In short: those holding crypto-assets often start from an assumption that is no longer true — that information about their transactions stays with the platform. From the 2026 financial year, platforms will report to the Tax Authority who their users resident in Portugal are and what they did. This note explains what is reported, when, and how each type of transaction is taxed.
The reporting duty and the timetable
Law No. 26/2026 of 3 June transposes Directive (EU) 2023/2226 (DAC8) and Directive (EU) 2025/872 (DAC9) and gives new wording to Article 124-A of the Personal Income Tax Code. Reporting crypto-asset service providers must comply with the due diligence requirements of Decree-Law No. 61/2013 and report to the Tax Authority information on users with tax residence in national territory, or whose controlling persons are resident here. The report is made by 31 May each year in respect of the previous calendar year. The law takes effect from 1 January 2026, placing the first substantive report in May 2027, in respect of the current year. Ref.: Law No. 26/2026, Official Gazette No. 107/2026, Series I, of 03/06/2026, Articles 1, 3 and 15.
What failure costs
The general tax offences regime now punishes failure to file the registration return and the report with a fine of 2,000 to 22,500 euros, late filing with a fine of 1,000 to 22,500 euros, omissions or inaccuracies in the information reported with a fine of 500 to 11,250 euros, and failure to comply with due diligence and record-keeping procedures with a fine of 1,000 to 22,500 euros. For providers, this requires collecting and validating users self-certifications of tax residence, including as regards persons controlling corporate structures.
Capital gains: the 365-day rule
In a binding ruling in case No. 28122, by order of 16 March 2026, the Tax Authority confirmed that disposal of crypto-assets for consideration gives rise to a Schedule G capital gain under Article 10(1)(k) of the Personal Income Tax Code where the consideration does not take the form of crypto-assets, the gain being excluded from tax if the holding period is 365 days or more, under paragraph 19 of that article. It is this count, position by position, that is worth reconstructing before automatic reporting begins.
Staking and crypto-to-crypto swaps
As to staking and deposits in liquidity protocols, the same ruling finds a situation of passivity comparable to an investment of capital and classifies the rewards as Schedule E investment income under Article 5(2)(u), while accepting that, where paid in crypto-assets, taxation is deferred to the disposal of the crypto-assets received, under Article 5(11). On swaps made exclusively for crypto-assets, Article 10(20) prevents taxation while the consideration takes that form, the acquisition cost of those given up being attributed to those received.
The boundary that exposes most: Schedule B
The ruling is express in noting that the whole analysis rests on the premise that the activity is carried on in a personal capacity. An organised business structure, habitual dealing, the provision of services to third parties and this being the main source of income lead to Schedule B — and there both the 365-day exclusion and the deferral on crypto-to-crypto swaps fall away. The use of automated trading programs does not in itself alter the treatment, provided they serve only to improve the execution of the taxpayer own transactions.
And the platform you invest through
It is worth confirming who supervises the platform. In the MiCA interim register published by ESMA, updated on 21 August 2026, only one provider has Portugal as home Member State, while 167 providers authorised in other Member States have notified their intention to operate in Portugal under the European passport. The transitional regime of Article 143(3) of MiCA ended on 1 July 2026. In concrete terms: reconstruct now the transaction history and the holding period of each position, while there is still time before the first report.
This note is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For an analysis of your specific situation, please contact us.