on the crypto
TAXATION OF CRIPTOVALUTE FOR PHYSICAL PERSONS
edited by the lawyer Marco Pignatone
Cryptocurrency taxation in Italy
As you know, Italy has not yet adopted legislation on taxation cryptocurrency. To overcome the uncertainty deriving from this prolonged vacuum the Revenue Agency intervened.
We refer, in particular, to both Resolution no. 72 / E of 2 September 2016 (1), with which the Central Regulatory Directorate of the Revenue Agency replied for the first time to the question presented by a taxpayer on the subject of virtual currencies, and to the most recent Interpello no. 956-39 / 2018 (2).
Leaving aside for the moment the profiles related to the fiscal treatment of the activity of “traditional currency brokerage with bitcoin", According to the financial administration the purchase and sale (spot sales) of bitcoin (but the indications can be considered applicable to cryptocurrencies in general), carried out outside the business, do not generate taxable income since the speculative purpose is missing.
Top income 51645,69
However, these transactions generate a "profit / loss" if the currency sold derives from withdrawals from electronic wallets (wallet), for which the stock> average exceeds an equivalent of 51.645,69 euros for at least seven working days continuous in the tax period pursuant to article 67, paragraph 1, letter c-ter and paragraph 1 ter, of the Consolidated Income Tax Law approved with DPR 22 December 1986, n. 917 (TUIR) (3).
The value in euro of the average amount in virtual currency must be calculated according to the reference change at the beginning of the tax period, ie at the 1 ° January of the year in which the tax assumption occurs (4).
In the absence of an official daily price to refer to for the exchange ratio between the virtual currency and the euro at the beginning of the tax period, the tax payer can use the exchange rate at 1 January detected on the site where you purchased the virtual currency or, failing that, that found on the site where you do most of the transactions.
Obviously, this average stock must be verified with respect to all the wallets held by the taxpayer regardless of the type (paper, hardware, software, web (5).
With regard to the above-mentioned appeal, it is also recalled that the response provided by the Revenue Agency is not only valid exclusively for the applicant and is not binding for the same, but only for the AF.
Cryptocurrency donations
The Agency has also dealt, albeit concisely, specifically with virtual currencies received on a "free basis". In this case, the initial cost to be considered is that borne by the donor, pursuant to paragraph 6, of art. 68 of the TUIR.
Forward assignment
A different hypothesis is that of forward sales, that is when the transfer of virtual currency takes place through a specific financial contract (6)). In this case the capital gains are taxed as a different income of a taxable financial nature pursuant to paragraph 1, lett. c-ter of the art. 67 of the TUIR, regardless of exceeding the aforementioned euro 51.645,69 threshold.
The different income of a financial nature in question must be indicated in the RT framework of the PF INCOME form and will be subject to a substitute tax at a rate of 26%.
(1) See completely on https://www.finaria.it/pdf/bitcoin-tasse-agenzia-entrate.pdf.
(2) See completely on https://www.coinlex.it/2018/04/21/interpello-n-956-39-2018/.
(3) Full text available at: https://www.altalex.com/…/tuir-testo-unico-delle-imposte-su….
(4) See circular 24 June 1998, n. 165:http://def.finanze.it/DocTribFrontend/getPrassiDetail.do….
(5) For further information, see the guide "Bitcoin wallets for beginners: everything you need to know", Cointelegraph: https: //it.cointelegraph.com/bitcoi…/what-is-bitcoin-wallets.
(6) The CFD or Contract for Difference (literally "contract for difference") is a derivative financial instrument that is used to exchange other products, defined for this underlying, without actually owning them. More precisely, it is a contract entered into with the broker on the basis of which the difference in the price of a certain asset is exchanged, from the moment the contract is opened to the moment it is closed. By virtue of this, it is therefore possible to benefit from fluctuations in the price of shares, commodities, indices, ETFs and many other financial instruments, regardless of whether the market grows or moves downwards.
