Who is liable to declare?
Liable parties
If you belong to one of the following four groups, you are obliged to declare and pay the private copying remuneration to Auvibel:
Manufacturer
As a manufacturer, you provide devices and media on the Belgian national territory that are subject to the private copying remuneration.
Importer
As an importer, you provide devices and media on Belgian national territory that are subject to the private copying remuneration and that originate from a non-EU member State.
We distinguish between two categories of importers:
- Importers as wholesalers: making media and devices available to other distributors.
- Importers as retailers: making media and devices available to end users.
As a contributor, you belong to either one of these two categories. There are separate rules for each of these two categories regarding declarations and payment deadlines. Auvibel ultimately determines which category you belong to.
Intra-EU purchaser
As an intra-EU purchaser, you make devices and media available on Belgian national territory who are subject to the private copying remuneration, and who originate from another Member State of the European Union.
We distinguish between two categories:
- intra-EU purchasers as wholesalers: making devices and media available to other distributors.
- intra-EU purchasers as retailers: making media and devices available to end users.
As a contributor, you belong to either one of these two categories. There are separate rules for each of these two categories regarding declarations and payment deadlines. Auvibel ultimately determines which category you belong to.
Online retailers
The basic principles can be generalised to internet sites (online shops/online retailers), even if they are located abroad. The Belgian court has made the following pronouncement on this matter: “Anyone who offers products subject to the remuneration for private copying via a website and who thereby expressly targets Belgian customers, produces specific advertising, takes the initiative of and bears responsibility for importing those products into Belgium, which is also presented in the general conditions of sale thereof”. This principle was subsequently confirmed by the CJEU.
Read E-commerce for more information.