State aid: Commission approves Belgian tax measures for maritime transport

The European Commission has approved under EU State aid rules the prolongation until end 2022 of various Belgian support measures for maritime transport. The Commission concluded that the Belgian scheme is in line with EU State aid rules, because it will provide incentives to maintain maritime jobs within the EU, whilst preserving competition within the EU Single Market. More specifically, it will encourage shipping companies to register their ships in Europe and thus commit to high social, environmental and safety standards. Belgium has also committed to a number of changes to its existing scheme to prevent any discrimination between shipping companies and registries of different European Economic Area (EEA) States and to avoid undue competition distortions. The full press release is available online.