If I were to buy cryptocurrency on a peer to peer exchange site of someone and resold that cryptocurrency to others on that website for a profit, would I need any sort of licence, permit or business and what would I need to record in order to pay tax?
As far as tax goes, you'd only need to consider whether your an investor (longer term holding, smaller scale) or a trader (short term holding, larger scale).
If you're an investor, you work under capital gains tax rules. This means you record the individual costs for each crypto, and then when you sell, you use this to work out your capital gain. You only need to look at this when you actually sell the crypto.
If you're a trader, you're running a business and the crypto is your trading stock. This means you need to keep track of the cost to acquire stock, the sales you make, and complete a stocktake as close as possible to the end of the year each year. You'd need to apply for an ABN, too.
You can read about investing vs trading and how to calculate your CGT on our website.
As far as tax goes, you'd only need to consider whether your an investor (longer term holding, smaller scale) or a trader (short term holding, larger scale).
If you're an investor, you work under capital gains tax rules. This means you record the individual costs for each crypto, and then when you sell, you use this to work out your capital gain. You only need to look at this when you actually sell the crypto.
If you're a trader, you're running a business and the crypto is your trading stock. This means you need to keep track of the cost to acquire stock, the sales you make, and complete a stocktake as close as possible to the end of the year each year. You'd need to apply for an ABN, too.
You can read about investing vs trading and how to calculate your CGT on our website.
So if I were buying and selling crypto to others in a short timeframe I would be a trader, do I need any kind of licensing for this or can I start operating a business right away?
As far as tax goes, if you're a trader, you'll need to apply for an ABN.
For non-tax aspects, you should seek professional advice, since we're unable to advise.
15 Apr 2026 · 8 min read time
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3 replies