To the chagrin of many Golden Visa seekers, Portuguese Finance Minister Fernando Medina has confirmed that his country will begin taxing cryptocurrency but has not committed to a date.

The move to start taxing crypto was seconded by Secretary of State for Tax Affairs António Mendonça Mendes on May 13 according to Sapo, a local news outlet.

There is not yet an effective date for the tax to start or a set rate, however. It will be levied on investment gains made from cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC), the largest crypto by market cap. This would reverse the tax law that was established in 2016 which stated that since crypto is not legal tender, gains cannot be taxed.

On Portugal’s plans to tax crypto, a ⬇️,

– Finance Minister said crypto would be taxed in a loose statement with few details 3 days ago
– Portugals bureaucracy moves hyper slow, legislation like this takes a long time to move, never mind be implemented, IMO 2+ years

— Jorge (@nftjorge) May 16, 2022

Medina said in a working session at Parliament that his rationale for the tax came about by comparing Portugal to countries that “already have systems” in place. Additionally, Sapo reported that Medina noted that it doesn’t make sense for an asset that creates capital gains to not be taxed. He said:

“There cannot be gaps that cause there to be capital gains in relation to the transaction of assets that do not have a tax.”

It appears that Medina will not impose a stifling rate of taxation on crypto gains. He explained that it is important to create and implement a system that makes taxation…