Some Australian crypto investors weigh moving abroad ahead of 2027 tax change
In brief
- Top rate on real, long-term crypto gains rises to 47% from July 2027, Cointelegraph reported.
- Fred Schebesta, Finder.com founder, became a tax exile in Singapore, per Cointelegraph.
- Australians leaving the country face an exit tax that may force crypto sales.
- Ben Simpson of Collective Shift uses a company structure for the 25% company tax rate.
Who's leaving, and where to
Finder.com founder Fred Schebesta has already become a tax exile in Singapore, according to Cointelegraph, which tied the move to Australia's upcoming tax changes. Singapore is one of several crypto hubs (alongside Portugal, Malta, the UAE and Hong Kong) that offer 0% capital gains tax on long-term crypto gains to attract wealthy investors.
Ben Simpson, founder of crypto advisory service Collective Shift, told the magazine some of his members have already left. He's considered it too. Simpson already spends half the year in America running Collective Shift US, but he said the rules put him off.
Swyftx CEO Andrea Yuen lived in Singapore for 30 years and said she misses having no capital gains tax. She didn't move there for tax reasons, though, and she cautioned that relocating to avoid tax is a drastic step.
The exit tax problem
Leaving doesn't wipe the slate clean.
Australians departing the country face an exit tax on departure that may require selling a decent chunk of their crypto holdings, Cointelegraph reported.
"They tax you on the way out. If you’ve got a lot of gains or profits you’re sitting on, they’ll catch you when you leave," said Adrian Forza, director of Crypto Tax Australia.
Forza said there's another option: departing taxpayers can pay the Australian tax later, but on the full value of the gain once the asset is sold.
The US offers a cautionary example. Roger Ver gave up his US residency in 2014, and ten years later he was arrested and charged over failing to correctly report the value of his crypto holdings and pay exit taxes. He paid almost $50 million to resolve the case.
Less drastic options
Simpson didn't leave. He trades and holds crypto through a company instead, to benefit from the 25% company tax rate.
A self-managed super fund (SMSF) offers Australians the greatest tax advantages, according to Cointelegraph, but it's only suitable for older investors or those willing to lock their crypto up until retirement. That's a hard sell for Simpson, who's 27 and doesn't like the idea of locking up his crypto portfolio for forty years.
Frequently asked questions
What happens to an Australian's crypto taxes if they move overseas?
According to Cointelegraph, Australians leaving the country face an exit tax on departure, which may require selling part of their crypto holdings. Adrian Forza of Crypto Tax Australia said they can instead pay the Australian tax later, on the full value of the gain once the asset is sold.
What alternatives to moving abroad did Cointelegraph's sources describe?
Collective Shift founder Ben Simpson trades and holds crypto through a company to benefit from the 25% company tax rate. Cointelegraph also described a self-managed super fund (SMSF) as offering the greatest tax advantages, though only for older investors or those willing to lock up crypto until retirement.
