At a glance
- Directive (EU) 2023/2226, known as DAC8, requires crypto-asset service providers to report their users’ transactions to the tax authorities.
- In France, Article 1649 AC bis of the French Tax Code (CGI) covers transactions carried out from 1 January 2026, with a first report in 2027.
- The report states your identity, your tax identification number if available, your residence and your exchanges and transfers for the calendar year.
- Member States exchange this information within nine months of the end of the calendar year concerned.
- DAC8 does not relieve you of anything: form 2086, boxes 3AN or 3BN and the 3916-bis return remain your responsibility.
- Since 1 July 2026, only providers authorised under the MiCA Regulation may provide crypto-asset services in France.
DAC8 is the common name of Council Directive (EU) 2023/2226 of 17 October 2023. It brings crypto-assets into the automatic exchange of tax information between Member States. For you, as a holder resident in France, the consequence is simple: your platforms now report your transactions to the tax authorities. Transactions carried out in 2026 will be reported in 2027. Your own reporting obligations remain the same, and the tax authorities will be able to compare them with the data they receive.
Facts and sources verified on 5 October 2026.
DAC8 crypto: what does the EU directive provide?
The DAC8 directive amends Directive 2011/16/EU on administrative cooperation in the field of taxation. That text organises the exchange of information between the tax authorities of Member States. DAC8 adds crypto-assets to it.
Its recitals refer to the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework approved by the OECD on 26 August 2022. The European Union is therefore aligning its rules with an international standard.
Member States had to transpose the directive by 31 December 2025 at the latest. The rules have applied since 1 January 2026. The directive also covers “crypto-asset operators”, i.e. providers that are not authorised under MiCA. It requires them to register in a Member State.
DAC8 in France: Article 1649 AC bis of the CGI
France transposed DAC8 through Article 54 of Law No. 2025-127 of 14 February 2025. That law created Article 1649 AC bis of the French Tax Code.
Who must report?
The obligation rests on the crypto-asset service provider within the meaning of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114, known as MiCA. In practice, this is the exchange platform or broker through which you place your orders. You have no new formality to complete under this article.
What information is reported?
The report first contains your identification details. It includes your tax identification number where available, your address and your State or States of residence. For a company, the persons who control it are also identified.
It then covers the transactions of the calendar year, by type of crypto-asset. The text covers exchanges against an official currency, exchanges between crypto-assets and incoming or outgoing transfers. For each category, it shows in particular the gross amounts paid or received, the number of units and the number of transactions.
What is the timetable?
Article 1649 AC bis applies to transactions carried out from 1 January 2026. Providers will file their first report in 2027. A decree sets the filing conditions and deadlines.
At European level, the directive provides that each State passes this information on to the others within nine months of the end of the calendar year. A platform established in another Member State reports to its own tax authorities, which then pass the data on to France.
DAC8 and MiCA: two complementary texts
The MiCA Regulation governs the activity of providers. Its Article 143(3) provided for a transitional regime that ended on 1 July 2026. Since that date, only MiCA-authorised providers, known as crypto-asset service providers (CASPs, PSCA in French), may provide these services in France, as the AMF (French Financial Markets Authority) has pointed out.
This deadline matters for DAC8. Article 1649 AC bis defines the reporting entity by reference to MiCA. The authorised platforms you use are therefore, in principle, the ones that report your transactions. The circle of regulated players and the circle of reporting entities largely overlap.
What about a non-authorised platform established outside the Union? The directive classes it among “crypto-asset operators”, which must register in the Union and report. On your side, the account you hold there remains a foreign wallet to be declared on the 3916-bis. Do not assume that a platform not authorised under MiCA reports nothing.
Since 1 July 2026, the French Tax Code has also used the term “crypto-assets” (crypto-actifs), taken from MiCA, instead of “digital assets” (actifs numériques). You will still come across the old wording on some forms and official pages.
Self-certification: what your platform will ask you for
The annex to the directive requires providers to carry out due diligence procedures. When the relationship begins, the platform must obtain a self-certification of tax residence from you. For existing customers, it has until 1 January 2027.
Expect a form asking for your country of residence and your tax identification number. The platform must check that your answers are plausible against the documents it has already collected. Fill it in carefully: an incorrect residence would distort the reporting and could raise questions.
What DAC8 does not change for you
DAC8 creates an obligation for platforms. Your own tax returns remain due, under the same rules as before. You will find the details in our guide to crypto taxation.
You still declare your taxable disposals on form 2086, then carry the result over to box 3AN or 3BN of form 2042 C. Form 2086 must still be attached even if your disposals for the year do not exceed €305. The overall rate of 31.4% applies to taxable gains for 2026, unless you opt for the progressive income tax scale.
