If a budget amendment approved by France’s National Assembly by a one-vote margin becomes law, investors could face tax on gains even without withdrawing money to their bank accounts when they convert their crypto into certain stablecoins.
According to CoinDesk, the French National Assembly approved amendment I-3898 to the 2027 budget on October 16, by 38 votes to 37; 25 lawmakers abstained. The proposal, which had previously passed the finance committee, has now advanced, but it could still be amended or removed from the text during the remaining stages of the budget’s passage through the legislature.
Moving into a stablecoin could end tax deferral
Under current French rules, crypto-to-crypto swaps that do not involve an additional cash payment generally qualify for tax deferral. The proposal aims to exclude transactions involving stablecoins defined as electronic money tokens under the European Union’s MiCA regulation from that deferral.
As a result, investors could face a tax liability when they move gains from crypto into a stablecoin covered by the proposal. They might not need to convert the funds into euros and withdraw them to a bank account for the tax to become due. The proposed effective date is January 1, 2027.
The current default tax rate cited in the report is 31.4 percent on taxable gains from individual investments. Investors can instead opt for the progressive income tax schedule. The tax applies to the gain from the transaction, not the entire amount exchanged.
Gain calculations would also change, and the government objects
The proposal also calls for a change in how the tax is calculated. Instead of an approach based on the portfolio as a whole, the calculation would be based on the acquisition cost of the asset sold. If the same cryptocurrency was purchased at different prices, its cost would be determined using the weighted average method.
Minister for Public Accounts David Amiel raised concerns about implementation and tracking transactions within portfolios, and called for the amendment to be withdrawn. Philippe Juvin, the finance committee’s general rapporteur, also said he favored maintaining tax deferral because of the volatility of crypto assets.
François Volpoet, Chainalysis’s regional sales director for France, warned that the proposal could push investors toward decentralized finance platforms, peer-to-peer transactions, and foreign exchanges outside international tax-reporting frameworks. The final scope of the measure and whether it takes effect will become clear once the budget process is complete.
Not investment advice.