How Crypto Is Taxed in New Zealand
New Zealand does not have a general capital gains tax, which makes crypto taxation different from most other countries. However, that does not mean crypto is tax-free. Inland Revenue (IRD) treats cryptocurrency as property, and profits from selling or trading crypto can be taxable as income depending on the circumstances. If you acquired crypto with the intention of disposal or as part of a business, the profits are taxable.
When is crypto taxable in NZ?
The IRD has stated that crypto is taxable when you acquired it with the purpose of selling or exchanging it for profit. This includes active trading, regular buying and selling, and crypto received as payment for goods or services. Even occasional traders may be caught if the IRD determines the crypto was acquired with a profit-making intent.
- Trading income: If you regularly buy and sell crypto, the profits are treated as income and taxed at your marginal rate. This is the most common scenario for active traders.
- Business income: Mining, staking for profit, and running a crypto-related business produce income that must be reported.
- Long-term holding: A long holding period does not by itself make gains tax-free. If you acquired crypto with a purpose of selling or exchanging it at some future point, profits may be taxable even years later. The IRD looks at your evidence and overall pattern of behavior, not just your stated intention.
- Bright-line test: The residential property bright-line test does not apply to cryptocurrency. Whether your crypto profits are taxable depends on the "intention to dispose" test, not on how long you held the asset.
- FX conversion: All values are converted to New Zealand dollars (NZD) using historical daily exchange rates from the ECB.
Airdrops and staking income
The IRD treats staking rewards and airdrops as income at fair market value on the date you receive them. This applies to exchange staking (Coinbase, Binance, Kraken) and DeFi staking protocols alike. When you later sell or swap those tokens, any additional gain may also be taxable depending on your circumstances.
Airdrops received without any action on your part may have $0 cost basis. If the airdropped tokens have no market value at receipt, record $0 income but still track them for any future disposal.
NZ tax year and filing deadline
The New Zealand tax year runs from 1 April to 31 March. Individual tax returns (IR3) are generally due by 7 July following the end of the tax year. If you use a tax agent, the deadline may be extended. Late filing can result in penalties.
What you need to report
Taxable crypto income is reported in your individual tax return (IR3). Trading profits go in the income section. Because NZ tax rules for crypto depend heavily on individual circumstances, we recommend consulting a tax professional to determine your specific obligations.
What's in the report
Your paid PDF includes a gains and losses summary, a crypto income section for staking and rewards, top assets by P&L, end-of-year holdings with cost basis, and a complete transaction audit trail. All values shown in NZD. The report includes cautious filing guidance that helps you determine whether your activity is taxable.
DeFi, wallets, and Bitcoin
If you also traded on-chain, add your wallet addresses to merge exchange data with DeFi activity across 41+ EVM chains, Solana, and Bitcoin. Hold BTC in a hardware wallet? Add your Bitcoin addresses (P2PKH, P2SH, Bech32, or Taproot) and we scan your full history. Up to 5 EVM/Solana wallets and 3 BTC addresses per report.
New Zealand crypto tax deadline
The IRD self-filing deadline for the 2024/25 income year was 7 July 2025. The next deadline is 7 July 2026 for 2025/26. See New Zealand crypto tax deadline 2025 for key dates and filing guidance.
Other countries and calculators
We also generate country-specific reports for the US, UK, Canada, Australia, India, and South Africa. We support Coinbase (35+ transaction types), Binance (75+ operations), and Kraken (ledger format with refid pairing). If your records also came from Bybit, OKX, Crypto.com, or Bitfinex, use those exchange pages for the export steps before you file.