Cryptocurrency trading is becoming increasingly popular in Spain and with it comes the responsibility of reporting crypto taxes.The Spanish government does not classify Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as fiat currency such as the Euro. Instead, it views them as property, which affects their tax treatment.
In July 2021, Spain passed the Law on Measures to Prevent and Combat Tax Fraud, which forces centralized crypto exchanges to share customer information with the government.
This is an important ruling for crypto investors in Spain as it takes away some of the perceived anonymity for crypto transactions.
It is just as important to remember that failing to declare any crypto gains or income can now result in serious consequences, including hefty fines and even prison time. So if you have crypto investments, do make sure you are declaring them correctly to the Agencia Tributaria.
Our guide Crypto Taxes in Spain provides a comprehensive overview of tax laws surrounding crypto investments in Spain, including when you need to pay taxes, when you don’t need to pay taxes, the tax rates for various types of crypto transactions, and how you can use Blockpit’s crypto tax calculator to generate fully compliant crypto tax reports.
Are cryptocurrencies and crypto assets taxed in Spain?
The answer is yes. The State Agency for Tax Administration of Spain (AEAT) holds that gains from transactions with cryptocurrencies and other crypto assets, as well as any income generated from your crypto holdings or crypto activities are taxable.
Receiving crypto in an inheritance or as a donation is a taxable event as well and falls under the inheritance and donation tax.
Furthermore, most regions in Spain also impose a wealth tax if the total value of all assets – including crypto – exceeds a certain threshold.
How much tax do you pay on crypto assets in Spain?
There are different types of taxes with varying tax rates that may apply to your crypto investments and holdings.
Read this overview to better understand the purpose of each tax category and how the tax rates are calculated. We’ll talk about how each crypto transaction is taxed in more detail further down in this guide.
Income Savings Tax (Capital Gains Tax)
The income savings tax, better known as capital gains tax or CGT, applies to capital gains and losses generated from cryptocurrencies.
This includes profits from selling, trading, gifting or otherwise disposing of an asset for fiat currency such as Euro or even another cryptocurrency.
Capital gains tax in Spain is based on progressive tax brackets. This means that the tax rate for savings income is between 19% and 28%, depending on the amount of profit.
The capital gains tax rate is calculated as follows:
- 19% for the first 6.000€ of taxable income.
- 21% for the following 6.000€ to 50.000€ of taxable income.
- 23% for the following 50.000€ to 200.000€ of taxable income.
- 27% for the following 200.000€ to 300.000€ of taxable income.
- 28% for any amounts over 300.000€.
Source: PWC
Gains and losses from the transfer of assets
According to Article 33.1 of the Personal Income Tax Law, any alteration to the net wealth of the taxpayer will be classified as capital gains. Therefore, income from the transfer of digital assets is characterized as capital gains from the transfer of assets.
In addition, the Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT) has agreed to classify both income generated from the exchange of digital assets and income generated from the exchange of digital assets and fiat currencies as capital gains.
According to article 34 of the IRPF Law, the amount of the capital gain is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the acquisition cost of the asset.
In the case of an asset exchange, the sale proceeds are determined as the greater of the market value of the outgoing asset or the market value of the incoming asset. Both the acquisition value and the transfer value are converted to Euros (€) at the time of entry or exit.
In this context, the cost of acquisition is determined by the sum of the price agreed for the purchase of the assets plus the commissions arising from the execution of those transactions and therefore are directly related to them.
Since the payment of the fee is considered the sale of the corresponding digital asset, the change in the value of the digital asset is also tax-relevant following the same calculation.
As for the acquisition date of the digital assets, the relevant date will be the one on which the assets are obtained.
The same rules apply to transactions with foreign currencies, precious metals and, for the purposes of our reports, also to tokenized stocks and other tokenized forms of investment.
Let’s look at an example to put this into practice.
Let’s say you bought Bitcoin in 2019 and sold some of it in 2022 for a profit of 54.000€
This profit would now be split up into the respective tax brackets and taxed accordingly.
