A Complete Guide to Cryptocurrency Taxation in Spain for 2025

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Navigating the tax landscape for cryptocurrency investments in Spain can be complex. This guide provides a comprehensive overview of the applicable tax laws, including when taxes are due, applicable rates for different transaction types, and essential reporting requirements to ensure full compliance with Spanish regulations.

Understanding Cryptocurrency Taxation in Spain

The Spanish Tax Agency (Agencia Estatal de Administración Tributaria or AEAT) clearly states that gains from transactions with cryptocurrencies and other digital assets, along with any income generated from crypto holdings or activities, are subject to taxation. This comprehensive approach ensures that virtually all forms of crypto-related income fall under the Spanish tax framework.

Receiving digital assets through inheritance or as a gift also constitutes a taxable event, falling under Spain's inheritance and donation tax regulations. Additionally, most autonomous communities in Spain impose a wealth tax if the total value of all your assets—including cryptocurrency holdings—exceeds specific thresholds established by each region.

Types of Taxes on Crypto Assets

Spanish tax law applies several different tax categories to cryptocurrency investments and holdings, each with varying rates and calculation methods.

Income Savings Tax (Capital Gains Tax)

The Income Savings Tax, commonly known as capital gains tax (CGT), applies to profits and losses generated from disposing of cryptocurrency assets. This includes selling, trading, or gifting digital assets for either fiat currency like euros or other cryptocurrencies.

Spain employs a progressive tax bracket system for capital gains, with rates ranging from 19% to 28% depending on the profit amount:

Calculating Gains and Losses from Asset Transfers

According to Article 33.1 of Spain's Personal Income Tax Law (Ley del Impuesto sobre la Renta de las Personas Físicas or IRPF), any change in a taxpayer's net wealth is considered a capital gain. This explicitly includes profits from the sale or exchange of digital assets. The Spanish Tax Agency confirms that both crypto-to-crypto and crypto-to-fiat transactions fall under this category.

Article 34 of the IRPF Law specifies that capital gains are calculated as the difference between the sale proceeds and the acquisition cost. In asset swaps, the sale value is the higher of either asset's market value at the time of exchange. Both acquisition and transfer values must be converted to euros at the time of entry or exit.

The acquisition cost includes the purchase price plus any transaction fees, which must be factored into tax calculations. The acquisition date is considered the date of purchase, and these same tax rules apply to foreign currencies, precious metals, tokenized stocks, and other tokenized investments.

Practical Example: If you purchased Bitcoin in 2021 and sold a portion in 2024 for a profit of €54,000, your tax calculation would be:

€6,000 * 19% = €1,140
€44,000 * 21% = €9,240
€4,000 * 23% = €920
Total Tax Liability = €11,300

General Income Tax

Any income received from professional activities, crypto mining, payment for goods and services, or other activities that result in earning new coins or tokens is considered general taxable income subject to Spain's general income tax (IRPF).

Whether you receive payment in cryptocurrency, mine it, stake it, or receive it via an airdrop, you must recognize the income based on the fair market value of your coins at the time of receipt. Spain's general income tax also uses progressive brackets but at higher rates than capital gains tax:

Wealth Tax

Spanish residents with substantial assets, including cryptocurrencies, may be liable for wealth tax (Impuesto sobre el Patrimonio). Depending on the autonomous community, rates typically range from 0.2% to 3.75%.

Madrid is currently the only region that does not impose this tax, though residents with total assets exceeding €2,000,000 must still submit a Wealth Tax Return for informational purposes. Other regions generally have a minimum exemption of €700,000, with tax rates varying by location:

Inheritance and Donation Tax

The inheritance and donation tax applies to any cryptocurrency received as part of an inheritance, as a gift, or as a donation. The tax rate ranges between 7.65% and 34%, with each autonomous community setting its own specific rates and exemptions.

