The government has collected Rs 157.9 crore as tax deducted at source on payments made from transfer of virtual digital currencies upto March 20 this year, minister of state for finance Pankaj Chaudhary informed the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
The government had brought virtual digital assets such as cryptocurrencies under the income tax net in the Union Budget 2022-23. Income from the transfer of these assets is taxed at the rate of 30%. Further, a 1% TDS is also levied on payment of transfer of these assets. Gift of VDAs is also to be taxed in the hands of the recipient.
“Crypto assets are currently unregulated in the country. However, transactions in cryptocurrencies are subjected to provisions of various laws like the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 and Income-Tax Act, 1961,” Chaudhary further said in reply to an unstarred question.
In response to another question, he said any legislation for regulation or for banning of crypto assets can be effective only with significant international collaboration on evaluation of the risks and benefits and evolution of common taxonomy and standards.
“RBI has recommended that crypto assets should be prohibited. Crypto assets are by definition borderless and require international collaboration to prevent regulatory arbitrage,” he noted.
