BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) – Information about transactions with crypto assets such as Bitcoin is to be automatically exchanged between the national tax authorities in the EU in the future. It should also be possible to share tax-relevant information about the wealthiest people. The finance ministers of the EU countries agreed on this on Tuesday in Brussels.
Cryptocurrencies are generated on the computer, Bitcoin is the most well-known of them. The market started without extensive regulation, so there were cases of fraud and concerns about opportunities for money laundering.
The new rules make it easier for states to collect taxes if profits are made from trading or investing in cryptocurrencies – as with other financial assets. “The tax authorities will be obliged to automatically exchange information to be provided by the reporting providers of crypto services,” it said in a statement. The decentralized nature of crypto assets has made it difficult for countries’ tax authorities to ensure tax compliance.
The new rules were approved unanimously by the Council but have yet to be formally adopted. But that is considered a formality. Most of them are due to come into force in 2026, some a little later – by 2030 at the latest.
Furthermore, in the fight against money laundering, EU countries decided today that providers of crypto services are obliged to collect and make available certain information about the principals and beneficiaries of the transfers of crypto assets they carry out – regardless of how many crypto assets are transferred. This is intended to ensure the traceability of crypto value transfers and to better identify possible suspicious transactions. In addition, the countries agreed on a legal framework for investor protection in crypto assets./red/DP/jsl