Crypto Tax India: What You Need to Know About Reporting Crypto Gains and Losses

When you buy, sell, or trade cryptocurrency in India, the crypto tax India, the legal requirement to report and pay taxes on cryptocurrency profits. Also known as cryptocurrency income tax, it applies whether you made a profit from trading Bitcoin, earning tokens from staking, or swapping one coin for another. The Indian government doesn’t treat crypto like cash—it treats it like property. That means every time you sell or trade, you trigger a taxable event.

Since April 2022, India has required all crypto transactions to be reported under the crypto capital gains India, the tax applied when you sell cryptocurrency for more than you paid. Also known as crypto profit tax, it’s charged at a flat 30% with no deductions for losses. Even if you lost money on other trades, you can’t offset those losses against your gains. And if you earn crypto from airdrops, mining, or rewards, that’s treated as crypto income tax, taxable income at your marginal rate. Also known as crypto earnings tax, it’s added to your total income and taxed accordingly. There’s also a 1% TDS on every crypto trade over ₹50,000 (or ₹10,000 in a single day), taken automatically by exchanges like CoinDCX or WazirX. You can’t avoid it—unless you’re trading peer-to-peer and the other party doesn’t use a regulated platform.

Most people think if they don’t cash out to INR, they’re safe. That’s wrong. Swapping ETH for SOL? Taxable. Sending Bitcoin to a friend as a gift? Taxable. Using crypto to buy a laptop? Taxable. The only time you don’t pay is if you hold it without selling or trading. But holding doesn’t mean ignoring—you still need to keep records of every transaction: date, amount, value in INR, and whether it was a buy, sell, or swap. The Income Tax Department doesn’t ask for proof upfront, but they can request it anytime, even years later. And if you don’t have it, you’re on your own.

What you’ll find in the posts below are real examples of how crypto tax India works in practice—how people got caught, what exchanges report, and how to track your own activity without guesswork. You’ll see how airdrops, DeFi rewards, and even NFT sales can become taxable events. No theory. No jargon. Just what actually matters when you file your return. Whether you’re a beginner who bought one Bitcoin or someone trading daily, this collection gives you the facts you need to stay compliant and avoid surprises.