Wealth Tax Treatment of Crypto in Switzerland: What You Need to Know in 2025

Switzerland doesn’t tax your crypto profits - but it does tax your crypto holdings. That’s the big difference between Switzerland and almost every other country. If you own Bitcoin, Ethereum, or any other cryptocurrency and live in Switzerland, you won’t pay capital gains tax when you sell. But you will pay an annual wealth tax on what your crypto is worth as of December 31st. This isn’t a loophole. It’s the law. And it’s why Switzerland remains one of the most attractive places in the world for private crypto investors.

How Switzerland Classifies Crypto

Switzerland doesn’t treat crypto like money. It treats it like property - specifically, as a private asset, just like stocks or bonds. The Swiss Federal Tax Administration (FTA) calls these kryptobasierte vermögenswerte - crypto-based assets. This classification matters because it determines how you report and how much you pay.

The FTA recognizes three main types of tokens:

• Payment tokens - like Bitcoin and Litecoin. These are used to buy goods or services. They’re the most common type and get the simplest treatment.
• Utility tokens - like Filecoin or Chainlink. These give access to a service or platform. Their tax treatment depends on how they’re used.
• Security tokens - like tokenized shares or bonds. These are treated just like traditional securities under Swiss law.

The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) sets the rules for token classification, and the FTA follows suit for tax purposes. If your token is a security, it’s taxed like a stock. If it’s a payment token, it’s taxed like cash in your wallet - but only as part of your net worth, not your income.

Annual Wealth Tax: The Only Crypto Tax You Pay

Every year, on December 31st, you must declare the value of all your crypto holdings in Swiss francs (CHF). This is part of your total personal wealth - which includes your bank accounts, real estate, cars, and jewelry. The tax isn’t on what you earned. It’s on what you own.

The FTA publishes official year-end exchange rates for major cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin. You must use these rates to value your holdings. If your crypto isn’t on that list - say, it’s a smaller altcoin or a new DeFi token - you use the price from the exchange where you usually trade. If that’s not available, you use your original purchase price in CHF.

Here’s how it works in practice:

• You bought 1 BTC for 20,000 CHF in 2021.
• On December 31, 2025, the FTA’s official rate is 95,000 CHF per BTC.
• You declare 95,000 CHF as part of your wealth.
• You pay wealth tax on that amount - not on the 75,000 CHF profit.

You don’t pay anything when you sell. You don’t pay anything when you swap one coin for another. You only pay when you report your balance at year-end.

Cantonal Differences: Where You Live Matters More Than You Think

Switzerland isn’t one country when it comes to taxes. It’s 26 cantons, each with its own rules. The federal government sets the framework, but the cantons set the rates.

Wealth tax rates range from 0.3% to 1% annually, depending on where you live. Zurich and Geneva have higher rates - around 0.8-1%. Lucerne and Obwalden are lower - closer to 0.3-0.5%. Some cantons even offer tax breaks for new residents or have special rules for high-net-worth individuals.

That’s why many crypto investors in Switzerland don’t just choose where to buy crypto - they choose where to live. Moving from Zurich to a lower-tax canton can save you thousands per year. It’s legal. It’s common. And it’s one of the biggest advantages of living here.

Capital Gains Are Exempt - But Only If You’re Not a Pro

Here’s the real kicker: if you’re a private investor, you pay zero capital gains tax on crypto, no matter how much you make. Sell 10 BTC for 1 million CHF? No tax. Trade ETH for SOL and make a 500% return? No tax. Inherit Bitcoin? No tax. Gift it to your kid? Still no tax.

That exemption applies to all private assets - crypto, stocks, real estate, gold. Switzerland doesn’t care if you made a profit. It only cares if you own something at year-end.

But there’s a catch.

If you’re classified as a professional trader, you’re taxed like a business. The FTA uses Circular No. 36 to decide who’s a pro. Factors include:

• Frequency of trades - buying and selling dozens of times per month
• Time spent - treating crypto like a full-time job
• Use of leverage or derivatives
• Reliance on crypto income to pay your bills

If you meet these criteria, your crypto gains are added to your income and taxed at your regular income tax rate - which can be 10-25% depending on your canton and income level. You also have to keep detailed records and file as a business.

Most people don’t qualify as professionals. But if you’re trading daily, running a crypto fund, or managing other people’s assets, you’re not a private investor anymore. And you’ll pay the price.

Staking, Mining, and DeFi: What’s Taxable?

Crypto isn’t just Bitcoin anymore. Staking, mining, and DeFi are big parts of the ecosystem - and Switzerland has clear rules for them.

Mining - if you’re mining crypto as a business (using specialized hardware, electricity costs, etc.), your profits are taxable as business income. You report it like a self-employed person. You can deduct expenses like equipment and power.

Staking rewards - if you earn ETH from staking, that’s considered income. You pay income tax on the CHF value when you receive it. But the underlying ETH you staked? Still part of your wealth tax base.

DeFi yields - if you’re lending, farming, or providing liquidity, the rewards are income. Again, taxed when received. But the tokens you hold? Still subject to annual wealth tax.

Here’s the key: income is taxed when earned. Wealth is taxed once a year. They’re two separate systems. You might pay income tax on staking rewards, then pay wealth tax on the total value of your staked ETH at year-end. Both apply.

What You Need to Keep Track Of

Switzerland doesn’t make it easy - but it makes it fair. The burden is on you to prove what you own and what it’s worth.

You need to track:

• Every crypto purchase - date, amount, CHF value at time of buy
• Every sale or trade - even if you swapped BTC for ETH
• Wallet addresses - especially if you use multiple exchanges or cold wallets
• Year-end values - use FTA rates or exchange prices
• Staking and DeFi rewards - record the CHF value when received

Many Swiss crypto investors use apps like Koinly or CoinTracking to auto-import transactions and generate tax-ready reports. These tools pull data from exchanges, wallets, and blockchains. They’re not required - but they’re practically essential.

Forget Excel spreadsheets. They’re too error-prone. One wrong decimal place, one missed transaction, and you risk an audit. Switzerland takes tax compliance seriously. Don’t gamble with it.

Why Switzerland Still Leads the World

In 2025, most countries are scrambling to tax crypto aggressively. The U.S. taxes every trade. The UK taxes staking as income. France imposes a 30% flat tax on gains. Even Germany taxes crypto after one year.

Switzerland? It stays calm. It stays clear. It doesn’t punish investors. It doesn’t create new taxes. It applies existing rules - fairly, consistently, and transparently.

That’s why crypto companies keep moving here. Why hedge funds open offices in Zug. Why private investors from Germany, Italy, and the UK relocate to Swiss cantons with lower wealth tax rates. It’s not about being tax-free. It’s about being predictable.

The FTA updates its guidance regularly - the last major update was December 3, 2024. But the core principles haven’t changed: private investors pay wealth tax, not capital gains tax. Professionals pay income tax. Everything else is just details.

What’s Coming in 2026 and Beyond

There are no plans to change the system. No new crypto taxes on the horizon. No wealth tax hikes. No capital gains tax proposals. Switzerland’s approach is built into its legal DNA - through the DLT Act of 2021 and reinforced by years of court rulings and FTA guidance.

Even as NFTs, tokenized real estate, and AI-driven DeFi protocols grow, the Swiss system is designed to handle them. They fall under existing categories: wealth if held, income if earned. No special rules needed.

That’s the real strength of Switzerland’s system. It’s not flashy. It’s not trendy. But it works - and it lasts.