in Belgium anything to do with a mortgage goes through the notary. the bank may give you the mortgage but it has to be done via notarial deed. And if you want to change your mortage, for instance to a different bank, you have to go through the notary (and pay) again (and again etc.)

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Note added at 8 hrs (2007-04-01 21:53:30 GMT)
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http://www.centurion-net.com/belgium.php there is also a mortgage registration tax

Calcul des frais d'actes d'emprunt


Entrez les donn�es...
Montant � financer:

Type d'emprunt
Emprunt hypoth�caire

Ouverture de cr�dit

Droits d'enregistrement:
Frais divers:
Honoraires:
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Provision:

Ces frais sont strictement indicatifs car des diff�rences importantes peuvent �tre constat�es entre les r�gions, les villes, les dossiers eux-m�mes. Le co�t de ces formalit�s aupr�s des administrations est variable. Il s'agit donc d'un montant provisionnel qui pourrait �tre quelque peu adapt�.
Le notaire charg� de la pr�paration de l'acte peut vous donner des informations compl�mentaires
http://www.notaire.be/hypo_Bel.html

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Note added at 8 hrs (2007-04-01 22:00:32 GMT)
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* Charges involved in obtaining a mortgage loan: these charges comprise the fees for registering the loan deed, the notary's fees in connection with the loan, stamp duty and the costs for entering the deed in the mortgage register. These costs vary according to the amount of your loan.
http://www.ing.be/private/topics.jsp?topic=house&docid=14072...