Cryptocurrency Taxes in Romania: What You Really Pay in 2026

Last reviewed: November 2026 · Reviewed by Stéphane Gombauld, tax expert, technologist and digital nomad

You hold Bitcoin, Ether or a stack of altcoins and you live in Romania, or you are about to. You want to know how much you really pay, when, and how to pay less without bending a rule. This guide covers the 10% rate, the small-gains exemption, the health contribution that surprises most people, staking and mining, reporting and what changes if you are a non-resident or trade through a company.

Romania cryptocurrency taxes in 2026: the key figures

Is this guide for you?

Read on if you…

• are a Romanian tax resident who sold, swapped or spent crypto in 2026;
• are moving to Romania with an existing portfolio and want to know the cost basis rules;
• earn staking, lending or mining rewards and wonder whether it is a hobby or a business for ANAF.

Probably not your case if you…

• run a crypto business through a Romanian SRL; the corporate income taxes in Romania guide fits better;
• are a non-resident who happens to use a Romanian exchange. Romania does not tax your gains.

How does Romania tax crypto gains in 2026?

Romania has no separate crypto tax law. Since 2019 the Fiscal Code (Law 227/2015, Articles 114 to 116) taxes gains from the transfer of virtual currency as income from other sources. The rate is the standard flat 10%.

The gain is the positive difference between the sale price and the acquisition price, including direct transaction costs such as exchange fees. You compute it per transaction, in RON, at the exchange rate of the transaction date.

Good news: tiny trades are ignored. Gains under RON 200 per transaction are exempt, provided your total gains for the year stay under RON 600. Pass either limit and every gain becomes taxable, not just the excess.

Here's the catch. The 10% is not the whole bill. Crypto gains count towards the CASS threshold together with dividends, interest, rent and share gains. Once that total passes 6 minimum wages in the year, you owe 10% health contribution on a base of 6, 12 or 24 minimum wages, depending on which band your total falls into. On a portfolio that produces a few thousand euro of gains, CASS can double the effective tax.

A note on 2025. A law passed in mid-2025 introduced a temporary exemption for individual crypto gains, which ended on 31 July 2025. Nothing of that kind applies in 2026: all gains realised this year are taxed at 10%.

What is a taxable event?

What about staking, mining, airdrops and NFTs?

The Fiscal Code does not name these activities. ANAF applies the general rules:

• Staking, lending and airdrops: treated as income from other sources at 10% on the RON value when you receive the tokens. When you later sell the tokens, the value you declared becomes your cost basis.
• Mining: occasional mining is income from other sources. Mining with dedicated equipment on a regular basis looks like an independent activity. You then pay 10% on net profit after expenses, plus CAS of 25% on 12 or 24 minimum wages above the threshold and CASS on net income. Many miners register a PFA or an SRL for this reason.
• Frequent trading: there is no statutory day-trader test. ANAF can recharacterise high-volume trading as an independent activity if it is continuous and profit-seeking. The practical effect is social contributions, not a higher tax rate.
• NFTs: sale of an NFT you created is intellectual property income with a 40% flat expense deduction and 10% tax. NFTs you bought and resold follow the crypto rules.

How and when do you report crypto in Romania?

1. Keep records in RON. For every disposal: date, asset, quantity, sale value, acquisition value, fees. Export CSVs from each exchange; use the National Bank of Romania rate for conversions.
2. Compute the gain per transaction and sum the positive results. Check the RON 200 / RON 600 exemption.
3. File the Declarația unică by 25 May 2027 for 2026 income. Crypto gains go under income from other sources; CASS is declared in the same form.
4. Pay by the same date. No advance payments are required during the year. Late payment triggers interest of 0.02% per day and a penalty of 0.01% per day.
5. Expect data matching. From 1 January 2026 the EU's DAC8 rules require crypto exchanges to report your transactions to tax authorities, which ANAF receives automatically. Undeclared gains are now easy to spot.

If you arrived in Romania mid-year, only gains realised after your residence date are taxed here. Romania gives no step-up in cost basis on arrival, so keep your original purchase records. See our practical guide to obtaining Romanian tax residency for the start-date rules.