Tax-Free Crypto Transactions in Spain

Certain cryptocurrency transactions remain tax-free in Spain, providing opportunities for strategic portfolio management without immediate tax consequences.

The following crypto transactions are currently not considered taxable events:

It's important to note that while these transactions themselves are tax-free, they may impact your overall tax situation if they cause your total asset value to exceed wealth tax thresholds in your autonomous community.

Tax Treatment of Specific Crypto Activities

Understanding how different cryptocurrency activities are taxed is essential for accurate reporting and compliance.

Selling Crypto for Fiat Currency

When you sell cryptocurrency for euros or any other fiat currency, you must pay Income Savings Tax (19-28%) on any profits realized. Your gain or loss is calculated based on the difference between your selling price and original acquisition cost, including transaction fees.

Exchanging Crypto for Other Crypto Assets

Trading one cryptocurrency for another is considered a taxable event in Spain. Any gains will be taxed under the Income Savings Tax (19-28%). The market value of the cryptocurrency sold establishes the cost basis for the newly acquired asset for future tax calculations.

Using Crypto to Pay for Goods and Services

Paying for goods and services with cryptocurrency counts as disposing of an asset and is taxed under the Income Savings Tax (19-28%). You must calculate your gain or loss using your initial cost basis and the market value at the time of the transaction.

Crypto Mining Rewards

Cryptocurrency mining rewards are taxed as general income based on the value of the reward when received (19-47%). This applies regardless of which cryptocurrency you mine. If you later dispose of these mined coins, they'll be subject to capital gains tax based on their value change since acquisition.

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NFT Creation and Sales

Creating NFTs (minting) is not considered a taxable event. However, selling NFTs is taxed under the Income Savings Tax (19-28%). The cost basis is either the purchase value if acquired from others or €0 if you minted it yourself.

Receiving Crypto through Airdrops

While the Spanish Tax Agency hasn't issued specific guidance on airdrops, the conservative approach is to treat crypto received from airdrops as income subject to General Income Tax (19-47%).

Earning through Staking

Income from staking is generally considered interest subject to Income Savings Tax (19-28%). However, if staking requires substantial resources and resembles a business activity, rewards might be taxed as general business income.

Crypto Lending Rewards

Rewards from lending crypto assets are treated as income from movable assets (similar to interest) and subject to Income Savings Tax (19-28%).

Receiving Crypto from Hard Forks

Though not specifically addressed by Spanish authorities, assets received from hard forks are typically considered to have €0 acquisition cost. Taxation occurs fully upon subsequent sale of these assets.

Receiving Crypto as Salary or Gift

Receiving cryptocurrency as employee remuneration counts as general income (taxed at 19-47%). Receiving crypto as a gift falls under Spain's gift tax (7.65-34%), with rates varying by autonomous community. Gifting cryptocurrency to others is considered a disposal subject to Savings Income Tax (19-28%).

Specialized Transaction Types

Offsetting Crypto Losses Against Taxes

Spanish tax law allows investors to use cryptocurrency losses to offset gains of a similar kind. If your total losses exceed your gains, you can carry forward the excess losses into future tax years for up to four years. However, you can only deduct up to 25% of your net loss per year.

This strategy, known as tax loss harvesting, can significantly reduce your overall tax liability. Proper [tax optimization strategies] can help you identify opportunities to minimize your tax burden through strategic loss realization.

FIFO Inventory Methodology

Article 37.2 of Spain's Income Tax Law mandates the FIFO (First In First Out) method for calculating capital gains when dealing with homogeneous assets. The Spanish Tax Agency has confirmed that this methodology must be applied to digital asset transactions.

This means the assets you acquired first are considered the first ones sold when calculating gains or losses. Individual tracking of each asset type must be done account by account. If acquisition transactions cannot be properly identified for disposals, missing assets are recorded at an acquisition cost of €0 on the disposal date.

