​Russian authorities have planned the legalization of mining for the second half of 2023

What’s new? Russia plans to legalize the cryptocurrency mining industry. Anatoly Aksakov, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on the Financial Market, said about it at the conference “Finance of the Future: Challenges and Opportunities.” A preliminary date will be known after the authorities will agree on the provisions on liability for the illegal use of digital assets. According to Aksakov, this may happen in the second half of this year.

News on the TASS website

What else is known? There are currently four draft laws registered in Russia on cryptocurrency. The first is on mining, the second on experimental legal regimes (ELRs), the third on the taxation of transactions with cryptocurrencies, and the fourth on liability. Aksakov noted that it is necessary to prescribe the responsibility for the illegal use of cryptocurrencies, after which all four draft laws will pass simultaneously.

“I expect that in June we will adopt it in the first reading, in July ultimately. I hope that we will work actively to allow everyone to work legally in the second half of the year,” the deputy added.

According to Aksakov, miners currently pay taxes on their own initiative, agreeing on their tax base with the inspectorate. Given the desire of market participants to work legally and pay taxes, the task of the authorities is to create legal conditions for their work as soon as possible.

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In March, Deputy Finance Minister of the Russian Federation Alexey Moiseev proposed to oblige miners to report their income to the tax authorities. According to the draft law sent to the Ministry of Economic Development, the Ministry of Justice, the Federal Taxation Service, the Bank of Russia, and other departments, in case of violation, miners could face up to four years of imprisonment.

In February, Aksakov reported that Russia may impose liability for miners who mine cryptocurrency illegally.

Also in May, the Russian authorities refused to create a national crypto exchange. Instead, rules will be introduced for the possibility of opening multiple trading platforms, which will reduce sanctions risks and promote competition.