Answer Box
Crypto assets are fully taxable in Spain. Capital gains on disposals — selling, swapping, spending — are taxed as savings income under IRPF (Ley 35/2006, Art. 35 and Art. 66-68) at rates from 19% to 30% depending on the size of the gain. Spanish tax residents must also report foreign-exchange crypto holdings above EUR 50,000 annually via Modelo 721 by 31 March. Self-custody wallets are separately reportable, though AEAT guidance on the boundary is still evolving. Expats under the Beckham Law (Ley 35/2006, Art. 93, as amended by Ley 28/2022) pay Spanish tax only on Spanish-source gains — foreign crypto gains are generally exempt during the six-year regime. Staking rewards and DeFi income are likely taxable, though AEAT has not yet published definitive classification guidance. If you hold crypto and are considering a move to Spain, your tax position depends on both your residency status and whether you opt into the Beckham regime.
Modelo 721 deadline is 31 March each year. The EUR 50,000 threshold applies to the fiat-equivalent value of your foreign crypto holdings at 31 December — not to gains or transactions during the year.
Source: Ley 11/2021 (Anti-Fraud Law) — Modelo 721
Last verified: Jun 2026
How Spain Taxes Crypto: The IRPF Framework
Spain does not treat cryptocurrency as a currency. AEAT classifies crypto as a financial asset, and gains from its disposal fall into the savings income base (base imponible del ahorro) under IRPF. That means the same rate scale that applies to dividends, interest, and capital gains from shares applies to your crypto profits.
Disposals, swaps, and spending
Every disposal event is a taxable moment. In Spain, a disposal occurs when you sell crypto for fiat, swap one crypto for another, or spend crypto on goods and services. Each event triggers a capital gain or loss calculated as sale price minus acquisition cost.
The rate scale — as updated by Ley 28/2022 with effect from 1 January 2023 — is:
- EUR 0-6,000: 19%
- EUR 6,001-50,000: 21%
- EUR 50,001-200,000: 23%
- EUR 200,001-300,000: 27%
- EUR 300,001 and above: 30%
These rates apply to your net crypto gains after offsetting any losses from the same tax year. Spain applies no holding-period reduction. A gain realised after one week is taxed at the same rate as a gain held for five years.
Cost basis methodology follows FIFO principles by default under Spanish tax practice, meaning the oldest-acquired units are treated as sold first. [VERIFY: AEAT definitive guidance on whether specific-lot identification is permitted for crypto assets]
Crypto-to-crypto swaps frequently surprise investors: exchanging Bitcoin for Ethereum, for example, is a disposal of Bitcoin at that moment, not a tax-deferred event. The gain or loss on the Bitcoin position is calculated at the market price of the exchange.
Staking rewards and DeFi income
AEAT has not yet issued fully definitive guidance on how staking rewards and DeFi income are classified. Secondary commentary and draft AEAT positions suggest that staking rewards are likely to be treated as either savings income or labour income depending on the nature of the activity, and that each accrual or distribution may constitute a taxable event. [VERIFY: AEAT published ruling or official guidance on staking classification for IRPF purposes]
DeFi protocols add further complexity: yield farming, liquidity provision rewards, and airdrop receipts each raise distinct questions that AEAT has not fully addressed in published guidance. [VERIFY: AEAT guidance on DeFi income classification]
Given the regulatory uncertainty, specialist advice from an asesor fiscal familiar with crypto is strongly recommended before you file. A qualified professional can review your specific activity against the most current AEAT positions.
Modelo 721: Reporting Foreign Crypto Holdings
Modelo 721 is an annual informational declaration for Spanish tax residents who hold crypto on foreign exchanges or self-custody wallets above EUR 50,000 in fiat-equivalent value at 31 December. Introduced for the 2023 tax year under Ley 11/2021 (the Anti-Fraud Law), it is separate from and additional to Modelo 720, the long-standing foreign asset declaration. Filing Modelo 721 does not itself generate a tax bill — it is a reporting obligation, not a payment.
What triggers the obligation
The obligation applies when the total fiat-equivalent value of your crypto held on foreign exchanges exceeds EUR 50,000 at 31 December of the relevant tax year. You must declare even if you made no disposals during the year. The EUR 50,000 threshold is assessed across all custodial foreign exchange holdings in aggregate, not per asset or per exchange.
You only need to re-file Modelo 721 in subsequent years if your aggregate foreign crypto value changes by more than EUR 20,000 compared to the last declaration, or if you acquire or fully dispose of holdings.
Source: Ley 11/2021 (Anti-Fraud Law) — Modelo 721
Last verified: Jun 2026
What counts as foreign — exchanges and self-custody
Crypto held on custodial foreign exchanges — Binance, Kraken, Coinbase, and similar platforms registered outside Spain — falls under Modelo 721. Crypto held on Spanish platforms does not trigger this obligation.
