Greece sets 10% tax on crypto gains

Greece’s parliament has approved a bill imposing a 10% capital gains tax on cryptocurrency investments, establishing the country’s first comprehensive legal framework for taxing crypto assets. The legislation was passed on Thursday in Athens and is intended to define how profits from digital assets are treated for tax purposes.

Under the new regime, cryptocurrency capital gains of up to €500 per year are exempt from the 10% tax. The exemption threshold, described as equivalent to $563, effectively shields smaller amounts of annual profit from taxation while bringing larger gains within the scope of the new rules.

The bill specifies that only gains above the €500 yearly threshold will be subject to the 10% capital gains tax. This structure aims to differentiate between minor and more substantial levels of crypto trading activity while bringing profits into the formal tax system once they exceed the exemption limit.

Further implementation directives are expected in the coming weeks. These will define transparency requirements and audit rules, setting out how authorities will monitor compliance and how taxpayers must report their cryptocurrency gains under the new framework.

The European Union does not operate a unified taxation system for cryptocurrencies, leaving each member state to set its own approach. Across Europe, tax rates on crypto assets range from 8% to 30%, and they are usually imposed on capital gains, placing Greece’s 10% rate toward the lower end of the regional spectrum.

The new Greek law therefore situates the country within a diverse European landscape of digital asset taxation, while providing specific national rules after a period without a dedicated framework for crypto assets.

A senior finance ministry official said the state revenue expected from the new tax cannot yet be projected. The official cited the fact that the vast majority of investors use platforms located abroad, which makes it difficult to measure the actual size of Greece’s cryptocurrency market.

This reliance on overseas platforms complicates assessments of how much taxable activity will ultimately fall under the new 10% capital gains regime, even as Greece moves to formalize the treatment of crypto gains through its first comprehensive legal framework.