Switzerland’s ‘Crypto Valley’ now accepts Bitcoin as tax payment

The people of Zug province in Switzerland now have the option to pay their taxes using cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin Suisse, a local digital currency broker that introduced the new payment system in tandem with the Swiss province, announced on Thursday that the payment method was up and running this week.

The province has been called “Crypto Valley” for its adoption of electronic currency and over the many industry groups that have set up operations in the jurisdiction for its favorable crypto and blockchain laws.

Simplified payment option

Around 126,000 people currently reside in the province, with the town of Zug as its capital. The town itself, with a population of 30,000, introduced a similar virtual tax program in 2016.

In May that year, the city of Zug piloted a payment system for bitcoin for public services with a payment limit of up to 200 francs.

“As the home of the Crypto Valley, it’s important to us to further promote and simplify the use of cryptocurrencies in everyday life,” CoinDesk quoted Zug’s finance chief, Heinz Tannler, as saying when the tax program was announced.

Zug is not the first locality in Switzerland to support digital tax payments. Zermatt, an administrative division in the district of Valais, launched a bitcoin tax payment option in collaboration with Bitcoin Suisse in January last year.

According to the Zug Canton official website, residents can request to pay their taxes in digital form and will receive an email with a link to the crypto payment option.

Crypto-friendly nation

Switzerland is a crypto-friendly country where its people are exempt from paying tax on digital currency profits and losses.

Switzerland is where Libra, Facebook’s virtual asset program, is headquartered.

Meanwhile, the price of bitcoin barreled past the $51,700 level on Thursday for a new record, after cruising past $50,000 for the first time on Wednesday, Business Insider reported. The spike carried the world’s largest digital asset’s market value near the vaunted $1 trillion mark.

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