The treatment of self-custody wallets (hardware wallets, software wallets, browser wallets) is an area of ongoing regulatory development. Post-2023 practice points to self-custody declarations going on Modelo 721. However, AEAT has not fully resolved whether certain foreign-exchange-held crypto might additionally require declaration under Modelo 720 category C2. For holdings involving self-custody or complex multi-exchange arrangements, consult a gestor before the March deadline.
For context on Spain's wider foreign asset reporting framework, including Modelo 720 covering bank accounts, securities, and real estate above EUR 50,000, see the full guide to Spain's tax residency rules and wider foreign asset reporting.
The Beckham Law and Crypto: A Significant Interaction
| Tax aspect | Standard IRPF resident | Under Beckham Law (Art. 93 LIRPF) |
|---|---|---|
| Disposal gains — Spanish exchange | Taxed at 19-30% savings income rates | Taxed at 19-30% (Spanish-source income) |
| Disposal gains — foreign exchange | Taxed at 19-30% savings income rates | Generally exempt (foreign-source under IRNR rules) |
| Staking rewards — Spanish platform | Taxed (savings or labour income) [VERIFY] | Taxed as Spanish-source income [VERIFY] |
| Staking rewards — foreign platform | Taxed (savings or labour income) [VERIFY] | Likely exempt as foreign-source income [VERIFY] |
| Wealth Tax — crypto assets | Obligacion personal: worldwide assets assessed | Obligacion real: only Spanish-sited assets assessed |
| Modelo 721 filing obligation | Yes, if foreign holdings >EUR 50,000 | Likely yes — reporting obligations separate from tax scope [VERIFY] |
The Beckham Law taxes participants under the non-resident income tax (IRNR) rules contained in Ley 35/2006, Art. 93 (as amended by Ley 28/2022). Under IRNR rules, only Spanish-source income is within scope. Foreign-source income — including gains from trading crypto on foreign exchanges — is not taxable in Spain during the regime.
Foreign crypto gains are generally exempt
If your crypto is held and traded on foreign exchanges — Binance, Kraken, Coinbase — those gains are treated as foreign-source income while you are on Beckham. They do not appear in your Spanish tax base. This is one of the most material consequences of the Beckham Law for investors with substantial foreign crypto portfolios.
Under Beckham Law, gains from crypto traded on foreign exchanges are generally treated as foreign-source and are not included in your Spanish IRPF base. This applies for the year of arrival plus five subsequent years — six years total.
Source: Ley 35/2006, Art. 93 (as amended by Ley 28/2022)
The distinction between Spanish-source and foreign-source income for crypto is not always straightforward. Gains from trading on platforms that are Spanish-registered, or from activity with a clear Spanish nexus, may be treated as Spanish-source. Specialist advice is recommended before treating any specific gain as exempt.
For the full Beckham Law eligibility conditions, application process, and six-year mechanics, see the full Beckham Law guide.
Wealth Tax under Beckham
Wealth Tax under the Beckham Law applies in obligacion real — meaning only Spanish-sited assets are assessed. Foreign crypto holdings, held on foreign exchanges or in self-custody outside Spain, are not included in the Wealth Tax base for a Beckham filer.
For investors with significant foreign crypto portfolios, this creates a structurally lighter Wealth Tax exposure during the six-year regime. Spanish-sited assets — property in Spain, Spanish equities, Spanish bank accounts — remain within scope.
Note that the Solidarity Tax on Large Fortunes (Impuesto Temporal de Solidaridad de las Grandes Fortunas, Ley 38/2022) applies above EUR 3,000,000 net wealth. Beckham filers assessed in obligacion real would include only their Spanish-sited net wealth for this purpose. [VERIFY: AEAT or DGT published position on ITSGF scope for Beckham filers]
How ApexTax Can Help
Cryptocurrency adds a significant layer of complexity to Spain tax planning — particularly when you are evaluating whether to apply for the Beckham Law, which jurisdiction holds your exchanges, and how your existing portfolio interacts with Spanish residency.
ApexTax is a tax strategy consultancy. We design the tax and relocation architecture before the move — mapping your crypto holdings, exchange jurisdictions, and residency status against the available Spanish regimes. We coordinate with specialist tax advisors, including professionals familiar with crypto IRPF treatment, who handle the formal advice and filings.
We do not file Modelo 721, Modelo 100, or any AEAT return ourselves, and we do not represent clients before AEAT. Those steps are delivered by qualified independent professionals selected and coordinated by ApexTax.
If you want to understand your crypto tax position before relocating to Spain — or before your next IRPF filing season — start with a free 15-minute strategy call. There is no commitment, and it takes less time than a typical exchange withdrawal.