Cryptocurrency regulation in Ireland

It is not to say that Ireland today has well-thought-out rules for regulating the crypto industry. However, several pieces of legislation require such organizations to obtain a license and comply with laws to prevent money laundering and financial terrorism. Crypto regulations in Ireland do not set complex requirements for applicants, which makes this jurisdiction more attractive.

VASP Registration

First, let’s understand what VASP is. So, these organizations are engaged in the exchange of digital assets for fiat or other cryptocurrencies, store digital assets, and participate in the provision of financial services related to the offer of issuers or the sale of virtual currencies.

You fall under this category if you profit from exchanging, selling, or holding crypto assets.

Crypto organizations that want to operate in this jurisdiction must register with the Central Bank. The primary purpose of the regulator is to check how your company is ready to comply with anti-money laundering and financial terrorism requirements.

Before you apply, you need to collect a large package of documents, including detailed information about all your employees and partners and funding bullets for your project.

To be registered, your organization must go through several essential steps:

You apply for pre-registration electronically;
The Central Bank sends an email with further instructions;
You submit the registration form and all required documents;
Regulatory authorities respond to registration.

Suppose Ireland’s cryptocurrency regulation considers that you still need to complete a complete package of documents. In that case, this may submit a formal application to you about what changes need to be made.

Regulatory authorities respond to registration. There are 3 options:

Registrations;
Registration on special conditions;
Refusal.

If crypto regulations have decided to deny you, they have 3 weeks to give you a full report on why they made such a decision.

How to open a cryptocurrency organization?

This jurisdiction is desirable due to low taxation and the ability to operate throughout the EU, so, commonly, many seek to open a business here.

To begin with, you need to carefully consider information about how your company will operate, what services you will provide, and many other aspects. The better you think through all the points, the easier it will be for you to create a successful business that will bring a stable income. It would be best to create unique software to carry out transactions and store assets and customer data. When making such a platform, it is necessary to pay more attention to the tools for verifying customer data and the level of security.

You need to reserve your company name in advance. It must be unique. We advise you to select several options in advance and check them for uniqueness

It would be best if you also opened a local physical office where local employees will work. The staff must have at least one director and secretary. The director must not be an Irish citizen, but they must live in the European Economic Area.

You need to open an account in a local bank where the entire authorized capital of your organization will be stored.

Next, you must collect the necessary documents and apply for a crypto license.

Obtaining a cryptolicense can be extremely difficult, so you need to contact specialized lawyers.

Reporting requirements

Your organization is required to report regularly on its activities. Particular attention is paid here to compliance with anti-money laundering requirements. Your organization must monitor customer transactions, and as soon as it notices unusual activity, your specialists must report it to the appropriate regulatory authorities. In addition, Ireland’s crypto organizations must undergo a full independent audit once a year. The results of this are submitted along with the annual return. Several companies are exempt from audit; their list includes:

Turnover does not exceed 8.8 million euros;
Less than 50 employees;
The organization’s assets do not exceed 4.4 million euros;
The company must not be a subsidiary or parent of another organization.

The above conditions must be applied to the current financial year.

Taxation of crypto companies

There are no separate taxes for crypto companies in this country, but this does not mean they should not pay taxes. They are subject to regular taxation. If you have obtained a cryptocurrency license in Ireland, you must pay a corporate tax – of 12% and a tax on dividends – of 25%. Also, transactions with crypto assets involve the payment of VAT in the amount of 23%.

As you can see, the corporate tax in this jurisdiction

In this jurisdiction, there are certain tax benefits. If you want to find out if you fall under preferential categories, you can contact the specialists of our company. They will analyze your organization’s activities and tell you how much taxes you will have to pay.

Types of business entities

There are several types of business entities in this jurisdiction. Crypto organizations must fit the following types:

LLC;
PJSC.

The choice depends on the characteristics of your organization and the management architecture itself. You can contact our specialists if you need help understanding which of these subjects suits you best.

Crypto Licensing Requirements

It is not to say that this jurisdiction sets very complex requirements for applicants. If you want to work with cryptocurrency in Ireland, you need to:

Make sure that the beneficial owners and management of the company are adequate and correct and have the necessary knowledge and skills to manage such an organization;
Compliance with all requirements for preventing fraud, money laundering, and financial terrorism.

So, you must make a comprehensive risk assessment and consider them in your business. Your business plan should have a section where you describe all the risks and how to deal with them. Also, you should have the tools to check your clients. Each person who registers on your platform must provide an identity document.

The system should check the details of this customer. If they have previously been involved in fraud or money laundering, you cannot provide your services to them. You must also store all customer and transaction data, and if you notice suspicious activity, you must report it to the appropriate regulatory authorities. As you can see, if you are ready to work honestly and openly and follow the rules, there will be no particular problems with licensing.

Regulation of cryptocurrencies

In this jurisdiction, there are no strict rules or prohibitions to regulate the crypto industry. However, for your organization to operate legally, you must register with the Central Bank.

Benefits of this jurisdiction

Opening a business in this jurisdiction has a large number of advantages. Registration here allows you to work legally throughout the EU, which means you can constantly increase the market. This country has very favorable taxation because the corporate tax here is one of the smallest among all European countries. In addition, there are tax incentives. Registering a company here is not difficult and takes a little time so that you can start your business as quickly as possible. Since there are no large requirements for authorized capital, this jurisdiction is suitable for large companies and small start-ups. In addition, having a business here gives you the right to get a residence permit faster.

In the end

Since this jurisdiction has not set complex regulations for the crypto industry, obtaining a work permit here can be very profitable. Thanks to low taxes, you can invest all profits in business development.

FAQ

Is Cryptocurrency regulated?

There needs to be a well-thought-out legal framework for regulating the crypto industry; however, government agencies have already taken the first steps toward this. Thus, amendments were made to the law to prevent money laundering and financial terrorism, which also covers the crypto industry.

How is cryptocurrency taxed?

This jurisdiction has not introduced special taxes for crypto organizations, but they must pay regular taxes, as all other companies do. This jurisdiction is desirable, as it has a meager corporate tax, just over 12%.

Does the Bank of Ireland allow cryptocurrencies?

Only organizations that have passed the verification process and received registration can carry out crypto transactions.