The calculation would look like this:
6.000€ * 19%
+ 44.000€ * 21%
+ 4.000€ * 23%
= 1.140€ + 9.240€ + 920€
= 11.300€
So a profit of 54.000€ would incur a capital gains tax of 11.300€.
[IMAGE] calculate_crypto_capital_gains
Alt: Crypto taxes spain: how to calculate capital gains
Capital gains and losses on securities
According to article 25.1 and 25.2 of the Income Tax Law, capital gains refer to all earnings obtained by transferring funds or capital to third parties that are not related to an economic activity.
Assuming that the economic rights granted to the holder of the Security Token are related to the expected/agreed return and/or other economic rights over the underlying project, transactions with Security Tokens generate income from capital gains.
According to Article 25 of the Personal Income Tax Law, income would be determined as the total consideration received by the taxpayer, either for the cession of its assets to a third party or for the transfer of the asset whose characterization implies that the income is treated as capital gains.
In the case of asset swaps, the same principles of point a) Gains and losses from the transmission of assets apply.
General Income Tax
Any income received from professional activities, crypto mining, as payment for goods and services, or other activities that result in earning new coins or tokens is considered general taxable income and subject to a general income tax (IRPF – impuesto sobre la renta de las personas físicas).
Whether you receive payment in cryptocurrency, mine it, stake it, or receive it via an airdrop, you must recognize the income as per the fair market value of your coins at the time of receipt.
The general income tax in Spain is also based on progressive tax brackets, although at higher tax rates than the capital gains tax.
- 19% for the first 12.450€
- 24% for the following 12.450€ to 20.200€
- 30% for the following 20.200€ to 35.200€
- 37% for the following 35.200€ to 60.000€
- 45% for the following 60.000€ to 300.000€
- 47% for any amounts over 300.000€
Wealth Tax
In Spain, those with a large amount of assets, including cryptocurrencies, are liable for wealth tax. Depending on the region, the rate can range from 0,2% to 4%.
Madrid is the only autonomous community that does not impose a wealth tax, but those with total assets over 2.000.000€ must submit a Wealth Tax Return for information purposes.
All other regions have a minimum exemption of 700.000€ and the tax rate ranges from 0,21% to 3,75%.
It is important to remember to include the fiat value of any crypto owned when determining the value of your wealth.
- Catalonia: between 0,21% and 2,75% tax.
- Asturias: between 0,22% and 3% tax.
- Region of Murcia: between 0,25% and 3,5% tax.
- Andalusia: between 0,20% and 2,5% tax.
- Cantabria: between 0,24% and 3,03% tax
- Community of Valencia: between 0,25% and 3,5% tax.
- Balearics: between 0,28% and 3,45% tax.
- Extremadura: between 0,3% and 3,75% tax.
Inheritance and Donation Tax
The inheritance and donation tax applies to any crypto you receive as part of an inheritance, as a gift or as a donation.
The tax rate for the inheritance and donation tax ranges between 7,65% and 34% and can be set individually by each autonomous community.
Tax Free Crypto Transactions
Did you know that certain crypto transactions in Spain are tax-free? That’s right – buying, holding, and transferring crypto between your own wallets won’t impact your tax bill.
However, it’s important to note that if you’re subject to Wealth Tax, this could change the situation. Make sure you stay on top of your taxes and keep yourself informed!
The following crypto transactions are tax-free in Spain:
- Buying cryptocurrency
- Holding cryptocurrency (unless you meet the wealth tax threshold)
- Moving cryptocurrency between wallets
- Token swaps
- Inflow from hard forks
When do you have to pay taxes on crypto assets in Spain?
Let’s now have a look at how specific crypto transaction are taxed in Spain
If any asset was received as a reward through (i) an Airdrop, (ii) Bounty (iii) Mining, in a non-commercial way, the fair market value of the assets received on the day of receipt is qualified as non-transmission gains from assets. Taxation is fully carried out in case of subsequent sale.
