Topic: Japan ends 8% consumption tax on bitcoin Today (Read 2172 times)

8% is not small.  It is huge especially if the investor is dealing with billions worth of money.  I agree this is a great boost to bitcoin community in Japan.  I believe that this tax free consumption means you are free of tax even if we use or open the item in Japan as long as it is bought in Bitcoins.  Now I know why there is some price uptrend of bitcoin this week and it is due to the implementation of removing the 8% consumption tax on Bitcoin.

That's not that bad actually. I mean it's a little strange but hey it's way better than any other country out there so can't complain! When will we have clear rules like this in Canada!? Come on Trudeau!

No matter how small, its still a boost imagine what relief this would bring to someone who wants to cash out bitcoin after he had paid fees to the miners, then wait for longer time for it to confirm, only to now pay another  whopping 8% on the same cashing out now this is no longer applicable, then I tell you its a good relief for the Japanese people and the signalling effect might eventually roll over in due time.

 To be clear, you don't get the tax exemption simply because you are using Bitcoin.  You must be a foreigner and present your passport and they will waive the 8% consumption tax on the goods you purchase.  You can pay with any method they accept (including Bitcoin) and still save the tax.  There is a caveat; you must not open the item or use the item during your stay or you will be required to pay the tax.

Conditions for tax exemption

• *You must not consume the purchased items in Japan.
• *You alone are allowed to consume the purchased items.
• *You must take the purchased items out of Japan when you depart.

 How do they enforce this? I don't know.

 Most countries will refund any consumption tax or VAT you pay during your stay as a visitor on items you bring home unopened/unused.  This is nothing new.  The fact is that Japan has made it much easier for tourists by allowing them to make their purchases tax-free at the cash register rather than requesting a refund at the airport on their way home.

here is another picture then, just to make you more "interesting"

this is the Electronics Retailer called Bic that is accepting bitcoin with the banner saying tax free corner!

i am interesting with this picture and i only can imagine that in future, we can see this image is become real and we can see many local store accepting bitcoin to buy something. its a good news that if in japan have applied this to accepting bitcoin and it makes us easy to buy something with our bitcoin. if this news is spread into many places then i am sure that people will know about bitcoin and i am sure that they are interesting too to used bitcoin.

I agree to the point that everything has to start from somewhere. Bitcoin community isn't that big in comparison to the world population as for now maybe just 0.1% of world population (approx 7 million) or less. Japan has a population of more than 125 million. As bitcoin is becoming mainstream there, users are likely to double even if 5% people from Japan get into it. This is indeed a good sign.

Another reason why bitcoins price is going to boost again. This is a very good news for us.

Expect after the Segwit price will soar high again and that's going to make the price higher.

I'm a bit curious on what will be the next country to do the same thing.

Correct, I would like to use my bitcoin everywhere and that everyone accept it bitcoin as payment, but in order to get to that utopia we need to begin small, some business owners will have to begin to accept bitcoin even if no one is buying with it, we as consumers need to get used to the idea that we will not be able to use it everywhere any time soon, but after some time we will get to the point that bitcoin will raise in the awareness of the people and begin to be accepted in more places.

Japan officially removes taxes from purchase and sale of Bitcoin
1:05 PM
bitcoin, cryptocurrencies, currency, japan, medium of exchange, money, taxes
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On July 1, a new law went into effect which removes all taxation from the buying and selling of Bitcoin in the nation of Japan.  And with their already having recognized the cryptocurrency as a viable medium of exchange within their monetary system, the world's third largest economy has moved another step closer to recognizing Bitcoin as a legitimate currency.


