Crypto Tax in Ireland: How Revenue Taxes Bitcoin

Crypto tax in Ireland isn't a special regime. For most people, a gain on bitcoin or any other crypto is subject to Capital Gains Tax (CGT), and from 7 October 2026 Revenue applies a rate of 31% to most gains after the first €1,270 each year. What catches people out is that a swap or a purchase paid in crypto counts too, and that paying the tax and filing the return have different deadlines.

Risk warning: Crypto-assets such as bitcoin are high risk and speculative. Their value can go down as well as up, sometimes sharply, and you could lose all the money you put in. Past performance doesn't necessarily give a guide to the future. Some crypto products and services are unregulated, and even under MiCA crypto is not covered by the Deposit Guarantee Scheme or the Investor Compensation Scheme. Crypto isn't suitable for everyone, so only use money you can afford to lose.

About this page: Bitcoin.ie is a general information site. We don't sell crypto, hold money for anyone or give personal financial or tax advice, and nothing here is a recommendation to buy. There are no affiliate links on this site today. We may earn a commission from links to some providers in future; if we do, those links will be labelled and explained in our affiliate disclosure, and it won't change what we write.

Tax note: This is general information based on Revenue guidance and the Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026 as published, checked on 30 October 2026. It isn't tax advice. Your position depends on your circumstances, so speak to a tax adviser or Revenue before you file.

How Revenue taxes crypto in Ireland

Revenue does not have a separate set of tax rules for crypto. Its crypto tax manual explains that general tax rules apply and each case depends on its facts.

For most people, gains on crypto disposals fall under CGT. If your activity amounts to a trade, income tax rules can apply instead.

This guide covers Revenue's rules for people taxed in Ireland. Northern Ireland is part of the UK, so UK rules apply there, set by HMRC rather than Revenue.

The CGT rate: 31% from 7 October 2026

Revenue applies 31% to most gains on disposals made on or after 7 October 2026. The 33% rate applied from 6 December 2012 to 6 October 2026. If you sold or swapped crypto in 2026, check the date of each disposal: some may fall under 33% and some under 31%.

The new rate has legal effect through a financial resolution the Dáil passed on 6 October 2026, under the Provisional Collection of Taxes Act 1927. The Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026, published on 19 October 2026, was still going through the Oireachtas when we checked. We'll update this page once it's law.

Revenue's CGT calculation page sets out the rate for most gains and the personal exemption.

The €1,270 annual exemption

The first €1,270 of chargeable gains you make in a year is exempt from CGT. It's one allowance per person per year, covering all your gains together, not €1,270 for every sale or swap.

The exemption can reduce a gain to nil, but it can't create or increase a loss. And a gain that the exemption wipes out still has to go on a return. Revenue is clear that you file even when no tax is due.

What counts as a disposal

A disposal is broader than selling crypto and receiving euro. Revenue's general CGT rules include selling, gifting and exchanging an asset. Its crypto manual also says that selling, transferring or redeeming crypto is most likely a disposal unless the activity amounts to a trade.

Swapping crypto can therefore count even though you receive no euro. Paying for goods or services with crypto is also a disposal: Revenue's manual includes an example involving payment for goods in a café. So if you swapped tokens and never cashed out, you may still have disposals to report.

Working out a gain

A gain is what you got for the crypto minus what you paid and allowable costs. Revenue expects a reasonable effort to use an appropriate valuation, converting the amount to euro at the time of the transaction.

Gains and losses are worked out disposal by disposal. When you swap one coin for another or pay for something in crypto, no euro changes hands, but you still need a euro value for that moment.

A simple example

The following figures are made up to show the calculation. Assume you bought crypto for €2,000 and sold it for €5,000 on or after 7 October 2026. Assume this is your only chargeable gain for the year, with no allowable losses to set against it.

Real life is messier. Revenue's manual doesn't give a crypto-specific method for matching purchases to sales, so if you have many transactions, speak to a tax adviser.

When to pay and when to file

Paying CGT and filing the return have different deadlines. Revenue's payment and filing page gives these dates:

• Disposals from 1 January to 30 November: pay CGT by 15 December of the same year.
• Disposals from 1 to 31 December: pay CGT by 31 January of the following year.
• The return: file by 31 October of the year after the disposal, even if no tax is due because of losses or the exemption.

For 2026 disposals, the return is due by 31 October 2027. There is no change to the CGT payment and filing dates for those disposals.

