Dutch tax on unrealized crypto gains faces rewrite before 2028 rollout

Key Points

• Many investors fear cash shortages when yearly tax bills arrive before any asset sale.
• The proposal sets a 36% rate covering shares, bonds, savings interest, and digital assets.
• Senators and retail savers report worries about liquidity pressure and rapid portfolio changes nationwide.
• Lawmakers also discuss a later shift toward a capital gains tax model based on sales.

Dutch tax on unrealized crypto gains now shapes a major debate over Dutch household wealth rules.

Heinen told RTL Nieuws that the proposed law is currently lacking sufficient support and therefore requires a “complete overhaul” to ensure it can be passed through parliament successfully. Heinen has now had a meeting with the State Secretary and intends to negotiate with the leaders of both the House of Representatives and the Senate to find common ground. Although the House of Representatives voted in favor of the bill in its current form, the review by the Dutch Senate is showing greater doubt regarding its viability.

If this proposal becomes law, a 36% tax rate would apply to all value growth per annum on all types of investments and savings (not just investments). All shares, bonds and cryptocurrency holdings would have to be treated equally in terms of the new Box 3 tax.
As soon as there are positive developments on the financial markets, tax liabilities may arise even if no action is taken by the investor; the investor will incur a liability on their tax account every year, regardless of whether they sell any securities or not. Critics are concerned that tax liabilities will arise purely due to paper profits.

Downturns in the financial markets

The fact that a portfolio’s value has increased does not necessarily mean that the investor can access those funds. Therefore, the increase in value results in additional taxes without receiving any cash proceeds. Furthermore, some investors are worried that forced sales will take place during downturns in the financial markets. This is because the investor receives an annual tax bill, regardless of any decline in the value of the investment.

Due to the volatile nature of cryptocurrencies, the swings in value are much greater than those experienced in other types of investments. As a result, the pressure to liquidate or make decisions about one’s portfolio is significantly increased, particularly where the tax liability arises at short notice. In contrast, property is subject to a tax on the sale of the property, whereas rental income is taxed each year. Startup shareowners usually have to pay tax on disposal of the shares; this is seen as an unfair rule compared to other types of investments.

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Optimistic assumptions of future economic growth

These differences are likely to exacerbate the concerns raised by savers in taxable accounts about fairness. Several Senate Committees are questioning the choice of date for valuation, the rules for offsetting losses and the reporting obligations for investors with complex investments. Tax authorities are also concerned with the gaps in cross-border information, as there are few standardized statements available from foreign exchange platforms.

Dutch banks do report on their customers’ transactions, however, many cryptocurrency wallets are not connected to these standard reporting channels. Heinen admitted that there were serious design flaws in the original law, and he requested that Parliament adopt a revised version of the law which would protect investors’ liquidity. For me personally, predictable rules are more important than forecasting revenue levels based on optimistic assumptions of future economic growth.

Parliament reduced the review period from five years to three years at the request of investors. However, the target date of 1 January 2028 for the law to come into effect nationally remains unchanged, although it is uncertain what exactly will happen to the proposed law in the coming months.

Dutch tax on unrealized crypto gains causes liquidity concerns throughout Box 3 portfolios

This law was introduced as a result of a Supreme Court decision made in December 2021 related to the previous Box 3 system. In its ruling, the Supreme Court rejected the idea of taxing individuals based on assumed returns when the actual yield on their savings remained low over a certain number of years. The ruling caused policymakers to consider a return-based system with regard to the valuation of investments that is more closely linked to actual market performance.

The new system calculates the amount of price movements on investments along with the dividend income, interest income and rental income earned by each investor each year. Advocates of the new system believe that the use of consistent measures to calculate the value of all types of wealth will lead to more equitable results for all types of wealth. Opponents of the new system believe that patient investors will be harmed by the fact that taxes on appreciation will be collected prior to any voluntary sale.
Senators are also asking how losses can be offset when the markets reverse after a good year has ended.

Investors with diversified portfolios will be required to complete additional compliance tasks and will need to perform more frequent valuations. Crypto investors are already tracking their trades, but the addition of the requirement to create and maintain records of wallet values adds an additional layer of administrative burdens to investors and to auditors every year.

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Senate discussions to explore the inclusion of safeguards to protect liquidity and a transition to a capital gains tax model

A system of realized gains would allow governments to tax the profit made from the sale of a security, thus reducing cash flow pressures on long-term investors. However, the realization of the profit would occur later, which creates difficulties for the government in relation to timing and budgetary stability. Tax administrators will require clear definitions of taxable events, including swaps and staking rewards, as well as requirements for investors to maintain logs of transfers, fees, custody changes and reliable reference prices for audits. The public debate on this issue will become increasingly intense during 2026 as parliamentary committees prepare to introduce amendments and schedule subsequent votes.