Just like in the rest of the world, the media in Portugal have been all over bitcoin because of the cryptocurrency’s growing popularity… and value. Back in April, Portuguese newspaper Jornal de Negócios contacted the Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira (AT), a financial organism similar to the IRS that’s part of the Ministry of Finance, in order to know if bitcoins were taxable.
pic: theglobalcitizen.co
Journalists asked organization employees one very simple question over the phone: are bitcoins taxable? The organization’s employee who picked up admitted she had no idea whether or not citizens should declare bitcoin earnings, as she wasn’t qualified to answer the question. She promised to call back within 24 hours after reaching out to their superiors.
Later on, journalists tried again. This time, another employee confessed he had been asked this question before and that at the time he spoke to his superiors about it. Stil, the answer remained; no one really knew if digital currency earnings should be declared. Off the record, the employee advised journalists not to declare anything. According to reports, he stated:
There’s a legal void, there are no regulations, so I wouldn’t put anything in the tax forms.
The first employee then called back, after 48 hours. She assured that earnings obtained by trading bitcoins weren’t taxable. The answer contradicts the Ministry of Finance’s official answer.
Good use for ledgers :D