If you hold or trade crypto in Poland, 2025 brings more clarity than drama—most of the key rules haven’t changed, but enforcement and reporting are getting tidier. Below you’ll find a crypto tax guide answering the big questions people actually ask, like “do I pay tax on BTC in Poland?”, when you must declare crypto in Poland, and how BTC tax rules in 2025 treat trading, staking, and mining. I’ll also flag where EU-level rules (MiCA) and Poland’s AML regime sit, so you can keep your Poland crypto regulations 2025 picture straight.
Is Crypto Legal in Poland?
Short answer: yes—owning and using cryptocurrency is lawful, but it isn’t legal tender. Poland lines up with EU norms: crypto use is permitted, and activities like exchange/brokerage must follow anti-money-laundering (AML) rules. Poland maintains a Register of Activities in the Field of Virtual Currencies; if you run an exchange, broker, or custodial service, you’re expected to be listed there. The register is administered by the tax administration (Katowice Chamber), under the AML Act.
The financial supervisor (KNF) has repeatedly noted it does not supervise spot crypto trading itself (different from supervising certain payment services some firms also offer). That’s consistent with the idea that crypto is allowed but not a KNF-regulated security by default.
At the EU level, the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation applies directly across all Member States. Stablecoin issuer rules started in June 2024, and the broader CASP (crypto-asset service provider) framework kicked in on December 30, 2024—now fully relevant to Polish platforms in 2025.
Tax Categories for Crypto
Polish law treats crypto as a “virtual currency” for PIT purposes. The big number most people care about: 19% flat income tax on profits when you dispose of crypto for consideration. The official guidance lays out what counts as taxable disposal and what doesn’t.
Trading
- Taxable events:
You owe tax when you sell crypto for fiat (PLN or other) or spend crypto on goods/services/property rights. That’s explicitly in the Ministry of Finance (MF) guide. - Not taxable:
Crypto-to-crypto swaps are tax-neutral (e.g., BTC→XMR). The MF is very direct about this—no tax, and you don’t report the swap itself. (You’ll be taxed only when you eventually cash out to fiat or spend the resulting coins.) - Rate & source category:
Profits from the sale of virtual currencies are taxed at a flat 19% rate in the PIT system, reported on PIT-38. - Costs you can deduct:
Documented acquisition costs (what you paid for coins) and sale-related costs (exchange/broker fees). If in a given year your deductible costs exceed your crypto income, the excess rolls forward to the next year as part of your cost base. - Costs you cannot deduct:
Financing costs (loans/interest), costs tied to crypto-to-crypto swaps, and—if the coins came from mining—hardware and electricity used for mining (more on that below). - Losses vs. “excess costs”:
The MF’s FAQ clarifies you don’t deduct a “loss” in the classic way for virtual currencies; instead, you carry forward excess acquisition costs to future years.
Staking
There’s been debate about whether staking rewards are taxed on receipt or only when you later sell the coins. Polish administrative courts have leaned toward the latter: no PIT on receipt; tax arises when you dispose for consideration (sell for fiat or use to pay).
Bottom line for 2025: the safer, court-backed reading is tax when you sell, not when you receive, with a cost basis of zero unless you can document a purchase price. Always keep the paper trail.
Mining
If you mine coins as a private individual, the taxable moment is usually when you later sell/spend those coins. The MF guidance also warns that mining hardware and electricity cannot be treated as deductible costs in your PIT crypto calculation. In practice, that often means a zero cost basis for mined coins, so the full sale proceeds are taxed at 19% when you dispose.
Reporting Requirements
The annual return for crypto taxes in Poland is PIT-38. You file it between February 15 and April 30 for the previous tax year. You must file even if you had no sales but incurred acquisition costs (to lock in your cost carry-forward). You can file on paper, through e-Deklaracje, or via Twój e-PIT in the e-Urząd Skarbowy portal.
A few practical notes straight from the MF page:
- Obligation to file: PIT-38 applies if you sold crypto for consideration. It also applies if you only had costs (no income) in that year.
- When exactly: Feb 15 → Apr 30 is the official PIT window. The site reiterates that returns submitted earlier are treated as filed on Feb 15.
- No PIT-8C from exchanges: Polish exchanges/brokers don’t have to send you PIT-8C/PIT-11 for your crypto trades. Keep your own records.
