Greece Reportedly Moves Toward 15% Tax on Crypto Profits

Greece is preparing to introduce a 15% capital gains tax on cryptocurrency investors, according to media reports.

The country's Finance Ministry has drawn up a bill containing the proposal, as reported by Reuters and Greek news outlets. At present, Greece lacks any formal taxation framework for digital assets.

Under the draft legislation, the first €500 (roughly $580) in crypto profits each year would be tax-free.

The tax would apply only to the net profit when cryptocurrency is sold, after trading fees are subtracted. Exchanging one digital currency for another—for example, bitcoin—would not count as a taxable event. The levy would be triggered only when holdings are converted into euros or another fiat currency, or when they are spent on products or services.

Investors would be allowed to offset losses against future crypto gains for as many as five tax years. Tokens earned through staking or lending would be taxed only upon sale.

The rules would take effect retroactively from January 1, 2025, so gains from last year onward would need to be declared on tax filings due in 2027.

The bill is scheduled to be presented to parliament in November.

Greece follows the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). The Hellenic Capital Market Commission is responsible for authorizing and supervising crypto service providers, while the Bank of Greece oversees the prudential regulation of stablecoin issuers.

The licensing process has been sluggish: no Greek firms appeared on the EU's register until September, roughly two months after MiCA's transitional period ended on July 1.

Since January 2026, the EU's DAC8 directive has required crypto exchanges to gather detailed data on their users and transactions and share it with national tax authorities, similar to the reporting banks already do for traditional accounts. Greece incorporated those rules into domestic law in May.

Taxation of crypto varies widely within the bloc. Rates run from 8% in Cyprus to 30% in France. Some countries are more generous: Germany exempts digital currencies held for over a year, and Portugal applies the same treatment after 365 days.