Portuguese Finance Minister Fernando Medina has said that cryptocurrencies will be subject to taxation in the near future, as he told parliament on Friday (Sapo reported).
- "Many countries already have systems, many countries are building their models in relation to this issue and we will build our own," Medina said on the taxation of cryptocurrencies.
- "The government has said it will move forward with taxing crypto," Susana Duarte, Associated Partner at law firm Abreu Advogados in Lisbon, told CoinDesk. While she confirmed that the new policy will include a capital gains tax, she said the government has not yet explained how staking or yield farming might be affected.
- Portugal was previously considered a tax haven for cryptocurrency investors, in part because of an effective capital gains rate of zero percent.
- "There is no specific law, it's just a lack of regulation that led to zero taxation in Portugal," Duarte said. "Combined with an agreement published by the Portuguese tax authority in 2016, this meant that only crypto-related trades could be taxed."
- As for their domestic clients, Duarte said they are concerned and both individuals and companies are seeking clarity and certainty on the government's proposal.
- The current capital gains tax rate for financial investments in Portugal is 28%.
- Portugal's changed stance on taxes brings the country in line with many other countries around the globe. These include Australia - where the country's tax authority today warned investors of the need to report capital gains and losses from cryptocurrencies each year - the United Kingdom and the United States.