In Brief:
- Thailand has decided to suspend its 15% cryptocurrency capital gains tax
- Income earned from cryptocurrency trading or mining will be reported as capital gains on the income tax.
- Traders will be able to deduct annual losses against gains made in the same year.
Thailand has decided to suspend its 15% withholding crypto capital gains tax for the time being as reported by the Financial Times. The plan, announced earlier this month, was met with strong opposition, but it appears that the crypto market will still be taxed in some way.
Tax officials in the country announced that individuals who earned income from cryptocurrency trading or mining could report it as capital gains on their income taxes.
Conforming to new rules, which are outlined in a manual published by Thailand’s Revenue Department, traders will be able to deduct annual losses against gains made in the same year.
This move was made to meet the demands from the industry stakeholders and crypto operators that excessive levy of tax can kill off a sector before it grows.
The Bank of Thailand, Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and Thai Finance Ministry had all announced plans to issue regulatory guidelines restricting digital currency payments citing that the use of bitcoin and other online currencies has grown rapidly in Thailand during the coronavirus pandemic.
Thailand’s efforts to tax and regulate cryptocurrency come at a time when other countries in the region are following suit. The Finance Minister of India announced that any income generated from digital assets will be taxed at 30% with no deductions or exemptions.
