ACT proposes introducing a bright-line test to make profits from digital assets exempt from tax if they're held for at least a year

ACT is promising new digital finance rules and tax breaks to change the way New Zealand treats crypto currency and other digital assets, saying doing so would make it easier to invest and build new financial technology.

Deputy ACT Leader Nicole McKee said tokenised assets “can open up new sources of investment.”

“Stablecoins can make international payments faster and cheaper. New financial technology can create high-value businesses and jobs.”

The party promised to make profits from digital assets exempt from tax if they're held for at least a year, saying the country “should not rely on subjective assessments of why someone bought a digital asset”, the party’s policy statement said.

“Under a clear bright-line test, gains on qualifying personal investments sold within 12 months would remain taxable, while gains on assets held for more than 12 months would not be taxed. Professional traders and businesses would remain subject to the existing tax rules.

McKee said that proposal would give investors certainty “while keeping professional trading and business activity fully taxable so the system remains fair.”

They would also remove tax on low value purchases paid for by digital assets, saying Inland Revenue “should focus on significant taxable activity, not trivial transactions that create more paperwork than revenue.”

Proposed changes also included establishing “a supervised financial innovation sandbox where innovative businesses can trial new financial products before full licensing”, creating clearer rules for tokenised securities and real-world assets, and to also make new rules for qualifying payment stablecoins “to unlock faster, lower cost cross border payments.”