Cryptocurrency Tax in Brazil: Rules, Reporting & Compliance in the Land of the Holy Cross

Brazil flipped its cryptocurrency tax system upside down on June 12, 2025, ending years of easygoing policies for small investors. The government axed the old exemption that let people trade up to 35,000 reais (about $6,300) per month tax-free. Now, every cent of crypto profit gets hit with a flat 17.5% tax, no matter how much you earn or where you keep your coins.

This new rule doesn’t care if you’re a weekend dabbler or moving serious money. That 17.5% rate covers all crypto activities: trading on exchanges, DeFi, NFT sales, staking rewards—you name it. Even if you stash your crypto offshore or in a hardware wallet, it’s still on the hook.

Brazil now sits somewhere in the middle when it comes to global crypto taxes. India’s at 30%, Japan can go wild at 55%, but some places like the UAE and Switzerland don’t tax crypto at all. Lawmakers say they made the move to boost government revenue and close loopholes that let crypto profits slip through the cracks.

Key Takeaways

• Brazil charges a flat 17.5% tax on all crypto profits, with no breaks for small trades

  
  

• The tax hits everything: offshore exchanges, DeFi, NFTs, even your own wallets

  
  

• Crypto investors have to report gains every quarter and stick to strict compliance rules from the tax authority

Understanding Cryptocurrency Tax Rules in Brazil

In June 2025, Brazil rolled out big changes to crypto taxes, slapping a flat 17.5% rate on all gains—no matter how much or where you hold your assets. The new rules cut out old exemptions and sweep in offshore holdings, DeFi moves, and even coins sitting in your own wallet.

New 17.5% Flat Tax Rate and Key Legal Changes

Provisional Measure 1303, which landed on June 12, 2025, totally rewrote the tax playbook. The progressive tax system is gone; now it’s a straight 17.5% on all crypto capital gains.

Before, you could trade up to 35,000 reais a month tax-free, and anything above that got taxed at rates from 15% to 22.5%. That’s history.

Now, if you make 30,000 reais in profit, you’ll owe 5,250 reais in taxes—no exceptions.

The new rules kick in for real on January 1, 2026, so there’s a little breathing room to get your act together.

Tax calculations happen every quarter. You can carry losses forward for up to five previous quarters, but that window shrinks in 2026.

Definition of Taxable Crypto Transactions

The Receita Federal do Brasil (RFB) treats crypto gains as capital gains, so they get taxed. A taxable event happens when you sell, trade, or convert crypto back to reais or something else.

If you swap Bitcoin for Ethereum, that’s a taxable event. You’ll owe tax on any gain from your Bitcoin.

Mining rewards count as taxable income at the market value when you get them. Staking rewards and DeFi yield farming profits? Yeah, those are taxed too.

The law covers pretty much everything:

• NFT sales and trades

  
  

• DeFi lending and borrowing

  
  

• Liquidity pool action

  
  

• Crypto derivatives trading

Crypto Holdings: Onshore, Offshore, and Self-Custody

The 2025 reform shut down old loopholes by taxing all crypto holdings, wherever they are. Doesn’t matter if your coins are on a Brazilian exchange, a foreign platform, or your own hardware wallet—it’s all taxed at 17.5%.

Offshore exchanges don’t give you a break anymore. Residents have to report and pay taxes on gains from international platforms like Binance, Coinbase, or Kraken.

Self-custody wallets, whether hardware or software, are under the taxman’s eye now. The RFB is ramping up its monitoring of wallet addresses and on-chain activity.

If you’ve got crypto assets with an acquisition cost over R$5,000, you need to report them on your annual tax return—even if you didn’t actually sell anything that year.

Taxable vs Non-Taxable Crypto Events

Not everything triggers tax. Just buying crypto with reais or other fiat? No tax yet.

Moving coins between your own wallets? Usually not taxable, but keep good records in case you need to prove it.

You’ll owe tax if you:

• Sell crypto for fiat

  
  

• Trade one coin for another

  
  

• Use crypto to buy stuff

  
  

• Get mining or staking rewards

  
  

• Earn from DeFi protocols

Gifts and inheritance of crypto can get complicated. If you’re dealing with that, talk to a tax pro.

The RFB lets you deduct crypto losses against your gains for the year and, within limits, from previous quarters.

Reporting Requirements and Compliance for Crypto in Brazil

Crypto investors in Brazil have to report their holdings and transactions to the Receita Federal do Brasil by certain deadlines. The tax portal is pretty user-friendly, but honestly, keeping good records is half the battle.

