Staking and Affiliate Rewards in Crypto: How to Think About Them Tax and Accounting-wise in the Czech Republic

This text is intended for the Czech market (Czech Republic) and is purely informational. Crypto taxes and accounting can be surprisingly complex, and in specific cases the details matter (type of platform, type of staking, frequency of income, connection to business activity, etc.). That is why this article is intentionally general - to give a basic framework that people can use as a starting point.

1) Staking: when “something happens” from a tax perspective

With staking, two main situations are usually considered:

When the staking reward is received

In practice, this is often handled at the moment when the reward is actually available to the person (i.e., when it “lands” in their wallet/account and they can dispose of it). The value is typically taken at the market price at that moment.

When the reward is later sold or exchanged

If the received tokens are later sold for fiat or exchanged for another cryptocurrency, another taxable event arises - typically the difference between the value at receipt and the value at sale/exchange.

Restaking

With restaking, the principle does not change: what matters is when the reward arose, when it was actually received, and what happens to it afterward.

2) Crypto-to-crypto exchange is not “just a transfer”

In the Czech Republic, it is important to keep in mind that, for tax purposes, not only selling crypto for fiat is often considered a “sale,” but also exchanging crypto for other crypto (and typically also paying for goods or services with crypto). In practice, this means that even if no money hits a bank account, a taxable result may still arise.

3) Affiliate / networker rewards: generally and without unnecessary details

As a basic rule of thumb for affiliate commissions:

If someone regularly receives commissions for referrals / mediation, it typically already looks like brokerage activity and is often treated as income from business activity (self-employed, §7).

It is crucial not to slip into the regime of investment advisory services. Therefore, it must never be communicated as an investment opportunity.

At the same time, it is important not to provide half-baked interpretations: once someone is self-employed, a whole range of additional aspects come into play (tax regime, expenses, possibly VAT, links to other income, etc.). That is why this article intentionally stays at the level of a main “compass,” so as not to confuse anyone.

What if the amounts are small?

With truly minor and irregular side income, there may be situations where a person “doesn’t really have to deal with much.” However, with affiliate programs, a common issue is that income is recurring/systematic, and therefore it is usually viewed differently than purely occasional income. That is why it pays to be cautious and not rely solely on the feeling that “it’s a small amount.”

4) From 15 February 2025: time and value tests when selling crypto (Czech Republic)

From 15 February 2025, the Czech Republic introduces the possibility of exempting income from the disposal of crypto-assets - typically based on two basic conditions (in practice referred to as):

• a value limit, and
• a time test (holding for at least 3 years).

At the same time, there are exceptions and scenarios where this may not work “automatically” (e.g., when linked to business activity / business assets). It is therefore better to treat this as a useful rule of thumb, not as a universal guarantee.

5) Does staking interrupt the time test? It depends on how staking is technically implemented

There is no single sentence that applies in all cases. What matters is what actually happens to the token:

• If staking in practice means exchanging the token for another token (e.g., a “staked” token), it may resemble a regular exchange - and this can affect the time test.
• If it is more of a lock-up / delegation where the original asset effectively “remains” with the user, the interpretation may be different.

That is why it always makes sense to look at the specific mechanics (and ideally also have a transaction export), not just the marketing description.

6) Inheritance: without wallet access, crypto can be practically unreachable

Crypto can be subject to inheritance, but in practice it repeatedly turns out that access credentials are key (seed phrase, recovery process, devices). Without them, the asset may formally “exist,” but be practically unusable.

Disclaimer

This article is based on information and interpretations verified with lawyers and accountants from the crypto space and relates to legal and accounting practice in the Czech Republic.

It does not constitute individual legal or tax advice. Each case may differ depending on the specific setup (type of staking, business model, business assets, communication style of the project, etc.), and different rules may apply in other jurisdictions.

If you want 100% certainty, we recommend consulting everything with your own lawyer and accountant/tax advisor.