Polish Finance Ministry Rolls Back Crypto Tax, Promises Smarter Regulation

Published at: May 21, 2018

Poland’s Ministry of Finance will temporarily suspend tax collection for cryptocurrencies, the Polish Press Agency (PAP) reported May 18. The Ministry says it will conduct an “in-depth analysis” of the crypto space to inform better regulation and taxation policies going forward.

At the beginning of April – income tax statements in Poland are due on April 30 – the Ministry of Finance had released a statement clarifying that taxation for cryptocurrency transactions falls into two income tax brackets of 18 and 32 percent. An additional one percent levy tax due to civil law agreements is also applied, as the Ministry of Finance considered crypto transactions as the transfer of property rights.

In response to the publication of these crypto taxation guidelines, a Change.org petition was created, now with over 5,000 signatures, calling for the “release of the crypto market, and the abolition of all taxes related to this technology.”

The Ministry of Finance’s most recent statement acknowledges that in the current form of cryptocurrency taxation “the obligation may arise to pay tax in an amount often exceeding the funds invested,” stating:

“Temporary abandonment of tax collection will allow for an in-depth analysis and preparation of system solutions regulating this economic space, including in the tax context.”

PAP notes that this draft regulation is set to be issued by June 15.

Last week, Poland’s Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) placed a tender order of around $173,000 for a company to conduct a social media campaign about the dangers associated with cryptocurrency, pyramid schemes, and forex trading. This openly displayed anti-cryptocurrency angle by the Polish government was preceded by the Central Bank of Poland’s secretly funded anti-crypto campaign, consisting of a YouTube video about a man who lost all his money from crypto trading.

The Central Bank of Poland and the KNF have also collaborated to create an educational website about the risks of cryptocurrencies.

Tags
Bitcoin Regulation
Cryptocurrencies
Government
Central Bank
Taxes
Poland
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