Tax Reporting Timeline and Deadlines

Brazil’s financial year runs January 1 to December 31. You’ve got to report all your crypto stuff by the last business day of April the next year.

For 2025, that means the reporting deadline is April 30, 2026.

Miss the deadline? You risk fines and penalties. The Receita Federal is not messing around—they’re using all sorts of tech to hunt down unreported crypto.

It’s smart to get your paperwork in order early. For active traders, sorting out all those transactions and figuring out gains or losses can take a while.

How to Report via Tax Portal and eCAC

Most people use the eCac online tax portal to report crypto gains, losses, and income. You submit your tax return straight to the Receita Federal do Brasil there.

The portal asks for details about your crypto holdings and transactions. You’ll need to report the total value of your crypto as of December 31.

Crypto tax software like Koinly can make life easier by calculating gains and losses for you. These tools connect to exchanges and wallets and pull in all your transactions.

In the eCac system, you’ll see crypto transactions split into capital gains or income, depending on what you were doing. Trading profits, staking rewards, mining income—they each get reported differently.

Record-Keeping and Documentation Best Practices

Brazilian crypto investors really need to keep solid records. That means purchase dates, sale dates, amounts, and the BRL value at the time for every transaction.

Key records include:

• Exchange transaction histories

  
  

• Wallet addresses and transaction IDs

  
  

• Purchase receipts and bank transfers

  
  

• Mining pool payout records

  
  

• Staking reward statements

The Receita Federal can ask for these docs if they audit you. Keep everything for at least five years after you file.

Digital records are fine, but they have to be complete and accurate. Screenshots from exchanges might not cut it if that site disappears or wipes old data.

Backing up your transaction data is a good idea. A lot of folks use several storage methods just in case.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Brazil’s crypto tax system now slaps a flat 17.5% capital gains tax on all profits—no more exemptions. Investors need to know the reporting rules, what documents to save, and how the tax authority sees different crypto moves.

How are cryptocurrency investments taxed in Brazil?

Brazil taxes all crypto profits at a flat 17.5%, whether you’re a hobbyist or a whale.

You pay the tax when you sell crypto or trade one coin for another. There’s no monthly exemption anymore.

Tax is calculated on the difference between what you paid and what you sold for. You can use FIFO or average cost basis to figure out your purchase price if you bought at different times.

What documentation is required for reporting crypto transactions on Brazilian tax returns?

You need to keep detailed records for every crypto transaction: what kind of coin, dates, amounts, and the BRL value at the time.

Exchange records and wallet transfer docs are a must.

If you’ve got crypto with an acquisition cost above R$5,000, declare it as an asset on your annual return. File this through the eCac portal before the last business day of April.

Are there any special tax rates or provisions applicable to cryptocurrency mining or staking rewards in Brazil?

The Brazilian Revenue Service hasn’t given super clear guidance on mining and staking rewards yet. Most rules focus on trading and selling.

Mining and staking rewards will probably get taxed as income when you receive them, at rates from 7.5% to 27.5% depending on your total income.

If you later sell mined or staked crypto, you’ll owe the 17.5% capital gains tax. Track the fair market value when you first get those rewards.

How does the Brazilian Revenue Service classify cryptocurrencies for tax purposes?

The RFB treats cryptocurrencies as assets, not currency. So all crypto transactions fall under capital gains tax rules.

Crypto gets the same treatment as stocks or real estate. It’s not legal tender in Brazil.

NFTs? They’ll probably get taxed the same way as other crypto assets. Selling or buying an NFT is likely a capital gains event.

What penalties can be incurred for failing to properly report crypto income in Brazil?

The Brazilian Revenue Service uses AI to scan blockchain transactions and spot tax evasion. Remember, blockchain is public and permanent.

If you don’t report required crypto transactions, you can get hit with penalties and interest. The RFB is watching crypto activity closely.

If you move more than R$30,000 a month outside Brazilian exchanges, you have to file monthly statements—those are due before the last working day of each month.

Can losses on cryptocurrency trades be used to offset capital gains for tax reporting in Brazil?

In Brazil, you can usually use capital losses to offset your capital gains. So if you lose money on crypto trades, that can help lower your taxable gains.

You'll need to figure out gains and losses for each trade during the year. If you end up with more losses than gains, you might be able to carry those losses forward to future years.

Keep solid records for every trade—dates, how much you paid, how much you sold for. Without that info, claiming losses can get tricky.