BMF, read September 2026
Staking and lending rewards in Germany
What BMF publishes about staking and lending rewards in Germany, quoted verbatim from BMF - Individual questions on the income tax treatment of certain crypto assets (BMF circular of 6 March 2025, the ministry’s own English version), read September 2026.
- the authority quoted here
- BMF
- of the authorities read publish on this question
- 5/16
- the day these pages were read
- 2026-09-08
The authority's own words
Income from (passive) staking in the sense used here of putting up a stake without being involved as a forger in block creation – participation in a staking pool, or platform staking (see paragraph 13) – is generally subject to taxation under section 22 no 3 of the Income Tax Act as gains that are classified under private asset management. In exchange for their service (temporarily forgoing the use of the crypto-assets), taxpayers receive consideration in the form of additional crypto-assets (see paragraph 46). The cryptoassets obtained are valued at the market price at the time of acquisition (for
That sentence is the whole of what BMF publishes on this point on the page cited. It is reproduced here for reporting and comment; it is not tax advice, and nothing on this page is our reading of it.
The same question in other jurisdictions
| Jurisdiction | What the authority says |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | If you receive tokens from mining, staking or lending (including from DeFi ) and are not carrying on a trade, HMRC will treat the tokens as other taxable income .HMRC - Check if you need to pay tax when you receive cryptoassets, read September 2026 |
| United States | If you had digital asset transactions, answer "Yes" Check Yes in the digital assets box if you: Received digital assets for: Payment for property or services provided A reward or award Mining, staking and similar activitiesIRS - Digital assets, read September 2026 |
| Switzerland | Gleich wie beim Mining ( Proof of Work-Methode ) können auch beim Staking ( Proof of Stake-Methode ) neue Token geschaffen werden. Staking bedeutet, dass Token für einen bestimmten Zeitraum zu Sicherungszwecken in einer Proof of Stake-Blockchain aufbewahrt (gesperrt) werden. Für diesen Vorgang erhalten die Validatoren, welche ihre Token zur Verfügung stellen, eine Entschädigung. In der Praxis treten die Validatoren häufig in Form von Staking-Pools auf. Für die den Validatoren zur Verfügung gestellten Token, wird den einzelnen Investoren eine Entschädigung aus dem Staking-Pool ausgerichtet. Diese Entschädigung qualifiziert grundsätzlich als Ertrag aus beweglichem Vermögen (Art. 20 Abs.1 DBG). Als Betrag aufzuführen ist der Wert im Zeitpunkt des Zuflusses (Vereinnahmung einer Leistung oder des Erwerbs eines festen Rechtsanspruchs auf eine Leistung), umgerechnet in Schweizer Franken. Wird das Staking nicht über einen Staking-Pool betrieben, ist zu prüfen, ob bei der natürlichen Person, die als Validator fungiert, eine selbständige Erwerbstätigkeit vorliegt. Liegt eine solche vor, so sind diese Entschädigungen als Einkommen aus selbständiger Erwerbstätigkeit (Art. 18 Abs. 1 DBG) steuerbar.ESTV - Kryptowaehrungen - Arbeitspapier, read September 2026 |
| New Zealand | Some people choose to take part in proof of stake mining through a third party staking-as-a-service provider or a staking pool rather than staking on their own. Mining cryptoassets and tax In most cases, cryptoassets you get from mining (such as transaction fees and block rewards) are taxable. The mining service you provide will be subject to GST.IRD - Mining cryptoassets, read September 2026 |
Side by side, each in its own authority's words. Where two jurisdictions differ, the difference is between the two quotations; it is not our characterisation of either.
Where this comes from
This quotation was taken from BMF - Individual questions on the income tax treatment of certain crypto assets (BMF circular of 6 March 2025, the ministry’s own English version) on September 2026, and the text of that page as it read that day is kept so the quotation can be checked. BMF answers 10 of the questions on this site and publishes nothing we could quote on 6 of them.
Cite or embed this figure
BMF on staking and lending rewards in Germany: “Income from (passive) staking in the sense used here of putting up a stake without being involved as a forger in block creation – participation in a staking pool, or platform staking (see paragraph 13) – is generally subject to taxation under section 22 no 3 of the Income Tax Act as gains that are classified under private asset management. In exchange for their service (temporarily forgoing the use of the crypto-assets), taxpayers receive consideration in the form of additional crypto-assets (see paragraph 46). The cryptoassets obtained are valued at the market price at the time of acquisition (for” (Taxooor Crypto Tax Index).
Cite as: "Taxooor Crypto Tax Index: Staking and lending rewards, Germany", updated 2026-09-08, https://taxooor.com/tax/germany/staking-lending/.