🪙 Do I have to declare my cryptocurrencies in Liechtenstein?

With conditions

Quick answer

Partly: capital gains from private crypto are tax-free in Liechtenstein — but the holding itself is wealth and must be declared. As a private individual holding Bitcoin and the like, you pay no tax on realised capital gains, because the Tax Act (SteG, LR 640.0) does not capture private capital gains. In return the holding belongs to your taxable wealth and is folded into the income tax via the notional yield of 4 %; it is valued as at 1 January in CHF. The myth: 'Crypto is anonymous and tax-free, I need not declare anything.' Wrong — only the gain is tax-free, not the declaration. From 1 January 2026 the CARF reporting system applies as well: foreign exchanges supply data, and the age of concealment ends. Mining counts as income and is taxable.

📋 The rules

Private capital gains are tax-free: Under the SteG (LR 640.0) the gain from selling private cryptocurrencies is subject to no income tax — wealth already subject to the wealth tax is not taxed again on its yield.
The holding is wealth: Cryptocurrencies belong to taxable wealth and must be declared in the tax return every year. The holding is valued at the rate as at 1 January of the tax year in CHF.
Wealth tax via the notional yield: A notional yield of 4 % is calculated on the wealth and taxed progressively together with the rest of the income. Thus the wealth tax works as a minimum tax on larger holdings.
Mining and staking are income: Whoever mines or trades commercially earns employment income and is taxable; costs such as electricity and hardware are deductible. The line between private and commercial is decisive.
CARF reporting from 2026: Under the Crypto Asset Reporting Framework, states exchange data on crypto holdings from 1 January 2026. Whoever fails to declare risks the tax administration learning of it through the automatic exchange of information.

🔓 Exceptions

Commercial trading: Whoever trades professionally and with borrowed capital can be classed as a commercial trader — then the gains are income and taxable.
Legal persons: For companies value changes must be declared and are subject to the corporate income tax of 12.5 % — the exemption of private capital gains does not apply here.
Income in crypto: Whoever receives salary or a fee in cryptocurrency has taxable income at the market value at the time of receipt — regardless of whether a later price gain stays tax-free.

⚠️ Penalties & fines

Not the price gain but the concealment gets expensive. Whoever omits crypto wealth in the tax return commits tax evasion: the tax administration can reassess, levy back tax plus default interest and impose a fine that can be a multiple of the evaded tax. With the CARF data exchange from 2026 the chance of staying undetected drops sharply — foreign exchanges report accounts and movements. Less obvious: whoever passes off mining or commercial trading as private risks a reclassification with retroactive income tax and social contributions. And whoever cannot furnish the proof of acquisition and holdings must expect an estimate to their disadvantage. A clean declaration is, in the end, cheaper than any correction.

📎 Official sources

Last verified: 2026-07-12

❓ Frequently asked

Do I have to pay tax on gains from Bitcoin?

As a private individual no, because realised price gains from private cryptocurrencies are tax-free in Liechtenstein. Only the holding is taxable as wealth, which flows into the income tax via the notional yield.

Do I have to declare my cryptocurrencies at all?

Yes, cryptocurrencies belong to taxable wealth and must be declared in the tax return every year. The holding is valued at the rate as at 1 January of the tax year in francs, regardless of whether you sold anything that year.

Is mining taxed differently than holding?

Yes, mining counts as an employment activity and is taxable, whereby costs such as electricity and hardware may be deducted. The mere holding and later selling as a private individual, by contrast, stays tax-free on the gain.

What changes in 2026 with CARF?

From 1 January 2026 states exchange data on crypto holdings under the Crypto Asset Reporting Framework. Foreign exchanges then report accounts, so undeclared crypto is noticed far more easily than before.

Is the taxation the same as in Switzerland?

Similar in principle, since Switzerland too exempts private capital gains and taxes the holding as wealth. Liechtenstein applies a notional yield of 4 percent and, with the TVTG, has its own Token Act that Switzerland does not have in this form.

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