Crypto Tax in Germany 2026 - The 1-Year Tax-Free Rule

TL;DR: Germany has one of the friendliest crypto tax rules in Europe: hold a coin for more than one year and the gain is completely tax-free. Sell within a year and the profit is taxed at your personal income rate (up to 45%), unless your total private-sale gains stay under the €1,000 annual allowance. The cleanest way to track holding periods across every wallet and produce an Anlage SO is software: I use CoinTracking, a German company with the deepest reporting in the category.

Sort your German crypto taxes with CoinTracking

Germany rewards patient investors. Thanks to the one-year holding rule under §23 of the Income Tax Act, long-term crypto holders can pay zero tax on their gains. The catch is that you have to prove the holding period, which across multiple exchanges and wallets means keeping precise records. That’s exactly what crypto tax software is for.

Here’s how crypto is taxed in Germany and how to prepare your return.

Best tools for German crypto taxes:

CoinTracking (my pick): a German company, deepest reporting, exports a pre-filled Anlage SO, free up to 200 transactions. Read the review.
Divly: the European specialist, produces the German Anlage SO report with German-language support. Read the review.

Try CoinTracking free

How Crypto Is Taxed in Germany

Crypto held by a private individual is treated as a “private sale” (privates Veräußerungsgeschäft) under §23 EStG. The rule that matters most:

Held longer than 12 months: the gain is completely tax-free, no matter how large.
Held 12 months or less: the gain is added to your income and taxed at your personal rate, which ranges up to 45% plus the solidarity surcharge.

There is a €1,000 annual allowance (Freigrenze) for private-sale gains, raised from €600 in 2024. Note it’s a threshold, not a deduction: if your total private-sale profit for the year reaches €1,000, the whole amount becomes taxable, not just the part above €1,000.

What Counts as a Taxable Event

Selling crypto for euros, swapping one crypto for another, and spending crypto are all disposals. A crypto-to-crypto swap resets the one-year clock on the new asset. Moving coins between your own wallets is not a disposal.

Staking, Lending, Mining, and Airdrops

Income from staking, lending, mining, and conditional airdrops is taxed as “other income” under §22 at your personal rate, valued in euros when received. There’s a small separate €256 annual exemption for this category. Importantly, an earlier proposal to extend the tax-free holding period to ten years for staked or lent coins was scrapped: the standard one-year rule applies whether or not you stake.

The Forms You Need to File

Crypto goes on Anlage SO (the “other income” schedule), filed with your main income tax return through the ELSTER portal. Most crypto tax tools, including CoinTracking, export a pre-filled Anlage SO or a compatible file.

The filing deadline for the 2025 return is 31 July 2026 if you file yourself, extended into 2027 if you use a tax adviser. From 1 January 2026, German crypto service providers report transaction data to the tax authorities under the EU’s DAC8 rules, so accurate records matter more than ever.

How to Prepare Your Crypto Taxes in Germany

Connect every account. Add each exchange and wallet by API or public address so the tool can track acquisition dates, the key to the one-year rule.
Import your full history. You need every buy and sell to prove holding periods accurately.
Reconcile. Patch any gaps in the imported data with a CSV.
Generate the Anlage SO. Export the report and file it through ELSTER.

Prepare your Anlage SO with CoinTracking

The Best Crypto Tax Tool for Germany

For German investors, CoinTracking is the natural pick: it’s a German company, it tracks holding periods precisely, and it exports a ready Anlage SO. Its lifetime licence is the best long-term value if you’ll file every year. The strong alternative is Divly, which specialises in European national forms and produces the German report with local-language support. Both have free tiers. See the full field in my guide to the best crypto tax software.

Disclaimer: This is general information, not tax advice. German crypto tax rules change and your situation is unique. Confirm the details with a qualified German Steuerberater before you file.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is crypto tax-free in Germany?

Yes, if you hold it long enough. Crypto held for more than one year can be sold completely tax-free under §23 EStG, regardless of the size of the gain. Gains on crypto held for a year or less are taxed at your personal income rate, unless your total private-sale gains for the year stay under the €1,000 allowance.

How much is the crypto tax allowance in Germany?

The annual allowance for private-sale gains is €1,000 (raised from €600 in 2024). It’s a threshold: if your total private-sale profit reaches €1,000, the entire amount is taxable, not just the excess. A separate €256 allowance applies to income such as staking rewards.

Does staking extend the one-year holding period in Germany?

No. An earlier proposal to extend the tax-free holding period to ten years for staked or lent coins was rejected. The standard one-year rule applies whether or not you stake. Staking rewards themselves are taxed as income at the value when received.

Which form do I use to report crypto in Germany?

Crypto goes on Anlage SO, filed with your income tax return via the ELSTER portal. The deadline for the 2025 return is 31 July 2026 if you file yourself, or later if you use a tax adviser.