How can you legally pay less?

• Use the small-gains exemption deliberately. If you only need to realise a little, keeping each gain under RON 200 and the annual total under RON 600 keeps it tax-free.
• Mind the CASS bands. The health contribution jumps at 6, 12 and 24 minimum wages of total investment income. Realising gains across two tax years can keep you in a lower band or below the first threshold.
• Sell loss positions in a year with gains? Honestly? It does not help in Romania: losses on income from other sources are not deductible. Plan disposals so that each sale is a net gain you want.
• Consider a company for active trading or mining. A micro-enterprise pays 1% on revenue up to EUR 60,000 (3% above, up to the EUR 100,000 cap) and 16% dividend tax on distributions. For high-frequency traders with real turnover, compare carefully with the capital gains tax in Romania rules on shares.
• Check your residence before a big exit. Non-residents pay nothing in Romania on crypto gains. If you are leaving anyway, timing matters, and Romania has no exit tax on individuals.

Common mistakes (and what they cost)

• Treating swaps as tax-free → ANAF can assess 10% on every coin-to-coin trade plus interest, using exchange data it now receives under DAC8.
• Forgetting CASS → A RON 60,000 gain can carry roughly RON 4,000 to 8,000 of health contribution on top of the RON 6,000 income tax.
• Netting losses against gains → Your return is wrong; ANAF reassesses the gross gains and adds penalties.
• Not keeping purchase records from before you moved to Romania → Without proof of cost, ANAF may tax the full sale value.
• Mining at scale as a hobby → Recharacterisation as an independent activity adds 25% CAS and CASS on net income, backdated.

Frequently asked questions

What is the crypto tax rate in Romania in 2026?

Individuals pay a flat 10% on gains from selling or exchanging cryptocurrency, classified as income from other sources. Health contribution (CASS) of 10% on a base of 6, 12 or 24 minimum wages applies once total investment income passes 6 minimum wages. There is no pension contribution on occasional gains.

Are small crypto gains tax-free in Romania?

Yes. Gains below RON 200 per transaction are exempt as long as your total gains for the year stay below RON 600. If either limit is exceeded, all gains for the year become taxable at 10%, not only the part above the limit. Keep per-transaction records to prove the exemption.

Do I pay tax when I swap one cryptocurrency for another?

In principle yes. Romania taxes gains on the transfer of virtual currency, and a swap is a transfer. You measure the gain in RON at the time of the swap. Some advisers argue tax arises only on conversion to fiat, but ANAF has not confirmed that reading, so the prudent route is to declare swaps.

How do I declare crypto gains to ANAF?

File the Declarația unică electronically through ANAF's virtual private space by 25 May of the year following the gains. Report the total net gains under income from other sources, tick the CASS section if your investment income exceeds 6 minimum wages, and pay by the same deadline. No monthly or quarterly filings are needed.

Are crypto losses deductible in Romania?

No. For income from other sources, Romania taxes each positive gain and does not allow losses to offset them or to be carried forward. This differs from listed shares, where losses can be offset for up to seven years. Plan your disposals so you do not realise losses you cannot use.

Do non-residents pay Romanian tax on crypto?

No. Crypto gains are not treated as Romanian-source income, so non-residents owe nothing in Romania even if they use a Romanian exchange or bank. If you move to Romania mid-year, only gains realised from your residence date onwards are taxable here, using your original acquisition cost.

Related guides

• Capital gains tax in Romania
• Specific taxes in Romania
• Corporate income taxes in Romania
• Practical guide to obtaining tax residency in Romania
• Romania tax landscape overview
• Cryptocurrency taxes in Bulgaria
• Cryptocurrency taxes in Hungary
• All country tax guides

Sources

• Romanian Fiscal Code, Law 227/2015 (Legislative Portal)
• ANAF – National Agency for Fiscal Administration
• Ministry of Finance of Romania
• European Commission – DAC8 administrative cooperation on crypto-assets
• PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries – Romania, Individual income determination

This guide is general information, not personalised tax advice. See how we research and review.