Crypto Taxes in Germany 2026: The Complete Guide

Holding crypto as a freelancer or GmbH director is normal by now — the tax treatment behind it is not. Unlike with shares, there is no flat withholding tax and no bank that deducts it automatically. You are responsible for declaring it correctly, and from 2026 crypto exchanges report your trades directly to the tax office.

The good news: in private assets, crypto gains are completely tax-free after a one-year holding period — no matter how large. The bad news: if you do not know the rules, short-term gains are taxed at your full personal income tax rate of up to 45 %. This guide covers everything you need to know as a business owner.

We walk through how crypto is taxed, the one-year holding period, the €1,000 exemption limit, staking and lending, the difference between private and business assets, and how to declare it all correctly.

How cryptocurrencies are taxed in Germany

For tax purposes, crypto is not capital investment income — it counts as an "other economic asset" (sonstiges Wirtschaftsgut). That has one key consequence: there is no flat 25 % withholding tax (Abgeltungsteuer) as with shares or ETFs.

If you hold crypto as private assets, gains from selling are private sale transactions under §23 of the Income Tax Act (EStG). They are taxed at your personal income tax rate (14–45 %, plus solidarity surcharge and church tax where applicable) — the same rate that applies to your self-employment profit. You declare it in the Anlage SO form of your income tax return.

The one-year holding period: the most important lever

The central rule: anyone who holds crypto in private assets for at least 365 days sells completely tax-free — whether the gain is €500 or €50,000.

• With multiple purchases, FIFO applies: the oldest holdings are sold first.
• Lending or staking income no longer extends the holding period to 10 years. That old rule was scrapped in the BMF letter — it stays at one year.

Example: You buy Bitcoin for €10,000 in January 2025 and sell it for €18,000 in March 2026. Holding period over one year → the €8,000 gain is tax-free. If you instead sell in November 2025, the €8,000 is fully taxable.

The €1,000 exemption limit per year

If a sale falls within the holding period, an exemption limit applies: up to €1,000 in gains from private sale transactions per calendar year stays tax-free (§23 (3) EStG, raised from €600 in 2024 — unchanged for 2026).

Important: this is an exemption limit, not an allowance. A total gain of just €1,001 makes the entire amount taxable, not only the part above €1,000. Plan your sales to stay just below the line — or well above it.

When a taxable event occurs

Not every move in your wallet triggers tax. Taxable events are:

• Selling for euros (or another fiat currency)
• Crypto-to-crypto swaps — every swap counts as a sale and a new purchase, even BTC → ETH
• Paying with crypto — settling an invoice with Bitcoin realizes a gain

Not taxable are the plain purchase, simply holding, and transfers between your own wallets. Stablecoins are no exception — details in the guide to stablecoin taxes.

Staking, lending, mining & airdrops

Income from staking and lending counts as other income under §22 No. 3 EStG. It is taxed at the market value at the time of receipt — not only when you sell. There is a separate exemption limit of €256 per year for this.

If you later sell the coins you received, the normal one-year holding period under §23 EStG applies again. Mining can be classified as commercial if done at scale — then business-asset rules apply. Airdrops are either other income (if there was a service in return) or tax-neutral on receipt without any consideration.

Private vs. business assets — for the self-employed and GmbHs

This is the biggest trap for business owners. As soon as crypto sits in business assets — because your GmbH buys it or you accept Bitcoin as a freelancer — the rules change:

• No one-year holding period — gains are always taxable
• No €1,000 exemption limit
• Valuation and posting run through your EÜR or annual financial statements

Practical tip: if you want to HODL long term, buy privately with taxed income — not from the business account. If you accept crypto as payment, swap the incoming amount to euros the same day (see accepting crypto payments). Which strategies actually save tax is covered in crypto tax optimization. For a GmbH, the company tax rules apply on top.

Documenting and declaring crypto correctly

From 2026 the DAC8 directive kicks in: EU crypto service providers automatically report their users' transactions to the tax authorities (first reports from 2027). Together with the Platform Tax Transparency Act (PStTG), this means the tax office sees your trades. Clean documentation is mandatory — every transaction with the daily rate in euros, FIFO allocation, and the holding period.

Norman connects wallets and exchanges, imports every transaction with its daily rate, detects expired holding periods, and transfers the figures straight into your EÜR or annual statements — losses can be used via the Anlage SO and loss carryforward. More on taxes for the self-employed.

Conclusion

In Germany, cryptocurrencies are taxed as a private economic asset — not with a flat withholding tax, but at your personal rate. The most important lever stays the one-year holding period: after 365 days in private assets, the gain is tax-free. Watch the differences for staking, keep private and business assets cleanly separated, and document every transaction. With DAC8 from 2026 at the latest, it pays to get this right from the start.