Is It Legal to Buy Bitcoins? 🤔

Broxus
Broxus
Published in
4 min readApr 8, 2020

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If you got a desire to invest in bitcoin or buy something for cryptocurrency, you need to clarify how legal it is in your country. Cryptocurrency is still a very young phenomenon in the world of finance, and the regulators of most countries have not yet decided on their attitude to it.

💭 Is bitcoin legal?

The answer to this question depends on your place of residence. The fact is that bitcoin is not the currency of any country; it is not issued by the state. Technically, anyone can buy bitcoins, and no one can forbid somebody to own them, but when it comes to selling or buying, things get a little complicated. Each country has its own opinion regarding bitcoin, and they have not yet come to a single view.

💭 In which countries is bitcoin prohibited?

Bitcoin is completely banned in such countries as Saudi Arabia, Macedonia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Qatar, Vietnam, Vanuatu. Citizens of these countries cannot own this asset, and violation of the rules is fraught with punishments of varying severity.

Paradoxically, the coin is in a semi-legal position in China, which is still the â„–1 country for bitcoin mining. In China, crypto exchanges are banned, and banks are prohibited from dealing with cryptocurrencies. Nevertheless, possession of bitcoin in the country is not banned.

Approximately the same attitude to bitcoin is shown in India, Nepal, Indonesia, Morocco, Ecuador, Zambia, and Egypt. Cryptocurrency exchanges are not prohibited here, but banks do not work with them, you can not buy anything for bitcoins in these countries.

💭 In which countries is bitcoin legally permitted?

Although the list of countries negatively related to bitcoin seems to be significant, the list of pro-bitcoin-tuned countries is much more extensive. It includes 111 countries around the world in which governments have somehow decided on their attitude to the new asset.

Japan has historically been the most friendly country towards bitcoin. Here bitcoin is recognized as a legal means of payment, and therefore you can pay with bitcoins in Japan in a huge number of places. Interestingly, in Japan, the average age of a bitcoin investor is much higher than in the rest of the world. If for most countries, it is 30 years, then Japanese holders are 40–50 years old people. This fact indicates the high attractiveness and clean reputation of the cryptocurrency in the Japanese market.

The United States is mostly a trendsetter regarding cryptocurrency regulation for the whole world. So, in general, the United States has a positive attitude towards bitcoin, allowing the development of crypto exchanges and trading and focusing on eliminating abuses during public coin offerings, such as ICOs and IEOs. It is precise because of the claims of the American regulator that such widely expected projects as TON and Libra are still not launched.

In addition to the above countries, Bitcoin has official status in Germany, The United Kingdom, Switzerland, Estonia, Lithuania, Slovenia, Belarus, Ukraine, Singapore, Hong Kong, Gibraltar, Malta, The Netherlands, Bermuda, and Georgia. The latter even transferred the state land registry to the blockchain, and in Belarus, profits from cryptocurrency trading are not taxed. The development of the industry itself is strongly encouraged.

💭 What is allowed, and what is forbidden to buy for bitcoins?

In countries where bitcoin is allowed, there is a specific difference in how the authorities relate to how you spend it. If you buy goods for bitcoins, it is considered legal and encouraged by the authorities. You can pay with bitcoins in such giant retailers as Overstock, Shopify, and OKCupid, buy gift cards, pay for food in restaurants.

When it comes to investing, that is, buying cryptocurrency, this area is under the scrutiny of regulators. On all cryptocurrency exchanges, users are required to go through the verification procedure since the authorities must be sure that with the help of cryptocurrencies, the investor is not trying to launder illegally received funds.

It is also essential to study your country’s tax regulations in relation to cryptocurrency revenue. Last year, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service sent hundreds of letters to crypto investors asking them to pay taxes, and many were already heavily fined for tax evasion.

💭 How to buy bitcoin quickly and legally?

Broxus Bot is an easy and fast way to buy bitcoin via chat in the Telegram messenger. Broxus Bot offers a profitable exchange rate, and the functionality of the service is even more convenient. Just follow the steps of the menu, and in a few minutes, the cryptocurrency will already be in your wallet. Good luck with your investment!

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Broxus
Broxus

This is the official Medium account of Broxus, developer of octusbridge.io, flatqube.io, EVER Wallet & everscan.io.