How to Calculate Taxes
- Identify taxable disposals
Include any sale of BTC/XMR/etc. for PLN or other fiat, and any time you pay for goods/services with crypto. Ignore simple crypto→crypto swaps; they’re tax-neutral. - Compute income and costs
- Income: the gross amount you received in fiat (or the PLN value of what you bought/paid) at the time of disposal.
- Deductible costs: what you paid to acquire those units plus sale-related fees. If you haven’t sold yet but you did buy in 2025, you can still report those acquisition costs on PIT-38 to carry them forward.
- Non-deductible: loan interest, costs linked to crypto-to-crypto swaps, and (for mined coins) hardware/electricity.
- Apply 19%
Profit × 19% PIT = tax. That’s it—no separate wealth tax, and no progressive brackets for this category.
Mini example (trading):
- You bought 0.2 BTC for 20,000 PLN in 2024 and paid 100 PLN in fees.
- In March 2025, you sold that 0.2 BTC for 28,000 PLN, paying 120 PLN to the exchange.
- Income: 28,000 PLN
- Costs: 20,000 + 100 + 120 = 20,220 PLN (all documented)
- Profit: 7,780 PLN → Tax: 7,780 × 19% = 1,478.20 PLN
Mini example (staking):
- You received 0.5 ETH via staking in 2025 (no tax at receipt under the court-favored approach).
- In August 2025, you used that 0.5 ETH to buy a laptop worth 5,000 PLN.
- Taxable event: the purchase. Income is 5,000 PLN; cost basis likely 0 (you did not “buy” the ETH), so 5,000 × 19% = 950 PLN PIT. Keep screenshots/invoices.
Tips to Stay Compliant
1) Keep obsessive records.
Export CSVs/PDF statements from every exchange and wallet you use. Track timestamps, asset, amount, PLN value, and fees. The MF explicitly says platforms don’t issue PIT-8C for crypto—you must be able to substantiate costs.
2) Report costs even if you didn’t sell.
If 2025 was a buying year, file PIT-38 anyway and list your acquisition costs. That’s how you unlock the carry-forward benefit.
3) Separate “tax-neutral swaps” from taxable events.
Don’t clutter your return with crypto→crypto trades; instead, keep a ledger so the eventual fiat sale correctly references your original purchase price and fees. The MF confirms swaps are neutral.
4) Staking/mining: plan for a zero basis.
Assume staking and mined coins often carry no cost basis in PIT, so the full value is taxed at disposal. Also remember mining electricity/hardware doesn’t count as deductible cost in PIT crypto—the MF says so outright.
5) Watch EU/Poland regulatory housekeeping.
MiCA is already live across the EU; Poland’s supervisors and AML register continue to operate alongside it. If you use Polish service providers, check they’re in the Virtual Currency Register; it’s a simple credibility check.
6) VAT clue for businesses.
For VAT purposes, the exchange of Bitcoin for fiat is exempt in the EU (CJEU Hedqvist, C-264/14). That’s not a personal income tax rule, but it matters if you run a crypto business with VAT obligations.
7) File on time, the easy way.
Use Twój e-PIT or e-Deklaracje. The PIT window is Feb 15 – Apr 30 for the prior year. If you submit earlier, it’s treated as filed on Feb 15.
Summary
- Do I pay tax on BTC in Poland?
Yes—when you sell BTC for fiat or spend it. The tax on BTC income (and other coins) is a flat 19% under PIT rules. Crypto-to-crypto swaps are tax-neutral. You report all of this on PIT-38 each year. - What about staking and mining?
The prevailing court view in 2025 says staking rewards aren’t taxed on receipt; tax applies when you dispose of those coins. Mining is similar for timing, but remember mining hardware/electricity aren’t deductible in PIT crypto. Expect a zero cost basis unless you actually purchased the coins. - How do I declare crypto in Poland?
File PIT-38 between Feb 15 and Apr 30, even if you only incurred costs (no sales) so you can carry costs forward. Use Twój e-PIT or e-Deklaracje online. Exchanges don’t send PIT-8C—keep your own ledger. - Poland crypto regulations 2025 snapshot:
Crypto is legal, AML-registered businesses must be in the Virtual Currency Register, KNF doesn’t supervise spot crypto directly, and MiCA is now in force EU-wide (including Poland) for stablecoins and CASPs.
If you stick to those pillars—what is taxable, what you can deduct, and how/when to file—you’ll be on the right side of BTC tax rules in Poland 2025. And if your situation gets complex (multiple wallets, DeFi, airdrops, business activity), it’s worth getting a Polish tax professional to sanity-check your numbers before April 30.