Cryptocurrency tax enforcement: reflections on european legislation

This article explores whether, and to what extent, current European regulations can reduce uncertainty regarding the legal classification and function of cryptocurrencies within a coordinated EU framework. Particular attention is paid to non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies, the most widespread form of digital asset. This intermediate category poses the greatest regulatory challenges, as it inherently combines the characteristics of both currencies and investment instruments. The taxation of these assets has become one of the most pressing issues, at the intersection of technology, law, economics, and public policy. The analysis concludes that, while EU regulations such as MiCAR and DAC 8 represent significant progress, they remain incomplete. These regulatory frameworks do not include fully decentralized systems such as DeFi and DAOs, resulting in significant gaps in tax regulation oversight and enforcement. In such contexts, traditional compliance models prove ineffective, underscoring the need for globally coordinated, technology-driven regulatory approaches that address the anonymity, absence of intermediaries, and jurisdiction-free nature of decentralized architectures.