Selling Bitcoin and Cashing Out in Euros: How It Works in Germany

Selling Bitcoin is technically done in two minutes. Yet it often takes days before the euros land in your current account, and between the order and the credit there are three places where things can jam: the exchange, your bank and the tax office. Knowing the order of events saves fees, waiting time and, in the best case, the entire tax on the gain. This guide describes the process for investors in Germany: where you sell, how the money reaches your account, why your bank asks about the source of the funds and which tax rules decide what happens to the gain. All of it refers to privately held assets, not to commercial trading. Selling Bitcoin: the process in four steps The procedure breaks down into four sections that can be far apart in time. First, the transfer. If the coins sit in your own wallet, you send them to the deposit address of your trading venue. Check the address character by character before sending, and for larger amounts send a small test transfer first. This transfer is not yet a sale and triggers no tax, because the asset does not change owner. Second, the order. You exchange Bitcoin for euros. For tax purposes this moment counts as the disposal, not the day the...