Slovakian parliament votes to approve lower crypto taxes

A parliamentary vote held by lawmakers in Slovakia approved an amendment that will reduce the taxation of cryptocurrencies, which is currently on a sliding scale.

Members of Slovakia’s National Council of the Slovak Republic — the country’s parliament — have voted to approve lower crypto taxes, along with additional measures affecting cryptocurrency holders.

On June 28, the National Council voted to approve an amendment that will reduce personal income tax on profits gained from the sale of cryptocurrencies held by the user for at least one year.

The taxes will be lowered to 7%, which is a significant decrease from the current taxation sliding scale of either 19% or 25%. Payments received in cryptocurrencies up to 2,400 euros ($2,600) will not be taxed.

In addition, the bill excludes crypto income from a health insurance contribution of 14%.

According to a report from a local Slovakian media outlet, the Ministry of Finance anticipates a financial impact from the amendment to be around 30 million euros per year.

This amendment comes a few weeks after parliament passed another amendment to the constitution, which codified the citizen’s right to use cash as a payment method in light of talk around a digital euro. 

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Slovakia is one of the 27 member states of the European Union, which has been proactively monitoring developments in the crypto industry throughout the region.

On May 31, the EU signed its landmark Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulations into law. The set of regulations was created to make Europe a hub for digital asset activity.

MiCA first appeared in 2020 and has been praised by companies in the space for providing regulatory clarity.

This is in contrast to the situation in other major markets, such as the United States, which has yet to implement comprehensive guidelines for the industry. U.S. Republican lawmakers have proposed a Digital Asset Market Structure bill, which is currently under review for its potential impact on the industry.

On June 29, a commissioner at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Hester Peirce, appeared remotely at Australian Blockchain Week and reminded regulators that crypto laws shouldn’t assume “everything is a financial asset.”

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