Accounts and wallets opened, held, used or closed abroad must still be declared on form 3916-bis. DAC8 does not remove this obligation. An omission costs €750 per wallet, and €1,500 if its value exceeded €50,000 during the year.
What to check in your own tax returns
From 2027, the tax authorities will have two versions of your year: yours and that of your platforms. Not every discrepancy means an error, but you will need to be able to explain them. We advise you to review the following points now.
The list of your foreign wallets
Draw up an inventory of every account opened with a foreign platform, even if inactive or closed. Compare it with your 3916-bis returns for past years. A platform that reports your data also reveals that the account exists.
Exchanges between crypto-assets
The platform will report your exchanges between crypto-assets. Yet, without a cash adjustment (soulte), these exchanges benefit from tax deferral: nothing is taxed in the year of the exchange. Keep your transaction histories to show that a line reported by the platform did not give rise to any tax.
Transfers between your own wallets
An outgoing transfer to your own wallet will appear as a movement. It is not a disposal. Keep proof that the destination address belongs to you, for example the statements of both accounts.
Calculating your capital gains
The platform reports gross amounts, not a capital gain. Your capital gain is calculated using the formula in Article 150 VH bis of the CGI, across the whole portfolio. The figures will therefore not match, and that is normal.
Here is an example calculation. Your overall portfolio is worth €20,000 at the time of a €5,000 disposal. You have invested €10,000 in total, with no previous disposal. The capital gain is 5,000 − (10,000 × 5,000 / 20,000), i.e. €2,500. At the overall rate of 31.4%, the tax comes to €785. The platform, for its part, will report a sale of €5,000.
Your evidence of fees and acquisition price
The disposal price is reduced by the fees incurred on the disposal, provided you can document them. Export your fee statements every year, before a platform closes or restricts access to its history. For crypto-assets received by gift or inheritance, the acquisition price is the value used for gift or inheritance duties. Failing that, use their actual value when they entered your assets. Keep the deed or return that sets this value.
Previous years
DAC8 covers transactions carried out since 2026. But an account revealed in 2027 may lead the tax authorities to look at previous years. If your past returns are incomplete, it is better to regularise before any request. Our article on crypto tax audits details the time limits and penalties.
Our view on DAC8
In our view, DAC8 mainly changes the starting point of tax audits. The tax authorities will no longer have to discover your accounts: they will receive the list of your transactions. Taxpayers who reported correctly have no particular reason to worry about this cross-checking. Those who left gaps in their returns should deal with them now.
A crypto tax lawyer can go through your transaction histories, recalculate your capital gains and prepare any amended returns. Every situation is different: the number of platforms, the age of the accounts and the nature of the transactions change the analysis.
FAQ on DAC8 and crypto-assets
Do I have to report anything myself under DAC8?
No. Article 1649 AC bis of the CGI covers crypto-asset service providers. You only need to respond to your platform’s self-certification request. Your usual obligations, forms 2086 and 3916-bis, remain due.
When will the tax authorities receive my 2026 data?
Providers will file their first report in 2027, for transactions carried out from 1 January 2026. For a platform established in another Member State, the directive provides for transmission within nine months of the end of the calendar year.
Does DAC8 cover self-hosted wallets?
The text covers transactions carried out through a provider. A transfer from or to your personal wallet does, however, go through the platform and appears in its report. Form 3916-bis, for its part, covers wallets held with organisations established abroad.
Do exchanges between crypto-assets become taxable with DAC8?
No. DAC8 does not change the taxation rules. Exchanges without a cash adjustment remain under tax deferral pursuant to Article 150 VH bis of the CGI. They will simply appear in the platform’s report.
Official sources
- Council Directive (EU) 2023/2226 of 17 October 2023 amending Directive 2011/16/EU (DAC8) – EUR-Lex
- Article 1649 AC bis of the French Tax Code (reporting by crypto-asset service providers) – Légifrance (in French)
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 of 31 May 2023 on markets in crypto-assets (MiCA), Article 143 – EUR-Lex
- AMF, reminder on the end of the transitional period for digital asset service providers (5 February 2026) – amf-france.org
- Article 150 VH bis of the French Tax Code (capital gains on crypto-assets) – Légifrance (in French)
- Article 1649 bis C of the French Tax Code (wallets held abroad) – Légifrance (in French)
- Article 1736 of the French Tax Code, X (fines) – Légifrance (in French)
- Impots.gouv.fr, page (“Comment déclarer les plus ou moins-values sur cessions d’actifs numériques ?”, i.e. how to report gains or losses on disposals of digital assets) updated on 17 July 2026 – impots.gouv.fr (in French)
This article sets out the law for general information purposes, as verified on 5 October 2026. It does not constitute legal advice. Every situation is different and deserves a dedicated analysis.
