationals or residents the benefits, except those provided for in Article 4.2, privileges and immunities referred to in this Agreement.
Article 8
1. Belgium and Benelux declare their common intention to guarantee their insured persons a high level of social protection.
2. Agents of the General Secretariat Benelux who do not exercise in Belgium any other occupation of a profit nature other than that required by their functions may opt for affiliation with the social protection regime applicable to agents of the General Secretariat Benelux. This right of option can only be exercised once and, as the case may be, must be exercised within two weeks of the entry into force of this Agreement for officers of the Benelux General Secretariat already in office or within two weeks of the entry into office of the agent to the Benelux General Secretariat. It shall, within the same period, be notified in accordance with Article 6.2.
3. The Benelux will ensure the affiliation with the Belgian social security system of agents of the General Secretariat Benelux of agents of the General Secretariat Benelux who have not opted for the social protection provided by the Benelux itself.
4. Benelux is committed to guaranteeing to agents of the General Secretariat Benelux, based in Belgium, who are affiliated with its social protection regime, as well as to their legal partner and their minor children, dependent and living in their homes, benefits equivalent to those provided by the Belgian social security system, in accordance with the guarantees recognized in Belgium, concerning the free choice of the practitioner, the therapeutic freedom of the medical care providers and the confidentiality of the medical services and services provided by the medical services.
5. Belgium may obtain from Benelux or the General Secretariat Benelux the reimbursement of costs incurred for any social assistance that it would be required to provide to the officers of the General Secretariat of Benelux who are affiliated with the social protection regime applicable to agents of the General Secretariat Benelux. This provision applies by analogy to the legal partner and to minor children, dependent and living in their homes, of these officers of the Benelux General Secretariat.
Article 9
1. Persons referred to in Article 8 of the Protocol shall not enjoy immunity from jurisdiction in respect of cases of violations of the regulations on the movement of motor vehicles or damage caused by a motor vehicle.
2. The General Secretariat Benelux and its agents must comply with all the obligations imposed by Belgian legislation relating to compulsory liability insurance for self-propelled vehicles.
Article 10
Belgium does not rely on the activity of the General Secretariat Benelux in its territory any international responsibility whatsoever for the acts and omissions of the General Secretariat Benelux or for those of its agents acting or abstaining in the course of their duties.
Article 11
The provisions of this Agreement shall not prejudice the provisions of the Protocol.
Article 12
1. Any discrepancy with respect to the application or interpretation of this Agreement, which could not be resolved by direct negotiations between the Parties, may be submitted by one of the Parties to the assessment of an arbitration tribunal composed of three members.
2. Each Party shall designate a member of the arbitration tribunal, within a period of 30 days, from the date on which one of the Parties received a note from the other Party, in which an arbitration decision is sought.
3. The third member of the Arbitration Tribunal is designated by the members designated by the two Parties in a subsequent 30-day period. The third member shall be the President of the Arbitration Court and may not be a subject of the Kingdom of Belgium or be at the service of any authority, public institution or public enterprise of that Kingdom.
4. In case one of the Parties does not designate its member within 30 days or if there is no agreement on the third member, the President of the International Court of Justice may be invited to appoint one or more members by one of the Parties.
5. The Arbitration Court sets out its own procedure.
6. The judgment of the Arbitration Tribunal is argued, final and cannot be appealed.
7. The costs of the Arbitration Tribunal are shared by both parties, each Party taking half of them. Each Party shall bear the costs of its representation in the proceedings.
Article 13
Each Party shall notify the other of the fulfilment of the domestic constitutional and legal procedures required for the implementation of this Agreement.
The Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the second month following the date of exchange of the last notification with effect from the date of signature.
This Agreement may be subject to review at the request of one of the Parties.
In faith, the Representatives of the Kingdom of Belgium and the Benelux Union signed this Agreement.
Done in Brussels, in two copies, in French and Dutch, on 3 February 2012.