Those Countries Where Bitcoin Is Legal & Illegal – Part 1

The decision of countries across the world is being scrutinized by experts. Below is the post on these countries saying yes and no to the Bitcoin.

What Is The Stance Of The Countries World-Wide To Bitcoin?

Making its debut in 2009 the peer-to-peer digital currency has ushered in a new era of cryptocurrency while the tax authorities, enforcement agencies, and regulators worldwide are thereby still debating best practices while one pertinent question: is Bitcoin legal or illegal as the answer comes it depends on the location and the activity of the user.

Hereby the bitcoins come as not issued, endorsed or regulated by any of the central banks, and instead, they are created by a computer-generated process that is known as mining whereas it is additionally being a cryptocurrency unrelated to any government, Bitcoin has now come as a peer-to-peer payment system since it does not exist in a physical form. Therefore it offers a convenient way to conduct cross border transactions with no exchange rate fees. Therefore it does allow users to remain anonymous.

The consumers hereby have a greater ability to purchase goods and services along with Bitcoin directly at online retailers pulling out cash from Bitcoin ATMs and using it at some brick-and-mortar store as the currency is being traded on exchanges and virtual currency-related ventures and ICOs drawing interest from across the investment spectrum. Hereby the Bitcoin appears at a glance to be a well established virtual currency system. As there is still no uniform international law that regulates the Bitcoin.

Countries That Say Yes to Bitcoin

Hereafter while it is found that the Bitcoin can be used anonymously to conduct those transactions between any of the account holders, anywhere and anytime across the globe, it makes it attractive to criminals and terror organizations. Hence they many use Bitcoin to buy or sell illegal goods like drugs or weapons. It was found that hereby most of the countries have not determined what the legality of Bitcoin is preferring instead to take a wait-and-see approach while some countries have therefore indirectly assented to that of the legal use of Bitcoin and so enacting some of the regulatory oversight. However, this is clear that Bitcoin is never legally acceptable as it is a substitute for a country’s legal tender.

The United States

While the United States is not new to the blockchain and Bitcoin, it allows the industry to flourish. In this country, it has therefore taken a positive stance toward Bitcoin, as though several government agencies work to prevent or reduce Bitcoin used for illegal transactions. Hence prominent businesses like Dish Network (DISH) the Microsoft Store, sandwich retailer Subway, and Ocverstock.com (OSTK) welcomes payment in Bitcoin whereas the digital currency has also made its way to the US derivatives markets speaking about its increasingly legitimate presence.

This comes in the heels of controversies concerning the unregulated nature of the Bitcoin. Thereby the US Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has been issuing guidance on Bitcoin since 2013. Hereafter The Treasury has defined bitcoin not as a currency but as a money service business as it places it under the Bank Secrecy Act requiring exchanges and payment processors to adhere to certain responsibilities like reporting, registration, and recordkeeping thereby also, Bitcoin is categorized as property for taxation purposes by the Internal Revenue Services. 

Canada

Canada moves in the path shown by the US. It makes the Bitcoin a legal tender and thereby many businesses come as the users of these cryptos. Hence it is important to understand how the Bitcoin is being traded. It was therefore similar to its southern neighbor that of the United States, as here Canada is maintaining a more generally Bitcoin-friendly stance while also ensuring the cryptocurrency is still not used for money laundering. Hereafter the Bitcoin is viewed as a commodity by the Canada Revenue Agency meaning that Bitcoin transactions are viewed as barter transactions as the income generated is considered as business income. It is here the taxation also depends on whether the individual has a buying-selling business or is only concerned with investing.

It is then noted that there is quite a few personnel particularly the banking firms finding it to allow the decentralized nature of the underlying technology of the Bitcoin, making it a concern for many users. Thereafter Canada considers Bitcoin exchanges to be money service businesses as they bring them under the purview of the anti-money laundering laws as to where Bitcoin exchanges need to register with Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada, (FINTRAC) thereby reporting any suspicious transactions abiding by the compliance plans and even keep certain records. Additionally, some major Canadian banks have banned the use of their credit or debit cards for Bitcoin transactions. 

To Be Continued

The list does not end here. More countries are saying yes and no to the legal tender of Bitcoin. The list comes with credibility as seen by the countries. Stay tuned for more in the next post. 

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