The Hellenic Parliament passed a Crypto Tax Law that will apply a 10% tax to annual net cryptocurrency gains above €500 ($557), with the rules scheduled to begin January 1, 2027. Income from staking, crypto lending and decentralized finance, or DeFi, will face a separate 15% rate.
The cryptocurrency provisions are part of a wider Finance Ministry package covering debt servicing, financial oversight and government accounting. The legislation follows an October public consultation. Its 10% rate is lower than the 15% levy Greek officials discussed in June, according to the source report.
How the Crypto Tax Law Treats Gains
Individual investors with annual net crypto gains of €500 ($557) or less will be exempt. Once gains exceed that threshold, the 10% rate applies to the entire gain, rather than only the amount above €500 ($557). The report gives an investor with €600 ($669) in net gains as an example: the tax would be €60 ($67), not €10 ($11).
In general, the rules calculate a gain by subtracting an asset’s acquisition cost from the value received when it is disposed of. Selling Bitcoin for euros can count as a taxable event. Spending crypto on goods or services can also count as a disposal, so investors will need transaction records showing what they paid and what the assets were worth when sold or spent.
Qualifying crypto losses exceeding €500 ($557) can be carried forward for five years and offset against future crypto gains. The bill also gives investors a 12-month window to voluntarily declare previously unreported crypto income without late-filing penalties or interest, if they meet the conditions and pay within 60 days of filing.
Staking and DeFi Income Face a Separate Rate
The legislation treats yield from staking, lending and providing liquidity to DeFi protocols differently from gains on disposals. Greece will classify those returns as interest income and tax them at 15%, according to the Finance Ministry.
The distinction places lending and liquidity provision within the law’s separate income category. Readers can compare that treatment with recent DeFi lending activity and reporting on tokens tied to DeFi and asset tokenization. The links provide related coverage, not additional details about Greece’s law.
Crypto Swaps Remain Unclear
A key question concerns trades that exchange one cryptocurrency for another. Athens says those swaps should not trigger capital-gains tax. However, a review by parliament’s Scientific Service said the approved wording may not make the intended exclusion clear.
The review flagged broad language covering disposals made “for consideration,” which it said could include token-to-token trades. The accompanying explanation says such swaps should not create taxable gains. Reviewers recommended an explicit exemption and clearer rules for exchanges involving stablecoins and electronic-money tokens. That uncertainty matters to traders rotating between assets without converting them to fiat currency.
The new rules also depend on administrative guidance that Greece is preparing. A senior Finance Ministry official told Reuters that guidance on transaction transparency and tax audits would be issued in the coming weeks. The government has not estimated the tax’s revenue, saying the market is difficult to measure because many Greek crypto investors use trading platforms overseas. Separately, lawmakers are considering wider rules for the sector, as described in coverage of a crypto market structure bill. The source report details the approved tax package. The guidance and any clarification of swap treatment remain the next stated steps before the tax rules take effect in 2027.
