PME-CONSEILS

PME-Conseils is an advisory firm based in Uccle, in the Brussels Region, with more than 30 years of activity in accounting, business management and tax. The company is registered with the ITAA and ISO 9001 certified, a quality management standard. It has two departments, one for fiduciary work and the other for management consulting. The directors are Christophe Somers, a Solvay business engineer, and co-founders Cathy Lespiaucq, an approved tax accountant, and Bernard Richelle. The team also includes around twenty accounting file managers, a lawyer and three administrative assistants.

The fiduciary department serves SMEs, the self-employed and associations. The assignment can cover all the accounting or be limited to monitoring books kept on the client's premises. It ranges from choosing the software and digitising the file to setting up the accounts, the general, analytical or budget chart of accounts, entering or scanning documents, periodic statements and the annual accounts. Each client has a dedicated file manager, supervised by a partner, and free online access to their accounts.

For day-to-day tax, the firm handles the obligations of VAT taxpayers, calculates the pro rata for mixed taxpayers and helps with VAT registration in European countries. It prepares personal income tax returns, including for non-residents, as well as corporate tax and tax on legal entities. It optimises advance payments and manages directors' payroll withholding tax and withholding tax on investment income. It defends clients before the authorities during audits, notices of adjustment or objections, and prepares lawyers' files in court proceedings.

The non-profit sector is a stated speciality. PME-Conseils works for cultural, medical and development cooperation non-profits, international associations, NGOs, foundations and European federations. For subsidised projects, it sets up project-by-project analytical accounting, prepares budget reports under each funder's rules and assists clients during financial audits. The firm cites regular contact with the European Commission, federal and regional ministries and the COCOF.

The management consulting department supports the life of the business: incorporation, moving a personal activity into a company, dashboards, buying and selling businesses, and liquidation. It offers management assistance, one-off or regular, including attending management committees, preparing and acting as secretary to the board, and preparing talks with banks. Its legal service drafts reports and minutes, then formalises company deeds with the Belgian Official Gazette, the court registry and the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises.

In tax planning, the firm works on directors' income, the personal situation of traders and liberal professions, and applications for foreign executive status. Its partners are approved as SME consultants in the Brussels-Capital Region and the Walloon Region, which allows certain assignments to be subsidised at 50% under conditions. For social law, it works mainly with Securex and Partena, but also with the client's own social secretariat. Fees are charged by the hour or as a fixed amount, depending on the service.