Russia’s State Duma, the country’s lower house of government, has approved new legislation for the taxation of cryptocurrency in its first reading, RIA Novosti reported Wednesday.

• The bill proposes to recognize cryptocurrency as property for purposes of taxation, which Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin has previously said would bring holders legal protection and rights in court disputes.
• Crypto users would be required to declare receipts of cryptocurrency exceeding 600,000 rubles ($8,184) per year.
• Failure to declare would result in a fine of 10% of the undeclared amount or a writing off of such currency, whichever is larger.
• A penalty of 40% of the required amount of tax will be applied for non-payment or incomplete payment of tax.
• Ahead of the bill's second reading, the State Duma Committee on Budget and Taxes is questioning the validity of the Federal Tax Service's right to establish the procedure for determining a crypto's market price, as this does not comply with existing provisions of the Tax Code.
• Crypto assets will not be a legal means of payment under the proposed change to the tax law.

See also: Russia to Treat Crypto as a Taxable Property