Key Takeaways:
- Panama approves “Crypto law”, and citizens will now be able to pay taxes using digital currencies.
- The bill was approved in the 3rd round of the debate in the National Assembly of Panama and is still awaiting the signature of the President.
The debate regarding the approval of a cryptocurrency legislative in the Panama National Assembly has finally come to a successful end. The bill has passed through all the 3 rounds of debate and soon Bitcoin will gain legal status in the nation and there will also be zero capital gain taxes.
The bill includes a section that justifies using crypto-assets “as the native value transfer medium of the internet. A portion of the same reads, ” Being the crypto assets means of payment and assets native to the Internet, not making the Republic of Panama compatible with its use would imply betting that the Internet will reverse its trend of exponential growth of sudden form; means excluding the population of the Republic of Panama from the vanguard of the global digital economy; and also entails a renunciation of our long tradition of service economy.”
In Chapter II, the bill describes “The Use of Cryptocurrencies As A Means Of Payment.” The first clause states that residents of the Republic of Panama will be able to use digital assets like Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), XRP, Litecoin (LTC), XDC Network (XDC), Elrond (EGLD), Stellar (XLM), IOTA, and Algorand (ALGO) as a means of payment without any limitation.
The second clause states that “organs” and “entities” are allowed to receive tax payments in cryptocurrency. This comes under the regulation of the use of Cryptoactives for the Payment of Taxes issued by the General Directorate of Revenue of the Ministry of Economy and Finance. However, they must follow two principles that include :
- There must be transparency, protection, order, and stability in public finances, and,
- Best cybersecurity practices must be included to prevent any monetary loss.
The cryptocurrency law that was proposed during the first debate, named, ‘Project Law No.697’ has been approved in the third debate. It will regulate “commercialization and use of crypto actives, the issuance of digital value, the tokenization of precious metals and other goods, payment systems and dictates other provisions,” as stated by the National Assembly.
After the approval of the bill, Congressmen Gabriel Silva said in an interview, “This bill seeks to convert Panama into a technology innovation hub in Latin America. This is a step forward that seeks to mobilize the economy and create jobs.” He also shared the news on Twitter and said that the bill is now awaiting the President’s signature.
Bitcoin advocate Dennis Porter shared the news of the approval of the bill with his Twitter audience. To this, a user shared his views and said, “while no disrespect to their countries that adopted earlier, Panama might be a game changer: big player in financial services, international trade and current parity US Dollar user. So this one could be a big driver.”
