| Period | 1 year per lot |
|---|---|
| Rule | Section 23 (1) sentence 1 no. 2 EStG |
| Exception | Staking may extend the period (MoF, disputed) |
An acquisition is a purchase for consideration: buying with euro, swapping for another crypto asset, receiving coins from a swap. A disposal is any transfer for consideration, so a sale for fiat and usually also a crypto-to-crypto swap. Unpaid movements such as a transfer between your own wallets do not restart the clock if both sides are fully documented.
The period is lot-specific. Bitcoin bought in 2017 and topped up in 2024 are two lots. Only the older lot can already be tax-free. FIFO or another method decides which lot is treated as sold. If the purchase is missing, the start date is missing — and the tax office cannot accept the exemption.
The Ministry of Finance letter of 10 May 2022 says that using coins to generate income can extend the speculation period to ten years. Tax courts have criticised parts of that view. Until the highest court settles it, document staking, lending and similar use separately and do not let the software guess the legal outcome.
Purchase date, cost basis, sale date, proceeds and the lot assignment. That is exactly what breaks when prices are missing, balances go negative or a transfer is booked as a sale. CleanUp in chain.report closes those gaps before the report goes to the tax office.
Per acquisition, so per lot. A ticker does not have a holding period of its own.
No, if you remain the beneficial owner and both sides are imported. If one side is missing, the tool often shows a sale.
No. Austria taxes crypto differently, including a moving-average method. Copying the German holding period is wrong.
This guide structures the data issues and common German administrative practice. It is not tax advice. The assessment in your case stays with you and your tax advisor.
Import exchanges and wallets and close missing purchases, prices and transfers. Only then is the one-year period defensible in the report.
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