If any asset was received as a reward through (i) staking consensus proof, (ii) a loan transaction on a financial services platform (“Lending”), (iii) the operation of a masternode (“Masternodes”) or (iv) distributions of Security Tokens, the fair market value of the assets received on the day of receipt is classified as income or capital gains.
Selling crypto assets for fiat
When you sell cryptocurrency, you’ll incur a capital gain or loss depending on how the price has changed since you originally purchased it.
When you sell your crypto for euros or any other fiat currency, you must pay Income Savings Tax (Capital Gains Tax) of 19% to 28% on any profits you make.
As an example, if you buy 1 ETH for 3.000€ + 2% transaction fees, your cost basis is 3.060€.
If you later sell 1 ETH for 3.400€, you have generated a capital gain of 340€ on which you must pay Income Savings Tax.
Buying crypto assets with fiat
Buying cryptocurrency with fiat currency like Euro is not considered a taxable event.
Exchanging crypto assets for other crypto assets
When you trade cryptocurrency for another cryptocurrencies, you’ll incur a capital gain or loss depending on how the price of the first cryptocurrency has changed from its initial cost basis.
Any gains will be taxed under the Income Savings Tax, ranging from 19% to 28%.
The sale value of the sold cryptocurrency will be used as the cost basis of the purchased cryptocurrency for any future taxation.
Using crypto assets to pay for goods and services
If any asset was given as (i) a gift or (ii) payment for goods and services (“expenses”), it is assumed that the fair market value of the donation or goods or services provided corresponds to the fair market value of the corresponding asset. For tax purposes, these transactions are treated as a sale of the corresponding asset.
Paying for goods and services with crypto counts as disposing of an asset and is therefore taxed under the Income Savings Tax, ranging from 19% to 28%.
You must use your initial cost basis and the market value at the time of disposal to calculate your gain or loss.
Receiving crypto assets from mining
Cryptocurrency mining rewards are taxed as general income based on the value of the reward when you receive it, ranging from 19% to 47%.
This applies whether you are mining Bitcoin (BTC), Dogecoin (DOGE), Ethereum Classic (ETC) or any other cryptocurrency.
If you dispose of your mined coins in the future, they’ll be subject to income savings tax based on how the value of the mined coins has changed since you originally mined them.
It is therefore crucial to diligently track the performance of your crypto assets to ensure that they can be taxed correctly.
Minting or selling NFTs
The creation of an NFT (Non-Fungible Tokens), a process called minting, is not considered a taxable event.
However, selling an NFT is taxed under the Income Savings Tax at a rate from 19% to 28%, where the cost basis is either the value at the time of purchase or 0€ if you minted it yourself.
Receiving crypto assets by airdrop
At this time, Agencia Tributaria hasn’t put out any guidance on cryptocurrency airdrops.
The conservative approach is to treat crypto received from airdrops as income subject to the General Income Tax, ranging from 19% to 47%.
Receiving crypto assets from staking
Income from staking is generally considered as interest, which is subject to Income Savings Tax, ranging from 19% to 28%.
However, staking might be considered as a business activity if they require substantial human or material resources. In this case, staking rewards would be taxed as general business income.
Lending crypto assets
Any rewards from lending crypto assets is considered as income from movable assets, such as interest, which is subject to Income Savings Tax, ranging from 19% to 28%.
Receiving crypto assets from a hard fork
At this time, Agencia Tributaria hasn’t put out any guidance on hard forks. However, we can try to use other European countries as a reference.
In the case of Germany’s crypto tax laws, crypto assets received from a hard fork are generally tax-free, as their market value at the time of the fork is 0€.
If any asset was received as a reward through a Hard Fork, the acquisition costs are simply set to 0 EUR due to the circumstances in which there is no possible valuation at the time a new asset is created. Taxation is fully carried out in case of subsequent sale.
Receiving crypto assets as a salary
Receiving crypto as an employee remuneration counts as general income, which is taxed at 19% to 47%.
Receiving crypto assets as a gift or Play & Earn
Receiving crypto assets as a gift is taxed under the Spanish gift tax, which ranges from 7,65% up to 34%.
