Greece’s parliament has approved the country’s first dedicated crypto tax framework, voting on Nov. 5 to levy a 10% tax on capital gains from cryptocurrency while exempting up to €500 of annual gains.
What was approved
- A flat 10% tax on crypto capital gains, with the first €500 of annual gains tax-free.
- The law brings dedicated cryptocurrency tax rules into Greek legislation after months of consultation; Reuters reported the measure passed on Nov. 5.
- The Finance Ministry says additional implementing rules on transparency and tax audits will follow.
Key technical points
- Gains are generally calculated as the difference between acquisition and transfer prices; where assets were bought in multiple lots, an average acquisition price will be used.
- Exchanging one cryptocurrency for another was stated in the ministry’s consultation to be non-taxable (i.e., crypto-to-crypto swaps do not trigger capital gains).
- There is a 12-month window from publication of the law for voluntary declarations of earlier crypto transfers without fines or interest, if specific conditions are met.
- Sales of crypto assets are exempt from Greece’s Digital Transaction Fee.
Mining, income and employee benefits
- Earlier drafts distinguished individual mining from corporate mining: individual mining was to be outside the capital gains regime while mining through a registered company would remain taxable. That distinction informed prior drafts and consultations.
- Returns from lending, liquidity provision and staking are classified by the ministry as interest and taxed at 15%—a different treatment than capital gains on disposals.
- Crypto paid to employees, partners or shareholders will be valued at market value when received for tax purposes. Inheritance and gift taxes will use prices quoted on recognized platforms from the previous day.
Enforcement and compliance notes
- The ministry has not provided an estimate of expected revenue. Officials noted most Greek investors use foreign platforms, which complicates authorities’ ability to measure the domestic market.
- A Greek tax bulletin (Forin) noted that voluntary disclosure does not itself prove the legitimacy of the funds used to purchase crypto and that the bill excludes crypto transfers from a presumption that repeated transactions automatically constitute business activity. Purchases will count as acquisition expenditure in origin-of-funds checks.
Context: US rules and EU reporting
- For context, the U.S. IRS treats digital assets as property; exchanges between digital assets are reportable events and traders are required to retain detailed transaction records.
- The Greek measures arrive amid the EU’s DAC8 reporting regime, which took effect on Jan. 1, 2026. Under DAC8, crypto service providers must report transaction data on EU residents (including decentralized assets, stablecoins, e-money tokens and certain NFTs) to national tax authorities, which will exchange that information with taxpayers’ countries of residence. The first cross-border exchanges will cover 2026 transactions and must be completed by Sept. 30, 2027.
Background and timeline
- Earlier in the year the government considered a 15% rate with a €500 exemption; by October a consultation draft had settled on the 10% figure. The Finance Ministry’s consultation closed on Oct. 22 and a parliamentary vote was scheduled for the first week of November.
What’s next
- Expect implementing regulations and guidance from the Finance Ministry detailing reporting, audit procedures and how platforms—especially foreign ones—will be expected to cooperate with the new framework.
What was approved
- A flat 10% tax on crypto capital gains, with the first €500 of annual gains tax-free.
- The law brings dedicated cryptocurrency tax rules into Greek legislation after months of consultation; Reuters reported the measure passed on Nov. 5.
- The Finance Ministry says additional implementing rules on transparency and tax audits will follow.
Key technical points
- Gains are generally calculated as the difference between acquisition and transfer prices; where assets were bought in multiple lots, an average acquisition price will be used.
- Exchanging one cryptocurrency for another was stated in the ministry’s consultation to be non-taxable (i.e., crypto-to-crypto swaps do not trigger capital gains).
- There is a 12-month window from publication of the law for voluntary declarations of earlier crypto transfers without fines or interest, if specific conditions are met.
- Sales of crypto assets are exempt from Greece’s Digital Transaction Fee.
Mining, income and employee benefits
- Earlier drafts distinguished individual mining from corporate mining: individual mining was to be outside the capital gains regime while mining through a registered company would remain taxable. That distinction informed prior drafts and consultations.
- Returns from lending, liquidity provision and staking are classified by the ministry as interest and taxed at 15%—a different treatment than capital gains on disposals.
- Crypto paid to employees, partners or shareholders will be valued at market value when received for tax purposes. Inheritance and gift taxes will use prices quoted on recognized platforms from the previous day.
Enforcement and compliance notes
- The ministry has not provided an estimate of expected revenue. Officials noted most Greek investors use foreign platforms, which complicates authorities’ ability to measure the domestic market.
- A Greek tax bulletin (Forin) noted that voluntary disclosure does not itself prove the legitimacy of the funds used to purchase crypto and that the bill excludes crypto transfers from a presumption that repeated transactions automatically constitute business activity. Purchases will count as acquisition expenditure in origin-of-funds checks.
Context: US rules and EU reporting
- For context, the U.S. IRS treats digital assets as property; exchanges between digital assets are reportable events and traders are required to retain detailed transaction records.
- The Greek measures arrive amid the EU’s DAC8 reporting regime, which took effect on Jan. 1, 2026. Under DAC8, crypto service providers must report transaction data on EU residents (including decentralized assets, stablecoins, e-money tokens and certain NFTs) to national tax authorities, which will exchange that information with taxpayers’ countries of residence. The first cross-border exchanges will cover 2026 transactions and must be completed by Sept. 30, 2027.
Background and timeline
- Earlier in the year the government considered a 15% rate with a €500 exemption; by October a consultation draft had settled on the 10% figure. The Finance Ministry’s consultation closed on Oct. 22 and a parliamentary vote was scheduled for the first week of November.
What’s next
- Expect implementing regulations and guidance from the Finance Ministry detailing reporting, audit procedures and how platforms—especially foreign ones—will be expected to cooperate with the new framework.