Current Issues : Crypto Assets and Taxation
Presenters : Chris Herbst
Overview
Cryptocurrencies have entered the mainstream in the past few years, attracting the attention of the South African Revenue Service (SARS). SARS actively started to audit cryptocurrency investors, demanding proof of transactions from various crypto investment platforms.
The tax implications of cryptocurrency trading and investing remains a contentious issue, in part due to the complexity around crypto-related transactions, including:
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Hard forks (where one cryptocurrency splits into two separate ones).
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Airdrops (where a new cryptocurrency is sent to owners of an existing cryptocurrency).
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Staked rewards (where a cryptocurrency earns you a type of interest).
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Crypto bartering.
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Mining and VAT considerations.
It is essential for tax professionals to stay updated with the latest developments and the complexity around crypto-related transactions.
Video content
In this video, we cover the following:
- Fundamentals of crypto tax.
- The income vs capital gain question for crypto-asset transactions.
- Mining and staking taxation.
- International tax authority trends and the first court cases.
- Completion of tax returns for transactions of cryptocurrencies.
- Are gains capital or revenue in nature?
- Section 9C and the three-year rule.
- Practical issues with tracking gains and possible solutions.
- Crypto airdrops.
- Crypto bartering.
- VAT considerations.
Competencies developed in this
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Updated on the fundamentals of crypto tax.
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Competent to assess income vs capital gain for crypto asset transactions.
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Able to inform clients of the taxation on mining and staking crypto transactions.
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Updated on important international tax authority trends regarding crypto taxation and the first court cases.
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Able to assess practical crypto tax scenarios.