Poland has a clear and consistent statutory framework for the taxation of cryptocurrency since 2019, when trading in virtual currencies was formally classified as the sale of property rights under the Ustawa o podatku dochodowym od osób fizycznych (Personal Income Tax Act, PIT).
Under this classification, income from cryptocurrency is treated as capital income and taxed at a flat rate of 19%, with no thresholds, allowances, or exemptions. Every taxpayer who trades, sells, or otherwise disposes of crypto for fiat currency, goods, services, or non-crypto property rights must report this in an annual PIT-38 declaration.
Capital Gains Tax Rules
Although Poland describes income from virtual currency as capital income, it is assessed under the PIT system rather than a standalone capital gains tax regime.
There is no separate CGT rate or annual exempt amount. All taxable gains from crypto disposals are included in the 19% flat rate assessment under the PIT-38 form.
The rules treat every individual investor identically, whether or not they conduct their trades through a registered business, provided the transactions occur outside the scope of a formal business activity. Business traders using crypto as part of their core commercial operation must instead report under PIT-36/PIT-36L or CIT.
How gains are calculated
The taxable income is the net figure, revenue from the disposal minus allowable costs.
Revenue includes cash received from the sale of cryptocurrency and the market value of goods or services paid for with crypto. Allowable costs are restricted to documented expenditure directly related to acquiring and disposing of the virtual currency. This covers the purchase price of the cryptocurrency itself, transaction fees, and exchange commissions.
Notably, the cost of mining equipment, electricity used in mining, and any borrowing costs used to finance the purchase are explicitly excluded from deductible costs. Costs related to crypto-to-crypto exchanges are similarly non-deductible, which is consistent with the rule that such swaps are tax neutral.
Poland does not prescribe a specific cost basis accounting method such as FIFO or average cost in the same way as other jurisdictions. Taxpayers must maintain sufficient records to demonstrate the documented cost of each acquisition.
Losses and carryforward
If costs in a given year exceed revenues, the resulting negative income can be declared in the PIT-38 for that year even where no disposal occurred. These carried-over costs are applied against future crypto income. There is no time limit on how far costs can be carried forward, but they may only offset future income from virtual currencies, not other categories of income such as employment income or dividends.
Record keeping
Documentation of every acquisition is essential. Without it, the KAS may disallow cost deductions entirely.
Acceptable records include bank transfer records to exchanges, transaction histories downloaded from exchange platforms, receipts, invoices, and exchange- or bank-generated reports. For exchanges that have ceased operating, such as in insolvency, bank transfers to the defunct platform are still acceptable as evidence of the original purchase price.
Income Tax Rules
For most individual investors in Poland, crypto income is taxed as capital income under the PIT-38 at a flat 19% rate, separate from employment income, business income, or investment returns from stocks and funds.
However, where cryptocurrency trading constitutes the subject of a taxpayer’s registered business activity, such as a professional exchange service or trading operation, the income must be reported as business income under PIT-36 or PIT-36L, or under CIT for companies. The distinction turns on whether the trading activity is carried out in a businesslike, organised, and continuous manner with a profit motive.
Crypto received as salary or remuneration is treated as employment income taxable under Box 1 of the general income tax scale. The employer should convert the value to Polish zloty at the time of payment using the applicable exchange rate. Donations of cryptocurrency are not subject to personal income tax but instead fall under inheritance and gift tax rules.
Where a recipient later sells donated crypto, the 19% income tax applies to the proceeds, but since no acquisition cost was incurred by the recipient, they cannot deduct a purchase price. Only direct sale expenses such as exchange commissions may be deducted.
Poland does not provide a specific tax regime for DeFi activities, staking rewards, or airdrops beyond the general principle that income from virtual currencies is taxable when assets are exchanged for non-crypto consideration.
As of 2026, Poland has not issued detailed guidance on the tax treatment of rewards received from DeFi protocols, and the position on whether such receipts constitute income on receipt or only on subsequent disposal remains a matter requiring professional advice.
Mining and Staking Treatment
Mining
Mining cryptocurrency in Poland is treated as a business activity where it is conducted on a professional and continuous basis. The costs of mining equipment and electricity are explicitly excluded from the allowable cost deductions available to non-business investors under the PIT-38 regime. This means that a sole trader miner operating under a registered business must account for mining income and related expenses under their business accounts, applying the relevant PIT-36 or CIT framework.
Where an individual mines cryptocurrency on an occasional or hobbyist basis, the position is less clearly defined. The general principle under Polish law is that any income from virtual currency arises at the point of disposal, not at the point of mining. This means that mined coins held without being exchanged or sold do not trigger a tax liability at the time of receipt.
