It shows up on every CBE extract, in every sector statistic and in many subsidy files: the NACE code. Yet few business owners know exactly what those digits mean, where they come from and how reliable they are. In this article you read how a NACE code is structured, where to look up the code of a company, how to find all companies with a certain activity and when you should update the code of your own business.
What is a NACE code?
NACE stands for "Nomenclature statistique des activités économiques dans la Communauté européenne". It is the European standard for classifying economic activities, so that sector statistics in Lisbon and in Leuven are compiled the same way. Each member state may refine that list. Belgium does so with a fifth digit, and that Belgian version is called NACE-BEL.
Since 2025 NACE-BEL 2025 applies, the Belgian translation of the renewed European nomenclature (NACE Rev. 2.1). It replaces NACE-BEL 2008, which lasted seventeen years and barely knew the digital economy. The Crossroads Bank for Enterprises automatically converted the activities of all registered businesses. For most companies little changed, but a number of well-known codes got a new number or were merged. A list with codes from before 2025 is therefore not simply usable.
Every business in the CBE, so also a sole trader or a non-profit association, has at least one main activity and may list an unlimited number of secondary activities alongside it. Important detail: those activities exist per register. The CBE activities, the VAT activities (registered by the FPS Finance) and the NSSO activities (for employers) are three separate lists that do not always match.
How a NACE code is structured
A NACE code is a tree structure. Each extra digit makes the description more specific. Take the code of a software company, 62.100:
| Level | Code | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Section (letter) | K | Telecommunication, computer programming, consultancy and information services |
| Division (2 digits) | 62 | Computer programming, consultancy and related activities |
| Group (3 digits) | 62.1 | Computer programming activities |
| Class (4 digits) | 62.10 | Computer programming activities (European level) |
| Subclass (5 digits) | 62.100 | Computer programming activities (Belgian refinement) |
The first four digits are European and therefore identical in the Netherlands, France or Germany. The fifth digit is Belgian. For some classes that refinement is useful: 41.00 (construction of buildings) splits in Belgium into 41.001 (residential buildings), 41.002 (office buildings) and 41.003 (other non-residential buildings). For other classes the fifth digit is simply a 0. In practice almost everyone talks about the four-digit class.
Examples of common codes
The full nomenclature has hundreds of classes. These ten are the ones you come across most often in Belgian files (examples of common codes, NACE-BEL 2025, class):
| Class | Description | Typical business |
|---|---|---|
| 41.00 | Construction of residential and non-residential buildings | General contractor, property developer |
| 43.22 | Plumbing, heat and air-conditioning installation | Plumber, heating installer |
| 47.11 | Non-specialised retail with food predominating | Supermarket, convenience store |
| 49.41 | Freight transport by road | Transport company, courier |
| 56.11 | Restaurant activities | Restaurant, brasserie, snack bar |
| 62.10 | Computer programming activities | Software company, freelance developer |
| 64.21 | Activities of holding companies | Holding, family asset company |
| 68.20 | Renting and operating of own or leased real estate | Real estate company, landlord |
| 70.20 | Business and other management consultancy activities | Consultant, management company |
| 71.12 | Engineering activities and related technical consultancy | Engineering firm, design office |
Looking up the NACE code of a company
The official source is the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises. Look up the company in CBE Public Search by name or enterprise number (how to find that number is explained in our article on the CBE number) and scroll to the activities section. You see three blocks: the VAT activities, the NSSO activities and the CBE activities. Next to each code it says "main activity" or "secondary activity", the version of the nomenclature and the date since which the activity applies. That date often says more than the code itself.
If you want to see the activity right next to the figures, look up the company on Jaarrekening.be. The Overview tab shows the NACE activities and the sector the company is classified in, together with the legal form, the legal status, the directors and the key figures from the latest annual accounts. That way you notice at a glance when a "consultancy firm" actually rents out real estate or a "construction company" has no staff.
Searching companies by NACE code
The reverse question comes up at least as often: which companies carry out a certain activity? That takes two steps.
- Find the right code. On the NACE code lookup page you type a keyword such as "plumber" or "software", or the start of a code (without the dot, for example 4322). You get the matching codes with their description in NACE-BEL 2025, down to the level of the Belgian subclass.
- Filter the companies. With Advanced search (Pro) you select a sector and a region and combine them with financial criteria: turnover, profit, equity, number of employees or legal status. You export the result to Excel. Prefer a visual view? The map shows companies per sector in a municipality or province.
If you are already on a company page, the Similar companies tab immediately shows its sector peers.
Why NACE codes are not always right
Treat a NACE code as an indication, not as proof. There are three reasons for that.
- Codes are chosen at incorporation. Many founders have dozens of codes registered through the business counter "so nothing has to be changed later". A joiner with 30 secondary activities, from web design to retail of flowers, is no exception.
- Codes are rarely updated. A company that started as a web shop and has meanwhile become a wholesaler often carries the old main activity for years. There is no automatic check.
- Registers differ. The CBE, VAT and NSSO activities are managed separately. It happens that the CBE says "restaurant" while the VAT administration registered "catering". Which list is "right" depends on who last updated it.
What do you use NACE codes for?
Prospecting
Anyone who wants to approach installation companies in Limburg filters on class 43.22 and the province and has a list with name, address and size within minutes. Add a minimum turnover or headcount and you only call companies that can also pay for your product. How to assess that purchasing power of a prospect is covered in a separate article.
Benchmarking
If you want to know whether a margin of 8 percent is good, you need a reference group. Companies with the same NACE class and a comparable size are the best starting point for that. That is how you compare your own figures or those of a competitor with what is normal in the sector, instead of with a gut feeling.
Compliance and subsidies
Some rules hook directly into NACE codes: the withholding obligation applies to construction activities, certain permits and insurances are linked to an activity, and Flemish or Walloon support measures exclude or include sectors on the basis of the code. For banks and accountants the activity is moreover a fixed part of the KYC file.
Changing your own NACE code
If you now do something different from what is in the CBE, update your activities. That is done through an accredited business counter (ondernemingsloket: Acerta, Liantis, Partena, Securex, Xerius and others), for a fixed legal fee per change of around a hundred euros. The counter registers the new CBE activities and can at the same time have your VAT activities adjusted with the FPS Finance. The NSSO activity is determined by the NSSO itself on the basis of your declarations.
Choose one main activity that really is your core activity, because it determines in which sector statistics, credit insurers and prospecting tools place you. And keep the list of secondary activities short: for some activities (construction, hospitality, transport) licence or qualification requirements apply that the counter checks.
In summary
A NACE code says in five digits what a company does, according to the NACE-BEL 2025 nomenclature. The codes of a company are in the CBE and on the Overview tab of Jaarrekening.be, the companies behind a code you find through the NACE code lookup page, Advanced search and the map. Use them to prospect, to benchmark and to check customers, but never trust them blindly: a code is chosen at incorporation and rarely updated. The annual accounts and the website tell you what the company really does today.