A recent update to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) regulations has introduced a digital services tax that will be levied on cryptocurrency exchanges operating in the United Kingdom. Crypto exchanges in the UK will now have to pay a 2% digital services tax according to a Telegraph report. Britain’s tax authority, HMRC, does not recognize digital assets as financial instruments and therefore exchanges are not eligible for financial exemptions. On Nov. 28, the authority included cryptocurrency exchanges under the Treasury’s tech tax. The digital services tax on revenue was introduced in April 2020 targeting social media and search giants …

The Australian Tax Office (ATO) says it can’t rely on crypto investors to keep track of their crypto transactions and profits — even though most investors try their best. Speaking at the 14th International ATAX Conference on Tax Administration conference on Nov. 23, ATO commissioner Chris Jordan stressed that many new crypto investors may not entirely understand their tax reporting obligations: “In a sector that is growing rapidly with new investors, we can’t rely on taxpayers knowing they need to keep records of their investment income and capital gains and disclose it on their tax returns.” “Our main concern is …

South Korean government officials have created confusion this year with conflicting announcements regarding a possible repeal or amendment of the upcoming crypto tax set to come into effect in 2022. Throughout 2021, debate has increased in intensity in the National Assembly, South Korea’s legislature, about whether, or how, to amend the crypto tax. If unchanged, the tax will levy a 20% tax on income generated by crypto transactions in excess of 2.5 million Korean won, or about $2,100. NFT regulations are the latest example of confusion over crypto assets in the country. On Nov. 5, FSC officials stated definitively that …

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission, or FSC, announced Tuesday that nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, will be taxed starting next year. According to The Korea Herald, this tax law amendment would impose a 20% tax on income from virtual assets that exceed 2.5 million won ($2,102 USD) as of Jan. 1, 2022. The FSC’s Vice Chairman Doh Kyu-sang specified that only some NFTs would be categorized as virtual assets and therefore subject to “other income” taxes, referring to those used for investment or payment on a large scale. Tax authorities are in charge of defining the full scope of taxable NFTs. …

The Russian Federal Taxation Service (FNS) is actively monitoring the cryptocurrency market to prevent tax evasion, FNS head Daniil Egorov said. Cryptocurrencies can potentially cause “significant erosion” to Russia’s tax base, Egorov argued in a Monday interview with the local publication RBC. But cryptocurrency transactions are still traceable and should be reported, the official said, adding that FNS is ready to deploy automated tracking systems to process big data volumes. “When you get into the digital space, you still leave a trail somewhere. And it’s a matter of time before this trail is identified,” Egorov declared. The official also noted …

In her monthly Expert Take column, Selva Ozelli, an international tax attorney and CPA, covers the intersection between emerging technologies and sustainability, and provides the latest developments around taxes, AML/CFT regulations and legal issues affecting crypto and blockchain. The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), where I exhibited my art, took place in Glasgow, Scotland and ended with the adoption of the Glasgow Climate Pact, bringing nearly 200 countries closer to keeping global temperature rise by 2100 under 1.5 degrees Celsius. The conference remained more focused on emission reductions than on developed countries’ provisions of support to developing countries, …

During a meeting with representatives of the financial sector on Friday in Almaty, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Kazakhstan, expressed his opinion on the current state of affairs of the country's cryptocurrency industry. The details of the speech were posted on the official website of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and translated by Cointelegraph: Cryptocurrencies are an objective factor that cannot be simply ignored. It is necessary to clearly evaluate their potential to influence the current financial system. President Tokayev speaking at a conference | Source: Akorda.kz He then added: Therefore, work should be resumed on the formation of …

A bipartisan group of United States lawmakers has introduced legislation to change the tax reporting requirements that will go into effect due to the recently signed infrastructure bill. House Representatives Patrick McHenry and Tim Ryan introduced the Keep Innovation in America Act which would change the definition of broker as defined in HR 3684, the bipartisan infrastructure bill signed into law by President Joe Biden on Nov. 15. The bill proposes pushing back the mandated reporting requirements — which includes digital asset transactions worth more than $10,000 to be declared to the Internal Revenue Service — from 2024 to 2026. …

According to a report from CNBC TV18 India, the nation's government plans to reclassify cryptocurrency exchanges as e-commerce platforms, which will reduce the Goods and Services Taxes (GST) users must pay per transaction, or per trade, to 1%. Currently, the Indian Government levies an 18% GST on transactions conducted on registered cryptocurrency exchanges, which is passed to users as trading fees. The process is similar to the tax protocol of stock brokerages in the country. However, depending on the legal domicile of the exchange, the new GST proposal could actually result in more tax liabilities for certain users. Back in …

After months of scrutiny from both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, the infrastructure bill — criticized by many crypto advocates — is now officially the law of the land. In a ceremony in front of the White House on Nov. 15, President Joe Biden signed the $1 trillion infrastructure bill before an audience of reporters, lawmakers, and union workers. While the bipartisan legislation is aimed at providing funding for roads, bridges, internet access, solar panels, electric vehicle charging stations, and other major infrastructure projects, lawmakers included language applying to cryptocurrencies prior to its passage in both chambers of …

The United States House of Representatives passed the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, which if signed into law by President Joe Biden, would enforce new provisions in relation to crypto-tax reporting for all citizens. The infrastructure bill was first proposed by the Biden administration aimed at primarily improving the national transport network and internet coverage. However, the bill mandated stringent reporting requirements for the crypto community, mandating that digital asset transactions worth more than $10,000 are reported to the IRS. As Cointelegraph reported, the bill was first approved by the Senate on Aug. 10 with a 69-30 vote, which was …

Crypto and taxes may not be a match made in heaven, but taxes seem inevitable, and the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has made it clear it is going after people who don’t report. With IRS summonses to Coinbase, Kraken, Circle and Poloniex, plus other enforcement efforts, the IRS is on the hunt. The IRS sent 10,000 letters in different versions asking for compliance, but all were nudges to encourage taxpayers to be compliant. The IRS hunt for crypto has often been compared to the IRS hunt for foreign accounts more than a decade ago. Unfortunately, it is not …