Japan’s tax reform bill which officially eliminated consumption tax on the sale of Bitcoin came into effect on July 1. Bitcoin trading activities are expected to rise in Japan following the activation of the bill.
In a report entitled “Japan: Inbound Tax Alert, 2017 Tax Reform Proposals,” Deloitte previously revealed that virtual currencies including Bitcoin were set to be exempt from the eight percent consumption tax in Japan.
Deloitte’s report read:
“The supply of virtual currency will be exempt from Japanese Consumption Tax (“JCT”). Currently, virtual currencies such as Bitcoin do not fall under the category of exempt sales, and as a result, the sale of virtual currencies in Japan have been treated as taxable for JCT purposes. Following the enactment of the amended Fund Settlement Law in May 2016, which newly defined “virtual currency” as a means of settlement, the sale of virtual currency as defined under the new Fund Settlement Law will be exempt from JCT. This change will apply to sales/purchase transactions performed in Japan on or after 1 July 2017.” - Coin Telegraph

http://www.thedailyeconomist.com/2017/07/japanese-officially-removes-taxes-from.html

It's a big percentage from the taxation of the government. 8% is something that's going to make people shift to bitcoin just for them to be not involved on taxation anymore. This move I guess is making Japan people convert their financial to bitcoin or they want to boost their economy with the use of bitcoin.

Every breaking point in human history began with one small step. This is also the case we have to start somewhere and Japan made his move. Good is that they started more and more to accept this and more are using this to. Think that we will see major improvement in next month thin that this is still testing for bitcoin acceptance in Japan.

Even if that was the case and most business owners began accepting bitcoin as a novelty, that is the way many things begin, at first people did not know what use they will give to computers, but still many bought them, and then a market for new software and computer related products began to appear, so I think it is good news even if there is not a lot of transactions taking place at the moment.

And look what happened   Those who were bullish for monday were 100% right about the impact it will have and the pump it will start.
I hope you guys stacked up during the weekend.
It's nice they removed the tax. It was putting the average Japanese user at a disadvantage compared to the rest of the world, where there are no such taxes and additional 8% on top of all the exchange and transfer fees is really a lot.

And, even Visa/Mastercard don't have this type of advertising :

i don't know about point-of-sale but a fast google search can bring up a lot of news about Japanese merchants adopting bitcoin. and with the removal of taxes on bitcoin payments they now have the incentive to make sure about doing it.

Really? As in point-of-sale payments? Sounds promising, got any sources on that?

Yeah, i think that 8% tax was probably never paid that much anyways just like bitcoin tax return forms in the USA

I'd actually argue the opposite of what you just said though - this law is going to have the most effect short term because of the hype generated from it and probably less affect as time passes and people realise governments can't really tax p2p trades in the first place. Just ask people in china, when exchanges were tight with AML laws they just switched to P2P altogether.

But this doesn't mean that i disagree with this law. In fact i love it, and i think it's regulated businesses that are going to benefit the most.

I also heard several Japanese exchanges are going to be more actively involved in the payment process.

Oh definitely. Let's not forget the added legal clarity. I don't think we'll see much of a difference short term, but long term this definitely makes for a much more attractive investment.

I suspect there may be a great enthusiasts in currencies so that they know that the real user will very little, but I've heard that Japanese buying and using bitcoin as trade exchange rate very high value there other than reasonable so that if the Japanese Government ended 8% consumption tax on bitcoin because the increase that occurred in user bitcoin in Japan

Agreed. I don't think that this legalization has as much effect on bitcoin and actual users of bitcoin as people think it to have. Honestly you're probably going to encouraged but probably not pushed over the edge to accept bitcoin as a merchant by the law.

But from a speculator's point of view, 8% tax is a whole lot, it means that now japanese buyers are able to have 8% more buying power than they had previously. This is obviously great news. Price of each bitcoin has risen a little, but not that much. But i think the activation of this law has brought bitcoin out of a almost week long bearish trend back into green.

Between company x announcing to accept Bitcoin and actual usage is still a world of difference. Point of sale usage of Bitcoin has been sobering so far, at least anecdotally. But who knows, if Bitcoin "clicks" with Japanese culture they may just very well improve on the point of sale process.

