Is crypto legal in Italy?
Holding, buying, and selling crypto is legal in Italy. As of June 2026 the market is regulated under the European Union Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation, with the Commissione Nazionale per le Societa e la Borsa, CONSOB, as the lead authority for crypto asset service providers, acting on the opinion of the Banca d'Italia, which covers prudential and anti money laundering supervision. Crypto gains are taxed by the Agenzia delle Entrate as a substitutive tax that rose from 26 percent to 33 percent from 1 January 2026.
The rules in detail
Holding, buying, and selling crypto is legal in Italy. As of June 2026 the market is regulated under the European Union Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation, known as MiCA, which applies directly across member states. A firm that wants to provide crypto services to Italian residents, such as operating an exchange, holding custody, or handling orders, must be authorised as a crypto asset service provider, a CASP.
Supervision is shared between two authorities. The Commissione Nazionale per le Societa e la Borsa, CONSOB, is the lead authority that authorises crypto asset service providers and supervises conduct and market integrity. It grants a CASP authorisation on the opinion of the Banca d'Italia, which supervises prudential soundness and anti money laundering obligations. Before MiCA, the Organismo Agenti e Mediatori, the OAM, maintained the national register of virtual asset service providers, and that register is being replaced by the MiCA authorisation regime as of June 2026.
A transition period applies. Firms already registered with the OAM had to apply for a CASP authorisation, and Italy set 30 December 2025 as the date by which registered operators needed to be in the authorisation process. The transitional regime closes on 30 June 2026, and from 1 July 2026 a provider must hold a granted MiCA authorisation, or operate under a passport from another member state, to serve Italian residents. As of June 2026 Italy had granted few or no domestic CASP authorisations of its own while applications were still being processed, so many platforms serve Italy by passporting a licence held in another European Union country. Check a platform's current status before you rely on it.
Tax
Italy taxes personal crypto gains through a substitutive tax administered by the Agenzia delle Entrate. As of June 2026, under the 2026 Budget Law (Law 199 of 2025), the rate on crypto capital gains is 33 percent, up from the 26 percent that applied in 2025. The former exemption that left gains under 2,000 euros untaxed was abolished from 2025, so a gain of any size can be taxable. A disposal generally means selling crypto for euros or another fiat currency, or using it to pay for goods or services, while a swap between crypto assets with the same characteristics is generally not treated as a disposal. Electronic money tokens denominated in euros that comply with MiCA are reported to remain taxed at 26 percent. Italy also applies an annual stamp style duty on the value of crypto holdings and a monitoring obligation for crypto held abroad, declared on the RW section of the tax return. A separate optional regime let holders step up the cost basis of holdings as at 1 January 2025 by paying an 18 percent substitute tax. The exact figures change each year and depend on your circumstances. Verify before filing.
Compare available exchanges in Italy
Several platforms serve Italy residents under the MiCA framework as of June 2026, generally through an authorisation passported from another member state. We list a platform here only where it is genuinely available to this country.
Regulator and sources
The supervisors are CONSOB, as lead authority for crypto asset service providers, and the Banca d'Italia for prudential and anti money laundering aspects, with the Agenzia delle Entrate responsible for tax.
- European Union Regulation on Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA), applied in Italy.
- CONSOB, on its role authorising and supervising crypto asset service providers under MiCA.
- Banca d'Italia, on prudential and anti money laundering supervision and its opinion in the authorisation process.
- Agenzia delle Entrate, on the substitutive tax on crypto gains and the related monitoring and reporting obligations.
- Law 199 of 2025 (the 2026 Budget Law), on the increase of the crypto gains rate to 33 percent from 1 January 2026.
Frequently asked questions
- Is crypto legal in Italy?
- Yes. Holding, buying, and selling crypto is legal in Italy as of June 2026, and the market is regulated under the European Union MiCA framework, with CONSOB as the lead authority for crypto asset service providers.
- Who regulates crypto in Italy?
- CONSOB authorises and supervises crypto asset service providers and oversees conduct and market integrity, acting on the opinion of the Banca d'Italia, which covers prudential and anti money laundering supervision. The Agenzia delle Entrate handles tax.
- How is crypto taxed in Italy?
- Crypto gains are taxed by the Agenzia delle Entrate under a substitutive tax. As of June 2026 the rate is 33 percent, up from 26 percent in 2025, under the 2026 Budget Law, and the former 2,000 euro exemption no longer applies.
- What happens after the MiCA transition ends on 30 June 2026 in Italy?
- From 1 July 2026 a provider must hold a granted MiCA authorisation, or passport a licence from another member state, to serve Italian residents. Firms still in the authorisation process at that date may have to pause services, so check a platform's current status.
- Which exchanges are available in Italy?
- As of June 2026 platforms such as Kraken, Coinbase, and Bitpanda serve Italy under MiCA, generally by passporting an authorisation held in another European Union country. Always confirm a platform's current registration before you sign up.