Greece intends to tax capital gains on cryptocurrency at 10 percent, with the first 500 euros of annual gains exempt. The figures come from a draft bill put out for public consultation this week and first reported by Reuters.
The rate is lower than expected. In June, two government officials told Reuters the plan was 15 percent.
The bill is due in parliament in November. Under the draft, mining by individuals would go untaxed, while mining by registered companies would be taxed. Greece currently has no comprehensive framework for taxing crypto at all, which makes this a first rule, not a cut.
At 10 percent, Athens would sit near the bottom of the European range. Decrypt lists Cyprus at 8 percent, Spain at up to 28 percent and Italy and Ireland at 33 percent.
The timing is not a coincidence. The EU’s DAC8 rules, in force since January, oblige crypto service providers to report customer transactions to tax authorities. For the first time, a government can expect to see what its residents are doing on exchanges based elsewhere. A tax is only worth writing once the gains are visible.
The missing number is the important one. Greek officials have made no projection of revenue, and say the market is hard to size because most investors use platforms outside the country. A low rate and a small exemption read like a bid to bring undeclared holdings into view, but that is an inference, and the draft could change in consultation. No start date has been reported.
