Israeli bitcoiners take note: a handful of Knesset members are seeking to ease Israel’s hefty taxation of cryptocurrencies.
Four Knesset members from the nationalist Yisrael Beiteinu party on Tuesday introduced a draft bill that would effectively end Israel’s 25% capital gains tax on bitcoin by redefining certain “distributed digital currencies” as currency, instead of a taxable asset.
- The proposed re-designation applies to cryptocurrencies with: a distributed issuance network, a 1 billion shekel ($288 million) market cap or more, a general use purpose and an independent origin story.
- Bitcoin and certain other cryptocurrencies meet these criteria, according to the bill authors: Oded Forer, Evgeny Sova, Yulia Malinovsky and Alex Kushnir.
- "This regulatory clarity will create commercial certainty and allow more digital currencies to enter the Israeli market," the lawmakers wrote in their proposal.
- Defining cryptos as currency would simplify Israeli bitcoiners' tax burden and make qualifying coins a more attractive payment mechanism, according to the measure.
- The Yisrael Beiteinu party is part of Israel's parliamentary opposition, making passage unlikely without backing from members of the majority.
- Forer did not respond to a request for additional comment.
Read more: Israeli Court Rules Bitcoin Is an Asset in Feud Over Tax Payment
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