Spain’s Sumar parliamentary group has introduced a series of tax amendments that could significantly reshape how digital assets are treated in the country.

The proposals target personal and corporate taxation, asset classification, and investor warnings, sparking a wave of criticism from legal experts and industry observers.

Proposal to raise taxes on crypto gains

The amendments seek to move cryptocurrency earnings from the current “savings base” tax category into the general personal income tax bracket.

At present, crypto profits are taxed at rates of up to 30%. Under the new proposal, they would fall under Spain’s general IRPF rate, which can reach 47%.

Critics argue this shift would dramatically increase the financial burden on retail investors who trade or hold assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum.

For corporate entities, the proposal sets a fixed 30% tax rate on crypto gains.

The Sumar Party, which holds 26 seats in Spain’s Congress and serves as a junior partner in the governing coalition, says these changes would align crypto taxation with broader fiscal policy.

But many economists warn that the move could discourage investment and drive crypto users toward more favourable jurisdictions.

Risk warnings and asset seizure rules

A second amendment seeks to instruct Spain’s financial regulator, the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV), to implement a visual “risk traffic light” system for digital assets.

This system would appear on investor platforms and is intended to help users assess a token’s level of regulatory oversight, liquidity, and backing.

The party supporters believe this could improve consumer awareness, although critics claim this oversimplifies a complex asset class and may confuse rather than protect users.

Another controversial element is the proposal to classify all cryptocurrencies as attachable assets eligible for seizure.

This seeks to expand the existing rule, which currently applies only to assets under EU MiCA supervision.

Legal specialists say the measure would be nearly impossible to enforce on self-custodied assets, especially since tokens such as Tether’s USDT cannot be held by regulated custodians under MiCA.

Lawyer Cris Carrascosa has warned that the amendments would create “absolute chaos” in Spain’s crypto tax regime.

She stressed that many aspects of the proposal conflict with both technical realities and existing European regulations.

Pushback from experts

Economist and tax adviser José Antonio Bravo Mateu described the package as an attack on Bitcoin and other decentralised assets.

Mateu argue that policymakers misunderstand how self-custody and blockchain networks operate, noting that coins held privately cannot be monitored or seized like traditional financial instruments.

These concerns come at a time when Spain is already under scrutiny for inconsistent tax enforcement involving digital assets.

Earlier this year, authorities reportedly demanded €9 million in taxes from a trader despite the transaction producing no profit.

The case highlighted ongoing confusion around the interpretation of taxable events and caused legal experts to warn that investors lack adequate protection despite the recently cleared crypto oversight bill.

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