TechFlow reports that the Israeli parliament (Knesset) has passed a bill in its preliminary reading, extending certain tax benefits currently applicable to Israel's high-tech companies to the country's cryptocurrency industry.
If enacted into law, foreign residents would be exempt from capital gains tax when selling digital currencies, and the tax rate on employee crypto options would be reduced from 50% to approximately 25%. The announcement was made by the Israeli Forum for Cryptocurrency, Blockchain, and Web3 Companies (ICBW3).
The bill is supported by the coalition government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, aligning with its economic policy to attract investors and businesses to Israel. According to Likud party member of Knesset Dan Iluz, "Workers in the cryptocurrency sector have so far been paying twice as much in taxes on stock options compared to their counterparts in the traditional high-tech industry.
In addition, foreign investors in the blockchain sector do not enjoy the same benefits as those investing in traditional high-tech industries." He added, "This legislative amendment aims to balance the situation and eliminate tax discrimination."
