Suppose you have received cryptocurrencies for referring to a platform or carrying out a specific commercial action to promote it. In that case, you should know that obtaining these cryptocurrencies is subject to tax in Spain.
Obtaining cryptocurrencies through referrals or airdrops
Recently, the General Directorate of Taxes, through the publication of Binding Inquiry 1948-June 21 of June 21, 2021 (1), has explained how each of these operations should be taxed in Personal Income Tax (IRPF).
In this way, it is understood that obtaining cryptocurrencies in exchange for providing referrals for a platform or specific participation in events of the same, as long as the said relationship between the taxpayer and the platform cannot be considered an employment relationship or economic activity, it will be taxed as capital gain in the general tax base (art. 33.1 Personal Income Tax Law) and must be declared in the fiscal year in which it is received.
For this purpose, the general tax base is the one to which the highest income tax brackets apply.
Similar treatment receives the obtaining of airdrops or rewards, whether from platforms, companies, etc.
Attention! Suppose said income is obtained by carrying out an economic activity, which implies ordering the material and human resources. In that case, we will no longer be faced with a capital gain but with returns from economic activities. And although it is true that for personal income tax the % of taxation will be the same, since in any case it will be taxed in the general tax base, this implies being subject to a whole series of additional obligations, both fiscal and formal, that they can have significant financial consequences, especially in the form of sanctions.
Among these obligations, we can mention:
- Registration with the self-employed Social Security regime.
- Registration with the Tax Agency.
- Make periodic declarations of VAT and withholdings.
- Obligation to keep a record book of income and expenses.
In the event of capital loss, we will have the possibility of offsetting them with the capital gains obtained in the next four years or offsetting said losses, within certain limits, with other positive returns from the general base.
Example:
In 2021, you receive from an Exchange platform a referral in the form of a cryptocurrency valued to date at € 2,534.29. Well, in the income tax return corresponding to the year 2021, to be presented before June 30, 2022, you will have to declare the obtaining of said assets as a capital gain in the general tax base. Assuming that the average tax rate of the general base (considering the rest of income) was 30%, the taxation would be:
€ 534.29 x 30% = € 760.29
The taxation of swaps and sale of cryptocurrencies in exchange for euros
When you exchange cryptocurrencies for others, there is an alteration in your assets with effects on personal income tax.
In this sense, the aforementioned Binding Consultation 1948-21 indicates that said exchanges will receive the tax consideration of swap by article 1,538 of the Civil Code.
These exchanges involve obtaining an income for you classified as capital gain or loss (Article 33.1 Personal Income Tax Law), whose amount will be obtained by the difference between the acquisition value and, in this case, that of the asset received (article 37.1 LIRPF).
These capital gains or losses must be included in the tax base of savings and be reported in the year in which they are made (art. 46. b and 49 Personal Income Tax Law). Therefore, unlike the gains obtained by referrals or airdrops, those obtained by swaps are taxed at rates ranging between 19% and 26%.
Let us remember that, in the event of a capital loss, we will have the possibility of offsetting them with the capital gains obtained in the next four years, or offsetting said losses, with certain restrictions, with positive returns from movable capital (dividends, interest, etc.) generated.
Example:
In November 2020, you decided to buy BNB. At that time, the price is 24.6 euros, so you invest 300 euros, constituting a total of 12.19 BNB.
After a while, in March 2021, you decide to exchange these BNB for ETH. The BNB price in March 2021 is 232.51 euros, so the total value of your portfolio in BNB is 2,834.29 euros. For its part, at the time of the change, the ETH price was 1,618.41 euros per unit.
Although the result is that you continue to have, at the date of the change, the same value in euros, although instead of having 12.19 BNB, you have 1.7 ETH for a value of 2,834.29 euros, for income tax purposes, there has been an alteration in your assets in the form of capital gains:
- Acquisition price (12.19 BNB): € 300
- Transmission price (12.19 BNB): € 2,834.29
- Capital gain obtained in the swap: € 2,534.29
- Assuming that this was the only return on the savings tax base in 2021, the tax would be:
€ 2,534.29 x 19% = €481.51
As in the case of the swap, the moment we decide to convert our cryptocurrencies to euros we will again find ourselves faced with a capital gain or loss (art 33.1 Personal Income Tax Law), the amount of which will be the difference between the acquisition and transmission value (art 34 Personal Income Tax Law), which must be integrated in the year in which the conversion takes place. The result of the same will form part of the tax base of the personal income tax savings (art. 46. b and 49 Personal Income Tax Law).
Again here we will also have the possibility to compensate the losses as mentioned above.
Example:
In November 2020, you decided to buy € 300 in BNB. The price at that time is 24.6 euros / BNB, constituting a total of 12.19 BNB.
In March 2021, you decide to get rid of these BNB to obtain the consolidated equity gain in euros. The BNB price in March 2021 was € 232.51 / BNB, so the total value of your portfolio in BNB is € 2,834.29.
This capital gain must be included in the 2021 personal income tax in the tax base of the savings, as follows:
- Acquisition value: it will be the 300 euros you invested in November 2020.
- Transmission value: 2,834.29 euros.
- Capital gains: 2,534.29 euros
- Assuming that this was the only return on the savings tax base in the fiscal year 2021, the tax would be:
€ 2,534.29 x 19% = €481.51
Leave A Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.