I'm pretty sure that Australia has done a similar thing, except the taxation on bitcoin was actually 10% in their country? It's extremely positive news for bitcoin in general, but more specifically for these bitcoin traders in the countries. I'm sure that now there will be a lot more regulated exchanges willing to pick up bitcoin trading, and more merchants accepting it as well.


I agree with this. It was essentially a double taxing, governments have no right to tax their citizens unfairly like this, and they pocketed the change for themselves. But at least they corrected their mistake, unlike most other countries in the world who don't even bother to look into bitcoin more before banning it altogether.

Funny thing you mentioning that thing, when they use something to earn only profit day after day, then their government imposes tax on something.
More funnier, how would they allow their government to put a watchdog over their something activities in the first place? they deserve it then to stay the same slaves as before.

Woohoo!

This isn't some bullshit law to just regulate bitcoin either, it is a legitimately effective law for potential bitcoin buyers because otherwise they'd be looking to take a 8-10% loss as soon as they purchase bitcoin, which would deter a lot of people from ever using bitcoin.

Australia has done a similar thing, effective 1st july as well.


Actually, since the law has been announced i have heard of a lot of retail stores/hotels in japan accepting bitcoin or planning on doing so in the near future. Even if merchants don't pick up bitcoin, as i said it's still an added incentive for investors to invest in btc in japan.

The positive is that it opens up that market to new investors that will now be willing to buy bitcoins cheaper. More investors means more demand and a price increase. It may not be an immediate impact but over time it should make a significant difference.

Like this ?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrauYRGDCjY

Asking the hard questions. So far I doubt that it's little more than a novelty.

 I'm going to hazard a guess that it was 8% higher or thereabouts?  The Japanese were paying 8% more for buying Bitcoin (and altcoins) from abroad - now they wont be.   Going forward, we should see parity with other exchanges or there will be an awesome arbitrage opportunity.

Does anyone have any figures on how many Japanese are actually using bitcoin to buy stuff (the consumption tax would only affect those who use bitcoin as a currency).

from 1200 USD to 2400 USD = India & Japan & Korea.



and it's just the first wave of "holders" ... the local early adopter.

Australia as well, it's definitely positive news for bitcoin.

I think that this is proof enough that China is slowly diminishing into the background for bitcoin stories. I remember a few months back everyone was still talking about chinese exchanges and how the chinese are pumping bitcoin up, and everything that bitcoin is doing at a particular moment was attributed to the chinese. Not anymore, because the people's bank of china decided to put strict capital controls on funds flowing into and out of bitcoin exchanges.


Actually, these two countries legalizing bitcoin(aka taking tax off) is incredibly useful because before it meant that you'd be looking to overpay 8% for your bitcoins, on top of market spreads.

Even though I doubt there will be a that big interest because of probable low use, at least that will have the merit to put Bitcoin under the light for some days.

Yeah, a lot of people are saying that the current pump is unjustified but i do think that this is no longer a bubble. This is a good price level for bitcoin, because Australia and Japan both have started to remove taxes on bitcoin on 1st July, and india is following.

This tax was unfairly imposed upon bitcoin traders in the first place. But now it's lifted, everything is all g

Let's hope that even more countries can do this, especially the Eurozone. If the eurozone can legalize bitcoin, although it is extremely unlikely since they are so dependent on central banking, then all the crisis countries(Greece etc.) can start switching to bitcoin without additional taxes and charges. We've already seen that when there is a financial crisis, bitcoin usage soars in a certain country like venezuela.

From what I read they are only allowing small withdrawals that are no use to whale traders. I think it might be 10 Bitcoins a day with a maximum of whatever a million dollars a year is in yuan.

the price is in the short term fluctuation and craziness for the time being so i don't think it will react to this particular news. it will probably continue being crazy for now.

this news however will contribute to the long term rise. because this means a lot more adoption, and that is real adoption by merchants and people using bitcoin as currency because the tax is removed on that not from traders who speculate and make profit. and that will always be much better and bigger rise in long run.

This tax wasn't even rightfully imposed in the first place.