Declaration Requirements for Crypto Holdings

Spanish residents must declare all cryptocurrency holdings if the total portfolio value exceeds €50,000 and the assets are held abroad (such as on international cryptocurrency exchanges). Contrary to previous beliefs, these holdings are not declared using Modelo 720.

Instead, investors with foreign crypto holdings exceeding €50,000 must use the specifically designed Modelo 721, available since January 1, 2023. Additionally, crypto holdings must be reported for wealth tax purposes if your worldwide net worth exceeds €700,000.

Transaction Reporting Obligations

You must report every capital gain and all income derived from cryptocurrencies, including gifts. The only exception relates to Article 96 of the Spanish Personal Income Tax law, which states that taxpayers don't have to file a return if their full income from work, capital, economic activities, and capital gains for the tax year are below €1,000.

Tax Authority Awareness and Compliance

The Spanish tax authorities likely have awareness of crypto transactions conducted on major exchanges within the EU and USA. There are reports of direct inquiries to cryptocurrency exchanges about Spanish taxpayers' transactions, and some investors have received letters demanding multi-year transaction overviews.

The upcoming EU-wide DAC8 directive will legally oblige crypto asset service providers to report customer transactions to EU member states' authorities. This increased transparency makes proper record-keeping and compliance increasingly important.

Consequences of Non-Compliance

Penalties for tax violations in Spain can be severe, with fines reaching up to 150% of undeclared amounts. Residents attempting to avoid paying taxes exceeding €120,000 may even face criminal charges and potential prison sentences, making diligent reporting essential.

Tax Deadlines and Record-Keeping

The Spanish tax year aligns with the calendar year, and taxpayers must submit their income tax returns by June 30th of the following year. For example, the tax return for 2024 must be filed by June 30, 2025.

To ensure accurate tax reporting, maintain records of:

All values must be recorded in euros, requiring conversion if transactions occurred in other currencies. These records should be maintained for five years to ensure compliance and facilitate accurate reporting.

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Filing Your Crypto Taxes

Spanish tax residents must complete Form 100 (Modelo 100) to declare income taxes, including cryptocurrency activities. Depending on your crypto transactions, you may need to complete these sections:

  1. Capital gains and losses from asset transfers (e.g., trading)
  2. Income or losses from movable capital (e.g., staking)
  3. Capital gains not derived from asset transfers (e.g., airdrops)

Essential Spanish Tax Forms

Frequently Asked Questions

How are cryptocurrency-to-cryptocurrency trades taxed in Spain?
Crypto-to-crypto trades are taxable events subject to capital gains tax. You must calculate the gain or loss based on the euro value of the cryptocurrency you're disposing of at the time of the trade, using the FIFO method to determine your cost basis.

What records do I need to keep for cryptocurrency transactions?
You should maintain detailed records of all transactions, including dates, values in euros, transaction types, counterparty wallet addresses, and acquisition costs. These records must be kept for five years to ensure compliance with Spanish tax regulations.

Do I need to declare cryptocurrency if I only have small amounts?
You must declare all cryptocurrency income and gains regardless of amount. However, if your total income from all sources including crypto is below €1,000 for the tax year, you may be exempt from filing a return under Article 96 of Spain's tax law.

How does Spain treat cryptocurrency received from staking?
Staking rewards are generally treated as interest income subject to Income Savings Tax (19-28%). However, if your staking activities constitute a business operation, the rewards might be classified as business income taxed at higher general income tax rates.

What is the difference between Modelo 720 and Modelo 721?
Modelo 720 was previously used for declaring foreign assets but was declared illegal by the European Court of Justice for cryptocurrencies. Modelo 721 specifically addresses cryptocurrency holdings outside Spain exceeding €50,000 in value.

Can I use specific identification instead of FIFO for calculating gains?
No, Spanish tax authorities specifically require the FIFO (First In First Out) method for calculating capital gains on homogeneous assets like cryptocurrencies, as confirmed by the AEAT in their guidance on digital asset transactions.