To become authorized, an applicant must comply with certain regulatory requirements and submit a registration or authorization file to the relevant regulator.

The requirements vary, depending on the particular regulated activities the applicant intends to carry out. Broadly, however, the following conditions need to be satisfied:

• Legal form – The applicant should be established in a specific legal form, with the exception of the private limited liability company founded by a single person.
• Location of offices – For Belgian incorporated companies, the head office must be located in Belgium, which in practice often means that certain substance requirements must be met (i.e. no "letterbox" entities).
• Initial capital – Applicants must possess a certain initial capital, which must be fully paid up.
• Adequacy of the shareholder structure – The shareholders have to be adequate in order to guarantee a sound and prudent management of the institution.
• Professional and appropriate management – Management should be composed of natural persons only and have to possess the necessary professional trustworthiness and appropriate expertise ("fit and proper" requirements).
• Organization – The applicant should have a management structure, administrative and accounting procedures, as well as internal control systems that are appropriate to the activities proposed.
• Specific conditions governing the pursuit of the business of credit institutions, insurance companies, payment institutions and investment firms – These specific requirements relate to changes in the capital structure, general operating requirements, product requirements, conduct of business rules, special transactions, regulatory standards and obligations, periodic disclosure and accounting rules, recovery plans, and the structure of the pursued activities.
• Minimum capital requirements – The applicant's own funds should never fall below the set initial capital amount.