Germany would tax profits on crypto sales at a flat 25% regardless of how long the asset was held, under a draft bill from Vice Chancellor and Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil seen by Handelsblatt. Welt reported it first on Tuesday, from a departmental draft dated mid-August.

The law would take effect on January 1, 2027, and apply only to crypto bought from that date. Anything acquired earlier stays under today’s rules, so anyone already holding Bitcoin keeps the exemption.

Germans currently pay nothing on crypto gains once they have held an asset twelve months, a position the ministry set out in 2022 and extended to coins used for staking and lending. Sell inside that window and the profit is taxed as…