More tax transparency through the Crypto Asset Reporting Law

As of the start of the year, the Crypto Reporting Obligation Act (as part of the 2025 Fraud Prevention Act) has come into force. The implementation of DAC 8 in Austria provides for an automatic exchange of information between tax authorities concerning crypto-assets and related transactions, thereby increasing tax transparency and curbing tax evasion or avoidance in connection with crypto-assets.

The exchange of information on crypto-assets between participating countries – besides the EU member states, several third countries (the USA from 2029) have also committed to participating – is similar to the already existing automatic exchange of financial account information (under the Common Reporting Standard Act). Providers of crypto-asset services such as crypto exchanges, brokers, or wallet providers must carry out comprehensive identification of their customers and report tax-relevant crypto transactions annually to their respective local tax authorities. The term "crypto-asset services" is broad and encompasses, for example, the custody and administration of crypto-assets, the exchange of crypto-assets for fiat currency or other crypto-assets, and the operation of trading platforms for crypto-assets. In Austria, the reporting obligation affects providers of crypto-asset services authorised under the "Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation" (MiCAR Regulation), and those offering crypto-asset services outside of MiCAR Regulation.

The data to be reported shall include, for the reportable person, name, address, country of residence, tax identification number, date and place of birth (for natural persons) as well as information about the reporting provider – which are name, address, tax identification number, individual identification number and (if available) LEI (Legal Entity Identifier). The following transaction-related information shall be transmitted for each reportable crypto-asset:

• the total gross amount paid/received, the total number of units, and the number of transactions when acquiring or disposing of a state currency;
• the aggregate fair market value, the total number of units, and the number of transactions for exchanges for other cryptocurrencies, bulk payment transactions, and transfers to/by the reporting user;
• the aggregated fair market value and total number of units in the case of transfers to distributed ledger addresses that are not known to be associated with a service provider or financial institution (external wallet addresses).

The reporting period is the calendar year and the report must be submitted electronically to the BMF by 31 July of the following year. Therefore, the report concerning the year 2026 must be submitted by 31 July 2027 at the latest.

The changes from the Crypto Reporting Act are leading to significantly improved information bases for the authorities – the Austrian tax office will henceforth have information on cryptocurrencies and digital assets held abroad by individuals taxable in Austria. Consequently, crypto transactions will become more transparent and easier for the tax office to understand, making it easier to detect discrepancies between the data reported by (foreign) authorities and the income declared in tax returns.

Particular caution is advised when cryptocurrencies are held with foreign wallet providers or traded on foreign crypto exchanges and platforms, as income from these cryptocurrencies must then be declared in your personal tax return in Austria. By contrast, using crypto platforms authorised in Austria is considerably more convenient, as the provider is required to withhold the 27.5% capital gains tax on income from cryptocurrencies derived from new assets in accordance with Section 27b of the Income Tax Act (EStG) and pay it to the tax office on behalf of the investor. Incidentally, profits from the sale of cryptocurrencies acquired up to 28 February 2021 remain tax-free if held for more than one year ("existing crypto assets").

If income from cryptocurrencies held abroad has not been declared for tax purposes, or not fully declared, in the past, 2026 should be used to correct the past – potentially in the form of a voluntary disclosure or self-declaration, in order to avoid negative financial criminal law consequences.

Image: © Adobe Stock - Robert Leßmann