Belgium Can’t Limit Tax, Accounting Services: EU Legal Adviser

Belgian laws restricting accountants and tax practitioners from providing banking and real estate services is contrary to the bloc’s rules, a legal adviser to the EU’s top court said.

The country’s restrictions violate the EU’s single market rules, which require member countries to remove obstacles to the freedom of establishment of service providers and to the free movement of services, according to the adviser’s Oct. 10 opinion.

• European Court of Justice Advocate General Maciej Szpunar rejected Belgium’s arguments that impartial advice and confidentiality privileges would be undermined if the scope of accountants’ work were to be expanded.
• Restrictions to ...