So basically, the government has been quietly taking 8% extra tax on every regulated single bitcoin sale, ON TOP of the taxes that you'd have to pay for goods and services if you bought something with bitcoin.

It's obviously good that Japan and Australia have both done this as a part of their country's program to become more innovative in the area of fintech, and it is extremely good news that they are doing this and probably is a big part of the recent bitcoin pump. But i wonder if they would consider refunding the tax difference for previous bitcoin purchases?

Not exactly news, because the date was already out several weeks ago. But from today onwards there will be no double taxing on bitcoin.

Australia has done a similar thing with bitcoin, they used to tax bitcoin as a good, so a 10% GST, and when you buy something with bitcoin, they'll tax you once more. But yesterday/today depending on your timezone this was changed as well.


Who's next???

how will it react on market,? does price will rise or we will get to see some more blood

I agree with you there, its great for remittance and sending coins since it reduces the friction aka the 8% tax to crypto.
Seeing how large Japan is economic wise and the increasing growth this is a nice sign.

something something Country lifts tax on bitcoin something it had no right to impose in the first place something something

As I understand the Chinese exchanges have already resumed withdrawals on May 31, so those rumors might only be that, just rumors.

On the removal of the 8% consumption tax, it could encourage more people to use Bitcoin but I do not think we will see a big boost in the market immediately in my opinion. The market sentiment is still mixed right now in anticipation of BIP148 and Segwit2x.

what? Japan has already exempted the 8% tax about bitcoin payment? that's another step towards total bitcoin legalisation. probably bitcoin pricing will surge based on Japanese exchange including mining behaviour. (?) i mean, if those bitcoin exchanges goes up 24/7 i would have seen bitcoin price to $2700+ IMO

Guys, this news is a day late. July 1st in Japan started at 8am on June 30th, West Coast time in the USA. I positioned myself for this in Japan, and have seen Bitcoin continue to fall. In fact, it fell faster after the tax ended.

It may have made a difference a month ago, and probably will make a difference in the future. But right now bitcoin is too bearish for this change to help.

The change came into effect on Saturday morning, so I suppose there is still the outside chance that trading may pick up on Monday (that's Sunday evening to you people in the States). At this point, I am not expecting much though.

At least Japan has taken a step further than any other countries, because it is a good idea to eliminate the 8% consumption tax on bitcoin transactions and will encourage people in Japan to invest/use bitcoin for various purposes such as remittance service to send bitcoin all over the world "without paying a price gap". Since Japan applied taxes to purchases bitcoin before this decision which make people should pay more to acquire bitcoin, now it has been abolished and we expect more adopters join in bitcoin community.

Not only the Japanese exchanges sites But the Korean's exchange sites already crowded with the chinese whales. The chinese exchanges are not giving convenience trade to the chinese users itself.

The more good news will make those whales try to find the convenient place to exchange their money.

But I believe over 80% the answer for the latest Japanese news about 8% consumption tax to be real.

I suspect the same. I don't think actual mainstream BTC usage is really there yet. Either way it's a step in the right direction.

I heard rumours some Chinese whale traders switched to using Japanese exchanges after the Chinese government froze withdrawals on the Chinese exchanges. If that's true the end of the 8% consumption tax could be very bullish.

Last time I heard, Japanese were all over bitcoins. They were buying like hell and also that the bitcoin price in Japanese exchanges was pretty higher than the other exchanges.

https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/japan-ends-8-consumption-tax-on-bitcoin-today/

The boost won't be that big. Japan still isn't the leader in trading. Also, somebody should investigate how their Bitcoin businesses are really doing.
I suspect there could be big interest in the currency but only out of curiosity and very little real use.

Found : https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/breaking-news-japan-ends-8-consumption-tax-on-bitcoin-today-1996750



Good BOOST for monday.

Where did you read this? I also had never heard that they paid 8% tax in the first place so where did you see any of this information at all?

Source ?

Always love reading and sharing good news about bitcoin!