How crypto is taxed in the UK
Two taxes apply. Capital Gains Tax on disposals, calculated under HMRC Share Pooling with the same-day and 30-day rules. Income Tax on crypto you earn. Almost every question below comes down to which one applies.
Capital Gains Tax on crypto
Rates, the annual allowance, Share Pooling and the 30-day rule, with worked examples.
Staking rewards
Taxed as income at receipt, then capital gains on disposal. How to report both.
Mining income
Hobby versus business, allowable costs, and how HMRC treats mined coins.
Airdrops
Income at receipt or capital gains only, depending on why you received them.
Getting paid in crypto
Salary or freelance income in crypto, taxed at receipt then again on disposal.
Moving between wallets
Not a taxable event, but it destroys your cost basis if the transfer is unmatched.
Where HMRC rules get complicated
This is where crypto tax software fails and where a specialist earns their fee. Each of these has its own HMRC treatment.
DeFi tax
Lending, staking, liquidity and yield, and the line between income and gains.
Liquidity pools
Entering and exiting a pool can each be a disposal. LP tokens and rewards.
Lending & interest
CeFi and DeFi lending, when the loan itself triggers a taxable disposal.
Margin & futures
When derivatives are capital gains, when income, and why reports get it wrong.
Wrapping & bridging
Whether wrapping or bridging is a disposal, and how to stay on the safe side.
NFTs
Capital Gains for holders, Income Tax for creators and traders.
Nudge letters, CARF and disclosure
HMRC already receives data from UK exchanges, and CARF widens it from 2026. If you have unreported gains, coming forward first almost always costs less.
HMRC nudge letters
What the letter means, what not to do, and how to respond before the deadline.
CARF explained
The reporting framework that shares your exchange data with HMRC from 2026.
Does Coinbase report?
What UK exchanges share with HMRC, and what it means for you.
Voluntary disclosure
How to disclose unpaid crypto tax to HMRC and what to expect on penalties.
Penalties
What late filing, late payment and undeclared gains actually cost.
Deadlines 2026
Registration, the 31 January deadline, and what happens if you miss it.
Reliefs HMRC actually allows
Not avoidance. These are the legitimate reliefs and allowances most crypto holders never claim.
Reduce your crypto tax
Allowance, loss harvesting, spouse transfers, pensions and timing.
Loss harvesting
Cut gains with realised losses, without falling foul of the 30-day rule.
Gifting crypto
When a gift is a disposal, and the spouse exemption that is not.
Inheritance tax
How crypto sits in your estate at 40 percent, and the planning that helps.
Moving abroad
Temporary non-residence and the five-year rule that pulls gains back.
Donating to charity
CGT-free disposals and the Income Tax relief on crypto donations.
Rather have a specialist handle all of it? See our crypto tax accountants, the full crypto tax service, or start with crypto reconciliation if your Koinly numbers look wrong.