Crypto & taxes, country by country

Navigating crypto and digital banking starts with the local rules: here, country by country, you find how capital gains are taxed, which licences operators need and links to the legal text or the competent authority. For information only, not legal or tax advice.

🇮🇹 Italy focus

Foreign accounts & crypto: when you actually have to declare them

A viral post claims: “you can hold Revolut, Wise or N26 without declaring them.” It’s half true — and it conflates separate things. Here is the full picture for an Italian tax resident, with the right thresholds and the official sources.

The two thresholds are independent tests

€5.000 average annual balance

If exceeded, IVAFE is due: a flat €34.20 per year for each foreign current account or savings book.

€15.000 peak balance (even for a single day)

If exceeded, you must file Quadro W (former Quadro RW) for asset monitoring — even when no IVAFE is due.

Below both thresholds: no IVAFE and no Quadro W. But note — these are two distinct tests, not “one double condition”: the first is a tax, the second a transparency obligation.

The IBAN trap: “IT” doesn’t mean “domestic”

The IBAN alone doesn’t decide whether an account is foreign: what matters is where the provider (or its branch) holding the account is based. Always check your own case.

Service IBAN Foreign account? Note
Revolut · IBAN IT (dal 2025) IT No Italian branch of Revolut Bank UAB (Italian residency required): domestic account, no Quadro W.
Revolut · IBAN LT (conti storici) LT Yes Accounts opened before the migration: foreign asset, the €5,000 / €15,000 thresholds apply.
N26 · dal 26/03/2020 IT No Italian branch with an IT IBAN: N26 itself treats it as a fully Italian account.
N26 · prima del 26/03/2020 DE Yes Legacy German accounts: foreign asset, thresholds apply.
Wise BE / estero Yes E-money account held with a foreign entity: always a foreign asset.
PayPal — Yes E-money account (Luxembourg): falls under monitoring above the thresholds.
Trade Republic DE Yes Broker holding foreign securities: Quadro W is always due for financial instruments — the €15,000 threshold only applies to accounts and deposits, not securities.
Declaring the account ≠ declaring the income. These are two separate duties. Quadro W monitors the account’s existence and value; salary, interest and capital gains are still taxable income regardless of where they land. Reading “no Quadro W” as “no income tax” is a mistake.

Crypto: no threshold, always declared

Crypto-assets have no €15,000 threshold: they always go in Quadro W, whether on foreign exchanges or in self-custody. On taxation:

  • 2025: capital gains at 26%, with the €2,000 exemption abolished from 1 January 2025 (even small gains count).
  • From 2026: a 33% rate for most crypto (Bitcoin, Ethereum, altcoins); only euro-denominated e-money tokens stay at 26%.
  • IVACA: a 0.2% tax on the value of crypto-assets held at 31 December.

“They won’t find out” no longer holds

Since 2016, automatic exchange of information (CRS / DAC2) already sends clients’ balances and income to the tax authority of their country of residence. From 1 January 2026 (DAC8 / CARF) the exchange covers crypto-assets too: exchanges report user data. Transparency is the new normal — the rational move is to declare properly, not to hide.

The real traps

Joint accounts

The IVAFE threshold is assessed pro-rata (half the account = half the balance), but the account must still be reported in Quadro W if the peak exceeds €15,000.

Delegations & withdrawal powers

Anyone with a delegation or signature/withdrawal power over a foreign account — even if not the holder — may have their own monitoring obligations.

Multiple accounts, same provider

Balances of accounts held with the same provider are added together when checking the €5,000 IVAFE threshold.

Official sources

Informational reference updated July 2026 for Italian tax residents, not tax advice. Rules change and personal situations vary: always check the official source or a tax advisor.

Europe

Italy Capital gains (substitute tax): 33% from 2026 Regulated Germany Long-term exemption: Tax-free after 12 months Favorable France Flat tax (PFU): 31.4% from 2026 Regulated Spain Capital gains (savings base): 19%–30% progressive Regulated Portugal Short-term capital gains: 28% (held under 365 days) Regulated Austria Special flat rate: 27.5% Regulated Netherlands Capital gains treatment: No capital gains tax; crypto sits in net wealth (Box 3) Regulated Switzerland Capital gains (private): Exempt for private investors, regardless of size or holding period Favorable United Kingdom Capital gains tax rate: 18% (basic rate) or 24% (higher rate) since 30/10/2024 Regulated Malta Long-term investment: Gains on crypto held as investment: 0% for individuals Favorable Estonia Gains treatment: Taxed as gains from transfer of property, flat 22% (2026) Regulated Ireland Capital gains tax rate: 33% on gains from disposing of crypto Regulated

Americas

United States Short-term capital gains: Ordinary rates 10–37% (held ≤1 year) Regulated Canada Capital gains taxation: Only 50% of the gain is taxable (inclusion rate) Regulated El Salvador Bitcoin legal tender: Since 2021; reformed in 2025: now voluntary use only Favorable Brazil Crypto capital gains rate: Flat 17.5% on all gains (from 2025) Regulated Argentina Investment gains: Flat ~15% capital gains tax for residents Regulated

Middle East & Africa

United Arab Emirates Personal capital gains: 0% — no personal income tax or capital gains tax for individuals Favorable Saudi Arabia Personal capital gains: No personal income tax or capital gains tax for resident individuals Restrictive South Africa Capital gains (CGT): Max effective rate 18% (40% inclusion × 45% top marginal rate) Regulated Nigeria Personal capital gains: Digital-asset gains taxed as income at progressive rates up to 25% Regulated

Asia-Pacific

Singapore Crypto capital gains (individuals): No capital gains tax Favorable Hong Kong Crypto capital gains (individuals): No capital gains tax (0%) Favorable Japan Crypto capital gains (individuals): "Miscellaneous" income, effective rate up to ~55% Regulated Australia Crypto capital gains (individuals): Subject to CGT (CGT asset) Regulated

EU regulatory framework

The supranational texts that apply across the Union, above each national law.

EU regulations & directives

European authorities

Missing a country or an outdated figure? Let us know.