OSCE launches capacity-building series on virtual assets taxation in Moldova

Practitioners from Moldova’s State Tax Service and the Ministry of Finance worked to enhance their understanding of virtual assets, their tax implications, and effective regulation and compliance mechanisms at a workshop organized by the OSCE from 26 to 27 May in Chisinau.

“It is very important to understand the tax aspects of the legal framework concerning virtual assets to clarify how we quantify the income and pay taxes for virtual assets,” said Olga Golban, Director of the State Tax Service. She highlighted the risks associated with unregulated virtual assets, including tax fraud and tax evasion.

The two-day workshop provided an overview of international good practices for the taxation of virtual assets, tax avoidance schemes, the EU regulatory framework, among other topics. Participants also had the opportunity to explore blockchain technology through simulation exercises.

“As virtual assets and cryptocurrencies continue to expand in scope and complexity, tax authorities around the world face both opportunities and challenges. Today’s workshop explores the topic of virtual assets taxation, good practices from different jurisdictions, and what we can do to better co-ordinate across borders while combating tax evasion,” said Vera Strobachova-Budway, Senior Economic Officer and Head of the Economic Governance Unit at the OSCE.

This workshop marked the first of two workshops to set the foundation for enhancing Moldova’s institutional capacity to effectively address taxation challenges posed by virtual assets. A follow-up workshop is planned to take place in June.

These workshops are being organized as part of the OSCE extrabudgetary project, “Innovative policy solutions to mitigate money-laundering risks of virtual assets”, implemented by the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities, which is financially supported by Germany, Italy, Poland, Romania, the United Kingdom and the United States.