Greece's parliament approved on Thursday a bill that imposes a 10% capital gains tax on cryptocurrencies, establishing the country's first comprehensive legal framework for taxing crypto assets.

The legislation exempts cryptocurrency capital gains of up to €500 ($563) a year, according to the bill. For bitcoin holders in Greece, that threshold functions as a small buffer rather than a carve-out for larger positions.

“Further implementation directives will be published in the coming weeks, which will also define transparency and audit rules,” a senior finance ministry official told Reuters.

The approved rate landed below an earlier draft: a version circulated in October had floated 15%, while the bill lawmakers passed came in five points lower, retaining the €500 annual exemption that was already in that proposal.

What the levy covers for bitcoin holders

The tax is set to apply from Jan. 1, 2027, according to Greek coverage of the finance ministry bill (Eleftherostypos). Transfers made before that date fall outside the new levy, leaving a runway between the framework's approval and its first taxable year. It is levied on the net gain — the difference between the acquisition price and the transfer price — rather than on the full sale proceeds, and trading fees and other costs tied to the transaction can factor into that calculation.

A taxable transfer is not limited to selling for euros. Under the new rules, using cryptocurrency to buy goods or services, or contributing it to cover or increase company capital, can also crystallize a gain. That matters for anyone in Greece who pays a merchant directly in bitcoin rather than converting first.

Simply holding bitcoin while its euro value rises does not, by itself, create a tax bill. Crypto-to-crypto swaps, such as bitcoin for another token, are treated as non-taxable events in the explanatory material that accompanied the bill, matching the approach France has used to avoid taxing every hop between coins.

Net annual gains at or below €500 are exempt. Greek analyses of the text indicate that once net gains clear that ceiling, the 10% rate applies to the full net gain for the year — not only the slice above €500. Losses exceeding €500 in a tax year may be carried forward for up to five years and offset only against future crypto capital gains. That structure puts multi-year transaction records at the center of both calculating net gains and carrying losses forward.

From 2027, purchases of crypto assets will also be pulled into Greece's existing “source of funds” checks, meaning buyers may need to show that the euros used to acquire bitcoin or other tokens came from declared income or other lawful capital. The provision does not add a separate purchase tax; it widens the audit trail around how coins were funded.

An EU patchwork, not a single rate

European Union countries do not share a unified tax system for the sector. Rates on cryptocurrency gains typically run from about 8% to 30% across member states and are usually levied on capital gains, the finance ministry official said. Greece's 10% sits toward the softer end of that band — below France's often-cited 30% treatment and above Cyprus's 8%.

The patchwork is shifting elsewhere in the bloc. The Netherlands has moved toward a realized capital gains tax from 2028, while Germany and Portugal still exempt crypto held longer than a year. Since January, the EU's DAC8 reporting rules have required crypto platforms to send user and transaction data to national tax authorities — a tool Greece has already written into domestic law.

State revenue from the new levy could not be projected, the official said, because the vast majority of investors use platforms abroad, leaving the size of Greece's cryptocurrency market hard to measure.

For bitcoin holders who trade on foreign exchanges, that gap is the practical test. The rate is now set in law; whether Athens can match the 10% on paper with enforceable cost-basis data from offshore platforms is the question the coming directives will have to answer.

This article is based on reporting by Micah Zimmerman, originally published by Bitcoin Magazine.