The bill provides a legal definition of mining and mining pools and would create a domestic cryptocurrency market in Russia.
On November 17, a bill to allow cryptocurrency mining and the selling of the cryptocurrency mined was submitted to the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament. Russia presently prohibits the usage of cryptocurrency for settlements. The proposed law reads:
“Digital currency obtained as a result of mining can be disposed of by the person who carried out the mining of this digital currency on the condition that Russian information infrastructure is not used in conducting transactions with it, with the exception of cases of transactions carried out in accordance with the established experimental legal regime,” as quoted by Interfax.
Anatoly Aksakov, the chairman of the Duma Financial Markets Committee, stated to the neighborhood media that he anticipated the legislation to pass all three parliamentary readings in December and enter into law on February 1. According to several reports, the bill would become a law on January 1. Akov stated:
“Passage of the law will bring this activity into the legal field, and make it possible to form a law enforcement practice on issues related to the issuance and circulation of digital currencies.”
The law on digital innovation, which was passed in 2020, has made it feasible for the experimental sales regime. Mining pools and cryptocurrencies are defined under the bill. Additionally, it outlaws cryptocurrency advertising in Russia.
If the law is approved, a Russian cryptocurrency marketplace will be created, and Russian miners would have access to foreign marketplaces. The transactions in the latter scenario would not be subject to Russian currency controls and regulations, but they would still need to be reported to the Russian tax office.
Despite the fact that cryptocurrency mining is common in Russia, there is presently no legislation governing the taxes of mining activities. According to a study released by the Central Bank of Russia on November 7, the nation was becoming ready to accept digital assets on its marketplaces.
On behalf of the Central Bank, the Moscow Exchange produced a law in September to permit trading in digital financial assets. The exchange and significant Russian brokerages were getting ready for the arrival of retail investors, according to a November 18 article in the Izvestia newspaper.
In September, a Russian policy was developed regarding the use of cryptocurrencies in international payments. Russian cryptocurrency miners and other users must navigate international sanctions in addition to domestic law.