However, the actual gift tax rate varies from each autonomous community to another.
Sending crypto assets as a gift
Gifting cryptocurrency to another person is considered a disposal and therefore subject to Savings Income Tax, ranging from 19% to 28%.
Token Swap
If any asset was received as part of a token swap, the token swap is considered to be tax neutral since the received tokens have the same rights, function and value as the tokens given away.
ICO
If assets were received as part of an ICO (“initial coin offering”) or similar forms of financing, the token’s basis is equal to the cost of acquisition on the date of the initial investment. In the case of an investment in an ICO with an existing asset, the expenditure of the existing asset is treated as a sale.
OTC
If assets were received as part of an OTC purchase against EUR, the token basis is equal to the amount in EUR given. In the case of assets being received as part of an OTC purchase with a linked OTC sale transaction, both transactions are treated as one transaction. If any asset was given as part of an OTC sale against EUR, the proceeds received are equal to the given sale proceeds.
Margin Trading
If any asset was received as “trading margin profit”, the fair market value of the assets received on the day of receipt is classified as capital gains income from the asset transfer. If any of the assets were given as “trading margin loss”, the fair market value of the assets given on the day of departure is classified as capital loss from the asset transfer. Settlement of a loss is treated as a sale of the corresponding asset.
Derivative Trading
In Spain, taxes paid on derivatives trading, such as futures, financial options, and CFDs, are the same as those applied to stocks and ETFs. Profits earned must be declared on the income tax and taxed as savings base patrimonial gain. The final taxation you will have to pay for your profits will be 19%, as long as your net profits are lower than 6000 euros, and the next bracket will be 21% up to 60 000 euros, amount from which it is taxed 23%.
In addition, interest, dividends, and profit sharing are taxed as capital income.
IRPF is a dual tax that classifies income into two types: general and savings, which are taxed at different rates.
DeFi and LP
In Spain, transactions involving DeFi and LP tokens are considered as part of the cost of acquisition or sale of the cryptocurrency. The tax paid depends on whether it is considered to be a capital gain or additional income. For DeFi, this means that all profits must be declared in the Personal Income Tax and taxed as savings base patrimonial gain, with a progressive tax rate ranging from 19% to 26% For LP tokens, the tax rate is the same, but you can choose to declare your profits as income from economic activity.
Commodities
In Spain, gains obtained from the sale of commodities such as gold and silver are considered capital gains and are subject to Personal Income Tax. These capital gains are integrated into the taxable base of savings and taxed at a fixed rate ranging from 21% to 27%, unless it is physical gold for investment, which is exempt from Value Added Tax (VAT).
Trading Fees
In Spain, taxes paid on fees between a crypto trade depend on whether gains or losses are made. Gains obtained when selling cryptocurrencies are subject to a capital gains tax ranging from 19% to 23%.
In Spain, fees on cryptocurrency transactions are considered part of the cost of acquiring or selling the cryptocurrency. When gains are made from selling, exchanging, or disposing of a cryptocurrency in exchange for another cryptocurrency or fiat currency, it is considered capital gain (taxable savings income). Capital gains are subject to a progressive tax ranging from 19% to 26%.
Additionally, gains obtained can be considered general income or savings income, which affects the applicable tax rate.
Can crypto losses reduce your taxes?
Yes! A loss can offset a gain of a similar kind. So if you have made gains on one transaction but losses on another, you can subtract the losses from your profits, thereby reducing the total taxable amount.
If the total amount of your losses exceeds the total amount of your gains, you can even carry forward the losses into future tax years. Open losses can be utilized for up to four years. However, you can only deduct up to 25% of your net loss per year.
Crypto Inventory Method – FIFO (First In First Out)
According to Article 37.2 of the Income Tax Law, when there are homogeneous assets, in order to properly calculate the capital gain result, the FIFO (First In First Out) method must be applied. This means that the assets that were received first will also be the first to leave.
The Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT) has concluded that the FIFO methodology must also be applied to transactions related to digital assets. Individual tracking of each type of asset must be done account by account. In the event that an appropriate acquisition transaction cannot be identified for disposals, the missing assets are alternatively recorded at acquisition cost zero on the date of disposal.
Is it obligatory to declare crypto holdings to the Spanish tax authorities?
It is obligatory to declare all crypto holdings if the total portfolio value exceeds 50.000€ and the assets are deposited abroad, for example on a cryptocurrency exchange or similar platform located outside of Spain.
It was previously believed that crypto holdings abroad need to be declared with all other assets abroad using the form Modelo 720. However, the Agencia Tributaria has confirmed this to be false.
Instead, crypto investors with foreign holdings exceeding 50.000€ in value need to use the new form Modelo 721, which was specifically created for crypto holdings and is available since 01.01.2023.
Additionally, crypto holdings need to be reported for the purpose of the Wealth Tax if your worldwide net worth exceeds 700.000€.
Is it obligatory to declare crypto transactions?
You must report every capital gain and all income derived from cryptocurrencies or other crypto assets, including gifts.
The only exception is related to Article 96 of the Spanish Personal Income Tax law, which states that taxpayers do not have to file a tax return if their full income from work, capital or economic activities, as well as capital gains for the tax year are below 1.000€.
Does the Agencia Tributaria know about my cryptocurrencies?
It is not unlikely that Agencia Tributaria knows about your crypto transactions on crypto exchanges in the EU or the USA.
It appears that the Spanish tax authorities, much like tax authorities from other countries such as France or Germany, have been making direct inquiries to the top cryptocurrency exchanges and brokers about the transactions of Spanish taxpayers.
It has also been reported that crypto investors in Spain have received letters demanding to see a full overview of crypto transactions ranging back multiple years.
Looking into the near future, the EU-wide DAC8 directive (8th amendment to the Directive on Administrative Cooperation) will legally oblige exchanges and other crypto asset service providers to report their customers’ transactions to EU member states’ authorities.
We therefore highly recommend keeping track of all of your crypto transactions with a free crypto portfolio tracker like Blockpit.
What are the risks of not declaring your crypto assets?
The penalties for tax violations in Spain, whether accidental or on purpose, can be quite strict with fines ranging up to 150% of the undeclared amounts.
Residents of Spain that try to avoid paying taxes exceeding 120.000€ may even face a prison sentence.
So it is crucial to not only report your crypto taxes at all, but to do so diligently.
When is the crypto tax deadline for Spain?
The Spanish tax year aligns with the calendar year and taxpayers must submit their income tax returns by June 30th of the following year.
For example, Spanish taxpayers must file their tax return for the tax year 2022 by June 30th, 2023.
Which records do I need to keep?
To ensure your taxes are accurate, you should keep records of the following information:
- The type of cryptocurrency
- The fair market value of your crypto at the time of receipt
- The fair market value of your crypto at the time of disposal
- The date you originally received your cryptocurrency
- The date you disposed of your cryptocurrency
- The other party involved in the transaction (even if it’s just their wallet address!)
It’s important to note that you’ll need to keep records of the fair market value of your crypto in Euro.
Even if you’ve conducted your transactions in another currency like the US Dollar, you’ll need to convert these to their Euro value to accurately report your taxes.
Stay one step ahead of the game to avoid a hefty bill when it comes to crypto taxes: stay aware of the regulations in your region, and ensure that all transactions are accurately recorded and kept for five years.
By doing so, you’ll be able to easily file your taxes with an accurate and complete record of your cryptocurrency transactions.
Make sure to store the date of the transaction, the value of the cryptocurrency in Euros at the time of the transaction, and a description of the transaction, including the other party’s wallet address.All of this can be easily accomplished with Blockpit’s crypto portfolio tracker.
How to file your crypto taxes in Spain
The Agencia Estatal de Administración Tributaria (AEAT) wants to know about your crypto activity in terms of income and capital gains. This means that, when filing your annual income tax return, you’ll need to declare any money you’ve made from trading cryptocurrency or other crypto-related activities like mining or staking.
