Starting in 2026, the Belgian city of Liège will introduce an annual tax of 519 euros for each automatic cash register installed within the municipal area. The measure, approved by the City Council on October 10, will remain in effect until 2031 and will be indexed to inflation. The stated objective is twofold: offset the loss of tax revenue resulting from automation e support local trade, increasingly penalized by the reduction of jobs in automated sales points.
The new tax will apply to all devices that allow customers to place orders or make payments themselves, including RFID technologies that allow products to be identified without manual scanning. According to the city administration, the tax represents a "new fiscal instrument to protect the local economic fabric" and will contribute to the financing of public services and urban policies. The decision of Liège opens a debate destined to transcend national borders, at a time when many European municipalities are questioning the relationship between innovation, employment and taxation in the retail sector.
