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Spain’s Finance Ministry, led by María Jesús Montero, has announced its intention to expand its control over the monitoring of cryptocurrencies in the country to allow for the seizure of crypto assets to pay off tax debts. The ministry is developing legal reforms in the General Tax Law, specifically in Article 162, to enable the Spanish Tax Agency to identify and seize crypto assets belonging to taxpayers with overdue debts.
A Noteworthy Step in Spain
A Royal Decree came into effect on February 1, increasing the number of institutions with tax collection authority. Until now, only banks, savings banks, and credit cooperatives could report to the Treasury.
The Treasury is also planning to fight tax evasion more aggressively. It aims to force banks and electronic money institutions to report all card transactions. However, the speed of implementing these changes has caused some difficulties at the regulatory body. The country is actively trying to manage the crypto market with various regulations.
In October 2023, Spain’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation announced that the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), the first comprehensive European Union crypto framework, would come into national effect in December 2025, six months before the official deadline.
Significant Steps in the Process
Spanish citizens who own any crypto assets on non-Spanish based crypto platforms have until the end of the next month to declare these assets to the tax authorities. The application period for Form 721 declaration started on January 1, 2024, and will end on the last day of March. Individual and corporate taxpayers are required to declare the amount of funds held in crypto accounts abroad as of December 31, 2023.
However, only individuals whose balance sheets exceed the equivalent of approximately 54,000 dollars in crypto assets will be required to declare their foreign assets. Investors storing their assets in cold wallets will have to report their assets through the standard asset tax Form 714.
In Europe, many countries continue to take steps towards the crypto market, leading to noteworthy developments. Many governments are witnessing significant advancements in protecting their citizens in this regard.
