Annual profits below 500 euros exempt from tax

A virtual assets image. [Reuters]
A virtual assets image. [Reuters]

Greece is moving to formally tax profits from virtual asset investments.

The Greek parliament passed a bill Thursday imposing a 10 percent capital gains tax on virtual assets, according to Reuters and other reports.

Under the legislation, annual virtual asset profits of 500 euros ($561) or less will be exempt from taxation. The Greek government plans to issue detailed implementation guidelines covering audits and transparency requirements.

Reuters described the regime as Greece's first comprehensive framework for taxing virtual assets.

The government did not release a revenue forecast for the new system, citing difficulty in accurately gauging the size of the domestic market because many investors use overseas virtual asset trading platforms.

EU member states vary widely in how they tax virtual asset gains. Tax rates generally range from 8 to 30 percent, but no unified capital gains framework exists at the EU level.

South Korea, meanwhile, is also pushing to delay the introduction of its own virtual asset income tax. The government said Thursday it would work with the National Assembly to defer the tax — originally set to take effect in January next year — by two years, pushing implementation to 2029.

Under South Korea's planned virtual asset tax regime, a basic deduction of 2.5 million won ($1,860) would apply to annual income from the transfer or lending of virtual assets, with the remaining amount subject to a combined income and local income tax rate of 22 percent.

The government said additional preparation time is needed to secure overseas virtual asset transaction data and to refine related digital asset regulations. The tax has already been delayed three times since the regime was introduced in 2020; if the latest deferral clears the National Assembly, it will mark a fourth postponement.


quq@heraldcorp.com