Filing cryptocurrency taxes in Spain is similar to filing other taxes.
As a Spanish tax resident, you must complete Form 100 (Modelo 100) in order to declare your Spanish income taxes.
Depending on your activity, you may need to fill in three fields:
- Capital gains and losses derived from the transfer of assets -> e.g. Trading
- Income or losses from movable capital -> e.g. Staking
- Capital gains not derived from the transfer of assets -> e.g. Airdrop
We have included a short overview of the Spanish tax forms related to crypto:
Modelo 100 – Personal income tax report
Modelo 100 is the Spanish tax form used by individuals to file their personal income tax return. It is also known as the “Impuesto sobre la Renta de las Personas Físicas” or “IRPF” in Spanish.
The form includes various sections where taxpayers must provide information such as their personal details, income sources, deductions, and tax credits. It is important to ensure that all information provided is accurate as errors or omissions can result in penalties or fines.
Modelo 714 – Wealth tax report
Modelo 714 is the Spanish tax form used by individuals to file a statement of their worldwide assets if their net value exceeds 700.000€. It is also known as the “Impuesto sobre el Patrimonio” in Spanish.
The main assets levied by the Wealth Tax include:
- Real estate
- Bank deposits and investments
- Assets and rights
- Luxury assets
- Art objects and antiques
- Insurances
Modelo 720 – Declaration of accounts and securities with foreign financial institutions
Modelo 720 is a Spanish tax form that was introduced in 2012 as a measure to combat tax fraud and promote transparency in the Spanish economy.
The form requires Spanish residents to declare any foreign assets they own that exceed certain thresholds, including bank accounts, securities, real estate, and other assets.
The information provided in the form is used by the Spanish tax authorities to verify compliance with tax obligations and to detect any possible tax evasion.
As the Modelo 720 has been declared illegal by the European Court of Justice ECJ in January 2022, Spanish authorities have introduced Modelo 721 to report any foreign crypto holdings exceeding 50.000€.
Modelo 721 – Declaration of crypto assets held outside of Spain
The Spanish tax authority Agencia Tributaria (AEAT) has introduced the form Modelo 721 to prevent tax evasion as it relates to cryptocurrencies and other crypto assets.
Spanish taxpayers and legal entities are obligated to use form 721 to declare holdings of cryptocurrencies and crypto assets with a total net value exceeding 50.000€ outside of Spain in their annual crypto tax declaration in Spain.
Modelo 172 & 173
Modelo 172 and 173 are Spanish tax forms aimed not at individuals but at companies based in Spain which are involved in the world of cryptocurrencies. Specifically crypto exchanges, wallet providers and any company or individual offering services provided to safeguard private cryptographic keys on behalf of third parties.
Modelo 172 obliges companies and individuals to declare their own and their customers’ virtual currency balances.
Modelo 173 obliges companies to report all transactions they carry out, whether in Spain or abroad.
How to calculate your crypto taxes easily with Blockpit
Calculating your crypto taxes can be time-consuming, but our crypto tax calculator can help you simplify the process.
With Blockpit’s legally compliant tax reports designed for the Spanish tax framework you’ll receive a comprehensive overview of all of your crypto transactions.
Our tax engine automatically calculates your capital gains and losses as well as the tax-relevant amount from income transactions. Based on our comprehensive tax report you can easily fill in the right amounts in your tax return.
Your Blockpit tax report also includes detailed statements about your total holdings, as well as chronological overviews of each individual transaction.
Using Blockpit couldn’t be easier
1. Import your transactions
Blockpit offers direct integrations for crypto exchanges, wallets and DeFi protocols. Automatically import your transactions via API integration, wallet address synchronization, or by manually uploading an Excel file.
Discover all crypto integrations
2. Validate & Optimize
Blockpit offers smart insights and suggestions to optimize your tax report, fix issues, add missing values and to validate your transactions.
3. Generate your tax report
Generate your compliant tax report with the click of a button. Our tax engine calculates your tax report on the basis of the Spanish tax framework.