Crypto tax in The Bahamas: what you really owe

The headline is true: The Bahamas does not tax individuals on crypto gains. There is no personal income tax, no capital gains tax, no withholding tax, no inheritance or estate tax, no net-wealth tax and no exit tax. What people miss are the costs around the trade, such as stamp dutyStamp duty (FX) A 1.5% government tax on converting Bahamian dollars into foreign currency, charged by your bank. Glossary when you convert Bahamian dollars, and tax owed to another country if you are a US citizen or still resident elsewhere. This guide sets out both, based on Deloitte’s 2026 Bahamas tax summary and official tax authority pages. It is general information, not tax advice.

What The Bahamas does not tax

For an individual, the absence of income and capital gains tax means selling Bitcoin at a profit, swapping one coin for another, receiving stakingStaking Locking up certain coins to help secure a blockchain in exchange for a yield. DARE-registered staking providers must warn clients about the risks in writing. Glossary rewards or passing crypto on to your children creates no Bahamian tax bill. There is no general corporate income tax either, which is one reason so many crypto firms register in Nassau.

Beware of foreign websites that say Bahamian residents must “report worldwide income”. There is no personal income tax return to file, so there is nothing to report locally.

The costs that still apply

Stamp duty of 1.5%. Under the Stamp Act 2024, any transaction that converts funds into foreign currency attracts 1½% stamp duty, whether or not the money leaves the country. Crypto is priced in US dollars, so a card purchase or wire funded from a Bahamian-dollarBSD (B$) The Bahamian dollar, pegged 1:1 to the US dollar. Both circulate freely in shops across the islands. Glossary account usually triggers it, and your bank collects it. Converting US dollars back into B$ when you sell does not. Whether moving crypto between wallets attracts stamp duty has not been confirmed.

Exchange control costs. Not a tax, but a real cost: if your purchase is routed through the Investment Currency MarketInvestment Currency Market The Central Bank’s channel for residents buying foreign currency for overseas investment, with a 5% premium on purchases and 2.5% on sales. Glossary, the premium is 5% on the way in and 2.5% on sale proceeds. How each bank treats crypto in practice is covered in Bahamian banks and crypto.

VAT at 10%. The standard rate was cut from 12% in January 2022. Financial services are broadly exempt, but nobody has confirmed whether exchange fees on crypto count: a 2022 Elliptic guide noted the Department of Inland Revenue had issued no opinion, and we found no ruling since. Foreign online service providers must register for VAT regardless of turnover, so some global platforms may add it.

Taxes on Bahamian crypto businesses

Firms registered with the Securities Commission pay business licence tax of 2.25% of turnover from the domestic market. On turnover from outside The Bahamas they pay the greater of B$2,500 or 0.25%, capped at B$100,000. They also pay annual SCB fees, set to rise from 1 January 2027 if the draft rules are adopted (see crypto regulation).

The Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax Act 2024 introduced a 15% minimum tax, but only for multinational groups with revenue of at least €750 million, applying in practice from financial years starting in 2025. It does not touch individuals or small local firms.

Tax by situation

Your home country may still tax you

US citizens. The IRS taxes citizens on worldwide income wherever they live. It treats digital assets as property, so selling, swapping or spending crypto produces a capital gain or loss reported on Form 8949, and the Form 1040 asks every filer whether they received or disposed of digital assets. US brokers report gross proceeds on Form 1099-DA for transactions from 1 January 2025. Living abroad, you must file an FBAR if your foreign financial accounts, such as a Bahamian bank account, together exceed $10,000 at any time in the year, and Form 8938 if foreign assets exceed $200,000 at year-end or $300,000 at any time ($400,000 and $600,000 for joint filers). FinCEN said in 2020 that a foreign account holding only crypto is not currently FBAR-reportable but that it intends to change this.

Canadians. Canada taxes based on residence. When you stop being resident, the Canada Revenue Agency treats you as having disposed of certain property at fair market value on the day you leave, which can create a tax bill on crypto you have not sold.

Britons. HMRC charges capital gains tax on crypto disposals by UK residents, including selling, swapping, spending and most gifts. Moving to Nassau does not end UK residence by itself, and the UK has special rules for people who return after a short time abroad.

Record keeping that saves you trouble

With no Bahamian tax return, records still matter for three reasons: your bank’s anti-money-laundering checks, another country’s tax authority, and your own peace of mind if a platform fails, as Bahamians learned with FTX (see FTX in The Bahamas). Keep exchange statements showing dates, amounts and prices; bank records of each B$ conversion and the stamp duty charged; your wallet addresses; and staking reward histories. If you hold coins yourself, a backup strategy for your wallet belongs in the same folder.

Want to know how the money gets in and out in the first place? Our step-by-step buying guide covers cards, wires and the bank fees involved, and US filers can start with the IRS digital assets page.

Related guides

Crypto regulation DARE Act 2024, SCB powers, the Travel Rule and new 2027 fees in plain English. Read guide Banks & exchange control Wire fees, card surcharges and the 1.5% stamp duty, bank by bank. Read guide Sell & cash out Cash-out routes into a Bahamian bank account, with real costs and timelines. Read guide Registered companies The official DARE register, decoded firm by firm. Read guide