Regulators in South Korea and France are moving forward with separate cryptocurrency tax frameworks that could reshape how investors calculate and report gains beginning in 2027. The developments signal broader efforts to subject digital-asset transactions to formal tax treatment, while lawmakers continue to debate implementation details and potential delays.
South Korea’s National Tax Service (NTS) expects to publish cryptocurrency taxation guidelines in November 2026, ahead of the scheduled introduction of a 22% tax on qualifying digital asset gains on January 1, 2027. During an October 13 parliamentary audit, NTS Commissioner Lim Gwang-hyeon said the agency was working with cryptocurrency exchanges and the Ministry of Finance and Economy to prepare reporting systems. The tax will apply to qualifying annual gains exceeding 2.5 million won, combining a 20% national rate with a 2% local income tax.
Lawmakers questioned how authorities would handle staking rewards, airdrops, hard forks, and decentralized finance transactions. Lim said tax treatment would depend on the economic nature of transactions, particularly whether an activity involves transferring or lending digital assets. The NTS has not published final standards for every category, and additional consultation is needed for some activities including staking. First cryptocurrency income tax returns are expected in May 2028 for taxable transactions during 2027.
South Korea has postponed cryptocurrency taxation three times since 2020, with previous implementation dates moved from 2022 to 2023, then 2025, and then a two-year delay approved in December 2024. Opposition lawmakers and industry representatives continue to seek further delays or abolition, but no confirmed change to the January 2027 schedule has occurred.
In France, the National Assembly’s Finance Committee approved Amendment I-CF1826 on October 7 during its 2027 budget review. The proposal, introduced by Nicolas Sansu and left-wing legislators, targets gains from conversions into certain stablecoins classified as electronic-money tokens under European Union regulations. Currently, crypto-to-crypto transfers can defer tax, while selling crypto for conventional currency triggers taxation. The amendment would remove that deferral for qualifying stablecoin swaps.
France’s published flat levy on qualifying private crypto gains is 31.4%, combining 12.8% income tax with 18.6% social contributions. In an example cited in the legislative debate, a €10,000 crypto purchase exchanged for €15,000 in qualifying tokens would generate a €5,000 gain, implying €1,570 before adjustments and exemptions. The tax would apply to the gain, not the entire swap value.
Committee approval does not amount to final passage. The committee rejected the budget’s revenue section on October 9, and the first plenary examination of the finance bill uses the government’s original text. The National Assembly scheduled public consideration of revenue provisions beginning October 13, and a corresponding floor amendment remained pending as of October 14. If approved through the budget process, the stablecoin measure would take effect January 1, 2027.
The French proposal would also replace the existing portfolio-wide acquisition-cost formula with an asset-specific weighted-average method, and taxpayers would need reliable acquisition records. The selection of alternative acquisition values for pre-implementation holdings would become irrevocable when first reporting a taxable disposal.
