Relevant Period:This article discusses the National Tax Agency's material dated December 1, 2017 and its subsequent revision history. Please consult the latest edition for current treatment.

Where This Edition Fits

There are ten editions of the National Tax Agency's cryptoasset FAQ. The first was “Methods of Calculating Income from Cryptocurrencies and Related Matters (Information),” published on December 1, 2017. The NTA index page links to it under this title.

It contains nine questions. There are no chapters by tax category; the questions are numbered consecutively from 1 to 9. This differs from the chapter-based numbering, such as “1-1” and “2-2,” used in the current edition.

The year of publication was also the first year of cryptocurrency tax reform. Transfers of cryptocurrencies became exempt from consumption tax on July 1, 2017. The material explaining income calculation methods followed approximately five months later.

Overview

Why Did the First Edition Cover Only Income Calculation Methods?

The legislative change that year concerned consumption tax, rather than income tax. Section IV, “Consumption Taxation,” of the Outline of the FY2017 Tax Reform (Cabinet decision of December 22, 2016) included a provision exempting transfers of cryptocurrencies defined in the Payment Services Act from consumption tax. It applied to transfers of assets and other transactions and taxable purchases made domestically by businesses on or after July 1, 2017.

This was the first appearance of the word “cryptocurrency” in a tax reform outline. It appeared in the consumption taxation chapter, rather than the income tax or corporation tax chapters. For consumption tax treatment, see Selling crypto assets does not incur consumption tax We are dealing with that.

Meanwhile, the outline at that stage contained no provision on income tax calculation methods. A provision on valuation of cryptocurrencies held by individuals did not appear until the Outline of the FY2019 Tax Reform (Cabinet decision of December 21, 2018). Thus, the first edition dealt with matters that did not involve legislative amendment: how existing income tax rules should apply to cryptocurrencies. Its modest title, “Methods of Calculating Income and Related Matters,” reflects that role.

How Were the Nine Questions Arranged?

The first edition numbers its questions consecutively from 1 to 9. The table below summarizes each question by number.

The three situations of selling, paying, and exchanging come first, followed by calculation of acquisition cost. The questions follow a single thread: how much income arises when an individual does something with cryptocurrency.

Why Were Forks and Mining Included from the First Edition?

Four of the nine questions address situations other than straightforward purchases and sales: splits (forks), offsetting losses, margin transactions, and mining. These issues were already being raised when the first edition appeared.

• A split (fork) occurs when cryptocurrency you hold splits and you receive additional cryptocurrency of another kind. Because you did not buy it, the question is what its acquisition cost should be.
• For treatment of cryptocurrency acquired through mining, see Acquisition Through Mining and Similar Activities We are dealing with that.
• For whether losses can be offset against other income, see When You Make a Loss We are dealing with that.
• The relationship between margin transactions and separate taxation by self-assessment was addressed from the first edition.

These issues have remained in subsequent editions. The latest December 2025 edition includes “Acquisition of Cryptoassets Through a Split (Fork)” (1-6), “Acquisition of Cryptoassets Through Mining, Staking, Lending, and Similar Activities” (1-7), “Treatment of Losses on Cryptoasset Transactions” (2-11), and “Cryptoasset Margin Transactions” (2-12). The headings have changed, but the underlying situations have been covered since the first edition.

Why Were There No Corporation Tax Questions?

None of the first edition's nine questions deals exclusively with corporation tax. This is confirmed by reviewing all nine questions. Corporation tax questions first appear two years later, in the Corporation Tax section of the December 20, 2019 edition. That edition covers the timing of recognition of disposal gains and losses, disposal cost, year-end market value valuation, and credit transactions.

The background is the Outline of the FY2019 Tax Reform. Section III, “Corporate Taxation,” introduced measures including market value valuation for cryptocurrencies for corporation tax purposes. Cryptocurrencies held at fiscal year-end for which an active market exists were to be marked to market, with valuation gains and losses recognized. This applied to fiscal years ending on or after April 1, 2019.

When the first edition appeared in December 2017, this amendment had not yet appeared in a tax reform outline. The material predates the FY2019 reform expressly introducing cryptocurrency-specific year-end market value valuation and related rules. This does not mean that general corporation tax provisions did not exist. For corporate year-end market value valuation, see Are companies taxed just by having them? We are dealing with that.

When Did the Title Change to “Tax Treatment”?

The first edition is titled “Methods of Calculating Income from Cryptocurrencies and Related Matters (Information).” From the following edition, dated November 21, 2018, it became “Tax Treatment of Cryptocurrencies (Information).” Every subsequent edition uses “Tax Treatment.”

This was more than a change in wording. The November 21, 2018 edition expanded to 21 questions and introduced chapters for matters common to income tax and corporation tax, income tax, inheritance and gift taxes, withholding income tax, consumption tax, and statutory reports. The document evolved from explaining income calculation methods to describing treatment across tax categories. For the contents of this second edition, see our article on the November 2018 edition We are dealing with that.

Points that require care in practice

• The first edition can be cited using question numbers 1 through 9. To avoid confusion with later editions, include the document date and item title, for example, “Question 5, ‘Cryptocurrency Splits (Forks),’ in the December 1, 2017 material.”
• The first edition's PDF remains available from the NTA's historical list. However, its wording may not remain unchanged in the latest edition. For decisions about current tax returns, consult the latest edition.
• The terminology remains “virtual currency.” It is replaced by “cryptoasset” from the December 18, 2020 edition, so be aware of this difference when reading earlier editions.
• You will not find corporate-specific matters in the first edition. Corporation tax questions first appear in the December 20, 2019 edition.
• The consumption tax exemption applies from July 1, 2017. The Outline of the FY2017 Tax Reform contained separate provisions on the purchase classification of cryptocurrency acquired before that date and input tax credits where holdings exceeded a prescribed amount on June 30, 2017. When reviewing past tax years, check this date boundary.

Sources

• National Tax Agency, “Methods of Calculating Income from Cryptocurrencies and Related Matters (Information)” (December 1, 2017)PDF
• National Tax Agency, “Tax Treatment of Cryptocurrencies (Information)” (November 21, 2018)PDF
• National Tax Agency: Tax Treatment of Virtual Currencies (Information), December 20, 2019 PDF
• National Tax Agency: Archived Information on Crypto-Assets List