Portugal, together with Germany and France, has a crypto-friendly taxation framework. For a long time, individual crypto purchase income was tax-free, applying a non-habital taxable regime. Although now it’s taxable.
Portugal, together with Germany and France, has a crypto-friendly taxation framework. For a long time, individual crypto purchase income was tax-free, applying a non-habital taxable regime. Although now it’s taxable.
According to our rating, Portugal is a Safe place at the security level. Jurisdiction has 69.3 points (from 100) for safety level in Numbeo crime rating (1). The homicide level (2) is 0.8 per 100,000 inhabitants a year. Story of firearm-related death (3) 1.48 per 100,000 inhabitants a year.
The official treatment of cryptocurrency from 2016 can be found here (4) (in Portuguese). The legal status of cryptocurrency in Portugal is that cryptocurrency should be treated like any other currency in Portugal. This was clarified in a statement by the Portuguese tax authorities (5) given to a company that was planning on mining bitcoins in Portugal.
According to Globalcitizensolutions (6), paying salaries in crypto in Portugal is legal, and there is a straightforward taxation procedure for them. They are an object for PIT.
According to the Official Tax Authority Bulletin (7) and Thomson Reuters' assumption (8), “An exchange of cryptocurrency for ’real’ currency constitutes an on-demand, VAT-free exercise of services,” the Portuguese tax authorities have said.
Two main regulators are the Local Tax Authority and the Central Bank of Portugal (BoP). According to the official site of BoP (9), there is a straightforward license procedure for crypto assets in the country.
When carried out within Portuguese territory, the following activities or operations with virtual assets are subject to prior registration with the Banco de Portugal, including where the applicant exercises another profession or activity covered by Law No 83/2017 of 18 August 2017:
Activities with virtual assets subject to registration with the Banco de Portugal and regulated in Portuguese territory
In April of 2022, Bison Bank, a Portugal-based financial institution, received (10) a license from the Portuguese central bank (Banco de Portugal) to operate as a virtual asset service provider (VASP).
According to Cryptoslate, Criptoloja, and Mind The Coin also got (11) licenses from the Central Bank. In 2022 there were five licenses (12) and 12 requests. As for 2024 there 8 companies having VASP license according to the register (13) in the following website section (14). The main document with BoP's requirements for VASPs is Notice No. 3/2021 (15).
There is little information about MiCA implementation in Portugal - BoP will probably publish the relevant requirements only in December 2024. This may be due to the small number of VASP licenses in the country - only 8.
Tax name | Index |
PIT tax Max | 48 |
PIT tax Min | 14.5 |
Corporate tax (CIT) | 21 |
Max Individual CGT (for crypto) | 28 |
Min Individual CGT (for crypto) | 0 |
Wealth tax Min | 0.4 |
Wealth tax Max | 7.5 |
According to Nomoretax (16), the crypto asset is “any digital representation of value or rights that can be transferred or stored electronically through distributed ledger technology.
In 2022, Portugal changed its crypto policy (17). The government has applied CGT for short-term crypto gains starting in 2023.
According to Euronews (18), professional crypto activities are also subject to income tax. The lowest PIT rate is 14,5%, and the maximum rate is 48% for incomes higher than 78,834 EUR, based on PWC taxsummaries (19). Data about DeFi taxation in Portugal needs to be provided.
According to Cointelegraph (20), the CGT tax rate for crypto purchases is 28%, in case crypto is held for less than one year. Long-term holders still pay no tax.
According to PWC (19), Portugal has a flat CIT rate of 21%.
1)Crime Index by Country 2023 Mid-Year
2)List of countries by intentional homicide rate
3)List of countries by firearm-related death rate
4)FICHA DOUTRINÁRIA. PDF-file
5)FICHA DOUTRINÁRIA (2). PDF-file
6)Portugat Crypto Tax Ultimate Guide. Article
7) Official Tax Authority Bulletin
8)Thomson Reuters assumption. Article
9)Registration of virtual assets service providers
10)Central Bank of Portugal Grants Country’s First Crypto License to a Bank. Article
11)Central Bank of Portugal awards first licenses to local crypto exchanges
12)Crypto companies awaiting Portugal green light. Article
13)BoP List of registered virtual asset service providers
14)BoP Registration of virtual assets service providers
15)BoP Notice No. 3/2021
16)Nomoretax Portugal new tax rules on crypto assets for 2023
17)Portugal will implement 28% tax on crypto in 2023. Article
18)Euronews Portugal will close a legal loophole to start taxing cryptocurrencies
19)Portugal Corporate - Taxes on corporate income. PWC
20)Portugal proposes 28% tax on annual crypto trading profits next year
Last update: November 2024
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