Mining
Mining and tax in Belgium and the Netherlands
Mining is rarely a passive investment for tax purposes. This is general information, not tax advice.
Belgium: three possible regimes
Purely private, exceptional management is untaxed in principle, but mining with owned hardware rarely qualifies.
Miscellaneous income is taxed at 33% plus municipal tax. Organised, repeated activity becomes professional income: progressive rates and social contributions, but costs and depreciation are deductible.
- Normal management: rarely applicable
- Miscellaneous income: 33% + municipal tax
- Professional income: progressive, deductible costs
Netherlands: box 3 or box 1
Holding mined coins falls in box 3 based on value at the reference date, as long as mining stays limited and passive.
Beyond normal asset management — labour, organisation and foreseeable gain — it becomes box 1 income at progressive rates.
Records to keep regardless
Log date, coin amount and euro value for every payout; that amount is your cost base for a later sale.
Keep energy bills, hardware invoices, hosting contracts and pool statements.
- Date and euro value per payout
- Energy and hosting invoices
- Hardware purchase and depreciation records
Frequently asked questions
Is VAT due on mining rewards?
Block rewards are generally not seen as a VAT-taxable service since there is no identifiable customer; invoiced hosting or pool services can be.
When does it become professional income?
With repetition, organisation, borrowed capital and a scale beyond a hobby. Facts decide, not labels.
How do I value staking rewards?
In principle at the euro value on receipt, which also becomes the base for a later capital gain.
Read next
Staking explained
How staking works on Ethereum, Solana and Cardano: where the yield comes from, the risks and what liquid staking changes.
Calculating mining returns
The maths behind mining: hashprice, J/TH efficiency, power price, pool fee and depreciation — with a worked example.
Mine at home or host it?
A practical comparison between a miner at home and hosting in a data centre: costs, risks, noise and contract terms.