Registration and forms

Being on PAYE only doesn't get you out of it: if you make a chargeable gain, you have to file. Revenue lists the paper Form CG1 if you don't normally file, the paper Form 12 for PAYE taxpayers (not the online version) and Form 11 through ROS if you're self-employed or have non-PAYE income. Our guide on how to pay crypto tax in Ireland walks through registering, paying and filing.

Pay late and Revenue charges interest. File late and you can face a surcharge or penalty.

Legal ways to reduce crypto tax

There's no crypto loophole, but the ordinary CGT rules include reliefs Revenue confirms. The ones most crypto holders can use:

• The €1,270 personal exemption. It applies to your total gains each year after losses. Revenue says you can't transfer it to your spouse or civil partner.
• Losses. Allowable losses are set against gains in the same year first, and unused losses are carried forward to later years. They can't normally be carried back, except in the year of death. You file a return to claim them. Our guide to claiming crypto losses explains how.
• Allowable costs. Revenue's general rules let you deduct the costs of acquiring and disposing of an asset, and its crypto manual notes that its own examples leave out costs such as transaction fees.
• Transfers between spouses or civil partners. Revenue says a gain on an asset transferred between spouses or civil partners is usually exempt from CGT, with some exceptions, such as a transfer to a spouse who is non-resident and not liable to CGT.

Anything beyond these reliefs, such as leaving gains off a return, is evasion, not tax planning. With DAC8 reporting (below), Revenue receives data from crypto providers. Before relying on any relief, speak to a tax adviser.

Staking, airdrops, mining and crypto wages

Revenue's manual covers crypto paid as wages: it goes through payroll at its euro value, like any other pay. On VAT, following the EU court's Hedqvist decision, exchanging bitcoin for euro is exempt and mining is generally outside the scope of VAT.

Staking rewards, lending and airdrops are a different story. The Revenue manual we checked on 30 October 2026 doesn't specifically set out how they're taxed, so we won't guess. If you've received any, speak to a tax adviser before you file.

Gifting crypto

Giving crypto away can involve two taxes: CGT for the person giving it and Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) for the person receiving it.

• For the giver: a gift is a disposal. Revenue says you use the market value of the asset, not what you were paid (nothing), when you gift it to someone other than your spouse or civil partner. So giving away crypto that has gone up in value can create a gain.
• Between spouses or civil partners: Revenue says gains on transfers between spouses or civil partners are usually exempt from CGT, and gifts from a spouse or civil partner are exempt from CAT.
• For the person receiving: Revenue's crypto manual says gifts and inheritances of crypto may be liable to CAT, valued at the euro market value on the valuation date. Revenue says no CAT is due on gifts worth €3,000 or less from any one person in a calendar year, and larger gifts count towards group thresholds that add up gifts and inheritances received within the same group since 5 December 1991.

Speak to a tax adviser before making a large gift.

Records

Keep your records for six years. That includes exchange statements and wallet records, which Revenue says must be made available if it asks. Note the euro value you used for each transaction and where you got it.

DAC8: what providers report from 2026

Under DAC8, crypto providers have collected information about users and their transactions since 1 January 2026. The first reports, covering 2026, go to Revenue by 31 May 2027, and Revenue shares the data with other EU tax authorities. DAC8 changes what Revenue is told, not how crypto is taxed. Read more about DAC8 crypto reporting.

Frequently asked questions

Is crypto taxed in Ireland if I only swap it?

Yes. Swapping one crypto for another is an exchange, and Revenue treats an exchange as a disposal. You work out the gain or loss using a euro value at the time of the swap, even though you never received euro.

Do I pay tax on every euro I receive from a sale?

No. CGT is charged on the gain, not the sale proceeds: broadly, what you got minus what you paid and allowable costs, less losses and the €1,270 exemption.

Do I need a return if the exemption covers my gain?

Yes. Revenue says a return is due even when no tax is payable because of the exemption or losses. The deadline is 31 October of the year after the disposal.

Does my PAYE job cover my crypto tax reporting?

PAYE-only workers who make a chargeable gain must file a return. Revenue lists paper Form 12 for PAYE taxpayers and says CGT cannot be reported on the online Form 12 in myAccount.

Is giving crypto to my spouse taxed?

Revenue says a gain on an asset transferred between spouses or civil partners is usually exempt from CGT, and gifts from a spouse or civil partner are exempt from CAT. There are exceptions, so check your situation with a tax adviser.

Are staking rewards covered by Revenue's crypto manual?

The manual does not specifically set out how staking rewards are taxed in the pages checked. Speak to a tax adviser about the treatment in your circumstances.