Japan political party leader promises crypto tax cuts if elected

Japan’s Democratic Party for the People (DPP) leader Yuichiro Tamaki has proposed a crypto tax plan that would lower tax crypto gains to 20% if he gets elected. 

“If you think crypto assets should be taxed separately at 20% instead of treated as miscellaneous income, please vote for the Democratic Party for the People,” Tamaki said in a translated X post on Oct. 20. 

But the plan could be far off from fruition, as Tamaki’s DPP currently holds only 7 out of 465 seats in Japan’s House of Representatives, also known as the lower house of the National Diet of Japan.

Taxing crypto gains at 20% would align them with the taxes paid on profits from the stock market.

No tax event would be triggered when exchanging one crypto asset for another under Tamaki’s plan.

“I would appreciate it if you could spread the word about these promises made by the Democratic Party for the People,” Tamaki stressed.

In response to X user Shonai Dog, Tamaki said the DPP would consider imposing tax cuts on other financial income in the future — but for now, it is focused on making Japan a leader in the Web3 space:

“We want to make Japan a strong nation in the Web3 business.”

Japan’s election will take place on Oct. 27. The DPP’s main pitch to voters revolves around increasing take-home pay to beat inflation. 

Earlier this year, on Aug. 30, Japan’s Financial Services Agency released plans for a comprehensive overhaul of the country’s tax code for fiscal year 2025, which included provisions to lower taxes on crypto assets.

Crypto profits in Japan are currently taxed as miscellaneous income between 15% and 55%, depending on their personal income.

Crypto taxes can reach as high as 55% for individuals earning over 40 million Japanese yen ($268,000), according to crypto tax firm KoinX.

In comparison, profits earned from stock trading only incur a maximum tax rate of 20%.

Meanwhile, corporate crypto holders must pay a flat 30% tax rate on their holdings at the end of the financial year — even if they haven’t made a profit through a sale.

Related: Australia’s revamped data program to ‘catch out’ crypto tax cheats

Tamaki’s DPP has a slim chance to win the Japan election, a recent opinion survey from local news outlet Mainichi suggests.

The Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner Komeito are expected to retain a majority of the total 465 seats, while DPP may see its representation increase from 7 to as high as 20 seats.

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