These Are the Countries With the Clearest Crypto Tax Policies

Liechtenstein scored highest in a global ranking by PwC that rated how comprehensive tax guidance is for cryptocurrencies in each country.

Australia and Malta placed joint second, followed by Germany, which jumped from 20th last year due in part to the nation’s draft decree on income tax treatment of digital assets, according to the PwC report. The U.S. came 14th. 

Jurisdictions were awarded a score derived from 19 assessment criteria to determine the comprehensiveness of their tax guidance. The report also noted that many countries were struggling to keep up with developments such as decentralized finance, DeFi, and non-fungible tokens, NFTs. 

This “is a fast-moving sector and there are important areas with gaps in guidance issued,” said Peter Brewin, a tax partner at PwC Hong Kong. “In particular, guidance is lacking for common DeFi transactions, NFTs and how to even start assessing the taxation of Decentralized Autonomous Organisations (DAOs).”