German Finance Ministry Drafts 25% Tax on Crypto Gains From 2027

In brief

• A draft bill would apply a flat 25% tax to crypto gains, plus the solidarity surcharge, from January 1, 2027.
• It would cover only assets bought after that date, with earlier holdings staying under current rules.
• Banks and platforms would withhold the tax automatically from 2028.

Germany would tax profits on crypto sales at a flat 25% regardless of how long the asset was held, under a draft bill from Vice Chancellor and Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil seen by Handelsblatt. Welt reported it first on Tuesday, from a departmental draft dated mid-August.

The law would take effect on January 1, 2027, and apply only to crypto bought from that date. Anything acquired earlier stays under today's rules, so anyone already holding Bitcoin keeps the exemption.

Germans currently pay nothing on crypto gains once they have held an asset twelve months, a position the ministry set out in 2022 and extended to coins used for staking and lending. Sell inside that window and the profit is taxed as ordinary income, up to 42% for higher earners. Critics have noted that scrapping the holding period lands on long-term investors more than the speculators it describes.

Gains would be treated like dividends, share profits and interest, at the flat rate plus a solidarity surcharge of 5.5% of the tax, an effective 26.375% before church tax. The €1,000 saver's allowance would apply, and losses could be offset against gains, including those on shares.