When the miner subsequently sells or exchanges the mined coins for fiat or goods, a taxable event occurs and the 19% flat rate applies. Since mining costs are not deductible for non-business individuals, the full proceeds of such a sale form the tax base unless other acquisition costs are present.
Staking
As of 2026, Poland has not published specific guidance on the tax treatment of staking rewards.
Under the general framework, rewards received from staking, whether from proof-of-stake validation or delegated staking pools, are virtual currency received without a direct monetary consideration paid at the point of receipt. The most likely interpretation under current Polish rules is that the taxable event arises when those staking rewards are subsequently disposed of.
At that point, the revenue would be included in Box E of the PIT-38 and taxed at 19%. Because no acquisition cost was incurred for the reward tokens themselves, the full proceeds of disposal would ordinarily form the tax base, subject to any allowable transaction costs.
Taxpayers receiving material staking rewards should seek formal guidance or a tax ruling from the relevant Director of National Tax Information (Dyrektor Krajowej Informacji Skarbowej).
NFT Taxation
NFTs are not addressed by dedicated legislation in Poland.
Under the existing framework, an NFT constitutes a virtual currency or other property right depending on its specific characteristics. Where an NFT is acquired as an investment and subsequently sold, the gain is likely to be treated as income from the sale of property rights and taxed accordingly. If the NFT qualifies as a virtual currency under Polish law, the 19% flat rate and PIT-38 rules apply. If it is classified as a different category of property right, it may fall under a different income category.
For creators who generate and sell NFTs as part of a commercial artistic or business activity, the proceeds from NFT sales are likely to be treated as business or professional income, taxable under the general income tax framework at the creator’s applicable rate. Costs directly related to production, such as software, platform fees, and associated transaction costs, should be deductible as business expenses.
VAT implications for NFT transactions in Poland are governed by the general VAT framework. Where an NFT constitutes the supply of a digital service, VAT may apply. Polish VAT is generally set at 23%, with reduced rates for certain categories. Creators and sellers transacting at scale should seek specific advice on the VAT position.
Reporting Requirements
Taxpayers in Poland who have conducted any taxable crypto transactions during the year must file a PIT-38 declaration.
This obligation applies to those who realised income from disposing of cryptocurrency, those who incurred costs of acquiring crypto without making any disposal, and those who operate a business activity but trade crypto outside the scope of that business.
The filing deadline is between 15 February and 30 April of the year following the relevant tax year. For the 2025 tax year, the deadline is 30 April 2026.
The PIT-38 can be filed in paper form at the relevant tax office, by registered post, or electronically through the e-Deklaracje platform or the Twój e-PIT (Your e-PIT) portal. The return must include all revenue from crypto disposals, documented allowable costs, any costs carried forward from prior years, and the resulting net taxable income or excess costs available for future carryforward. Tax is paid directly on filing; if the taxpayer participates in the Twój e-PIT system, a pre-filled return may be available for review and amendment.
The KAS actively monitors cryptocurrency transactions and uses data from exchanges, banks, and other sources to cross-reference declared income. Large or repeated transactions attract particular scrutiny. Crypto exchanges are obliged to cooperate with the KAS on request. Taxpayers should retain all supporting documentation for a minimum of five years, and preferably until any potential statute of limitations has expired. This includes exchange transaction histories, bank statements, wallet records, and any receipts or invoices related to acquisition costs.
Penalties
The KAS has substantial powers to investigate and sanction non-compliance with crypto tax obligations.
Where income has been concealed or underreported, the authority may raise an additional tax assessment covering the underpaid amount, together with interest calculated from the original due date. In addition to interest, the KAS can impose a penalty surcharge (dodatkowe zobowiązanie podatkowe) of up to 75% of the underassessed tax where the shortfall is attributable to deliberate concealment or fraud. For cases involving negligence rather than deliberate evasion, the penalty rate is lower.
In serious cases, crypto tax evasion may give rise to criminal liability under the Penal Fiscal Code (Kodeks karny skarbowy). Penalties range from fines to custodial sentences depending on the scale of the offence. The KAS also has the authority to freeze bank accounts and other assets in the course of investigation. Poland’s enforcement capability in the crypto space has grown substantially, and exchange data sharing means that taxpayers cannot assume crypto activity will go undetected.
The czynny żal (active repentance) procedure allows taxpayers who have not previously declared crypto income to come forward voluntarily, file corrected returns, and provide explanations to the KAS.
Where this is done before the KAS initiates its own inquiry, it typically protects the taxpayer from criminal consequences, though the underpaid tax and interest remain payable. Taxpayers who have historic undeclared crypto income should consider seeking professional advice on how to regularise their position.
