Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed a 30% tax on the earnings from the transfer of virtual digital assets in the Union Budget 2022-23 on Tuesday.

Crypto assets would be taxed at 30%

India announced plans to introduce a digital currency next year and tax cryptocurrency and non-ferrous tokens on Tuesday, as the world’s second biggest internet market draws closer to recognizing cryptocurrencies as legal cash. The income from the transfer of any virtual assets would be taxed at 30%, according to Nirmala Sitharaman, the country’s finance minister. She also advocated a 1% tax deduction at source on payments made relating to the acquisition of virtual assets to record data of all such crypto transactions.

“No deduction in respect of any expenditure or allowance shall be permitted in computing such income, with the exception of cost of purchase. “Furthermore, any loss from the transfer of a digital asset cannot be offset against any other revenue,”

she stated in one of New Delhi’s most notable government budgets centered on technology and industry.

“It is additionally recommended that gifts of virtual digital assets be taxed at the recipient’s hands.”

Rising popularity of Crypto tokens

Despite regulatory uncertainties, the concept comes at a time when cryptocurrency and NFT purchases are rapidly gaining favor in India. WazirX, which is owned by Binance, announced last month that yearly trade volume on its platform hit $43 billion in 2021, a rise of “1,735 percent” from 2020.

With the rising popularity of crypto tokens, a set of firms has emerged to innovate in the field, however their aggressive marketing tactics have raised some concerns. Andreessen Horowitz made its first investment in India last year, funding the cryptocurrency exchange CoinSwitch Kuber.

She stated,

“The scale and frequency of those transactions demanded the formation of a replacement tax structure.”

India’s financial institution will launch a digital currency

At the press release Nirmala Sitharaman said that India’s financial institution will launch a digital currency in the coming fiscal year. For some months, the country’s financial institution has been putting the CBDC through a series of controlled trials round the country, studying its influence on the banking and monetary systems.

“The introduction of a financial institution digital money will give the digital economy a big boost.”

The finance minister also stated that

“digital currency will cause a more efficient and less expensive currency management system.”

Nirmala Sitharaman told to media that its digital currency Central Bank will be considered like bank notes.

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