The European Commission has concluded that selective tax advantages granted by Belgium under its "excess profit" tax scheme are illegal under EU state aid rules. The scheme has benefitted at least 35 multinationals mainly from the EU, who must now return unpaid taxes to Belgium.

The Belgian "excess profit" tax scheme, applicable since 2005, allowed certain multinational group companies to pay substantially less tax in Belgium on the basis of tax rulings. The scheme reduced the corporate tax base of the companies by between 50 and 90 percent to discount for so-called "excess profits...