Citizens of the Swiss Canton of Zug Will Now Pay Taxes with Bitcoin
With the emergence of Bitcoin in 2009, it has started to take place in our lives rapidly by adapting to many different sectors. This situation paved the way for bitcoin to be passed as a means of payment in many places. The first example of its use as a means of payment was the purchase of pizza for 10,000 bitcoins on May 22, 2010. As of this date, bitcoin has been approved by many organizations for use in payment acceptance. At the beginning of the organizations that receive payments with Bitcoin, there are large organizations such as Microsoft, Subway, Reddit, Steam, Zynga.
While companies are adapting to cryptocurrencies in this way, governments are divided between those who are adamantly opposed and those who adopt them. The legal status of cryptocurrencies also differs on the basis of countries. Vietnam, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan are among the countries that ban crypto coins, while countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States, Sweden, Belgium and Australia have accepted crypto coins legally.
If we give a few examples of the legal regulations of the states on crypto coins; In the United States, in 2015, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission recognized bitcoin as a commodity. The UK charges VAT at a certain rate on purchases made with Bitcoin. The Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority had accepted bitcoin as a payment option.
A new addition to the countries that pay taxes in Bitcoin has included the Canton of Zug, one of the member states of the Swiss Confederation. The Canton of Zug, which has earned the nickname “Crypto Valley” for its positive stance against crypto coins, announced last Thursday that from February 2021, companies and individuals will accept bitcoin and Ethereum for tax payments of up to 100,000 Swiss francs. It was announced that in the coming weeks, test work for the project will begin, and those who want to pay taxes with cryptocurrencies can contact the cantonal tax office. Zug-based brokerage firm bitcoin Suisse AG will work in partnership and bitcoin Suisse will convert digital coins into francs and transfer the relevant amount to the government. The Canton of Zug has previously taken steps to use bitcoin in various government services. A similar transaction was previously carried out by the municipality of Zermatt in Switzerland, where the municipal government approved citizens to pay their taxes with crypto coins.