Indonesia and Australia sign agreement on crypto taxation

Indonesia and Australia’s tax officials signed an agreement in Jakarta on April 22 to establish a crypto information-sharing framework.

This agreement, unveiled on April 23, aims to improve the identification of assets that may be taxed in either country. It also aims to promote a more effective interchange of cryptocurrency-related data and information across tax authorities. Additionally, it discusses compliance with tax obligations.

According to Mekar Satria Utama, a director of the Indonesian Directorate General of Taxes (DGT), the MoU emphasizes the importance of innovation and collaboration among tax authorities. The strategy is critical for keeping up with the rapid advances in the worldwide landscape of financial technologies, he stressed.

“While crypto assets are relatively new, the need to ensure equitable taxation remains essential to promote economic growth and provide revenue for crucial public investments in areas like infrastructure, education and healthcare,” Utama said in a statement.

Australian tax authorities and their Indonesian counterparts have worked together in the past. This collaboration has encompassed several DGT priorities. It contains features such as the digitization of taxpayer services through the implementation of a virtual tax assistant.

Furthermore, the two organizations collaborated on the introduction of value-added tax (VAT) for digital goods and services.

Indonesia has been engaged in developing laws for the crypto sector. It has also encouraged partnership with foreign countries and international groups to develop a solid crypto framework.

Leading these activities is Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority (OJK), which has been working with financial regulators in Malaysia, Singapore, and Dubai to create the basis for crypto regulation.

According to a recent ruling, crypto companies wishing to operate in Indonesia must first go through a regulatory sandbox before obtaining a license, which will take effect in January 2025. This regulation change coincides with the Financial Services Authority’s (OJK) move to oversee the cryptocurrency sector.

Entities that provide cryptocurrency services in Indonesia without first completing a sandbox evaluation would be deemed illegal.

Meanwhile, Australia is one of many countries working with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to create the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF), which allows for the automatic exchange of information about crypto-assets. The aim is to institute a standardized approach for the worldwide taxation of cryptocurrencies. While not explicitly a bilateral tax treaty, the objective of this collaboration is to streamline tax procedures and reduce instances of tax evasion concerning crypto earnings.