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Canada has no gift tax on crypto, and a person who receives coins does not report them as income. The giver can still have a capital gain, because the CRA treats a gift as a sale at fair market value. A holder who dies is treated the same way, and a donation is also a disposition.
Is there a gift tax on crypto in Canada?
No. Canada has no gift tax, and a person who receives crypto as a gift does not report the gift as income. Our page on the Canada gift tax question covers that general rule. The tax cost, when there is one, sits with the person who gives the coins away.
The CRA crypto guide lists gifts and donations among the transactions that may be dispositions, and it also lists them as acquisitions for the person who receives. The crypto pages stop there and do not explain the treatment. The explanation below comes from CRA guide T4037 and the CRA page on transfers of capital property.
Does the giver report a gain?
Yes, if the coins are worth more than their adjusted cost base. The CRA says that when you give capital property as a gift, you are considered to have sold it at fair market value at the time of the gift, and you report any taxable capital gain or allowable capital loss for that year. T4037 lists giving property other than cash as one of the cases where you are treated as having sold it. No money has to change hands.
Here is a made up example, computed in a script. A parent gives a child coins that cost $2,000 and are worth $8,000 on the day of the gift.
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Fair market value of the coins on the gift date | $8,000 |
| Adjusted cost base of the coins | -$2,000 |
| Capital gain for the giver | $6,000 |
| Taxable capital gain (half) | $3,000 |
| Cost base for the receiver | $8,000 |
The parent reports a $6,000 gain, and half, $3,000, is the taxable capital gain. The CRA says half of a gain is included in income. The Budget 2026 annex shows no change to that. The parent pays tax on $3,000 at their own rate even though they received nothing. If the coins were worth less than the cost base, the same steps give a capital loss. Our page on the adjusted cost base shows how to find the cost of coins bought in several lots.
A gift to a spouse or common-law partner is different. The CRA says you generally do not have a capital gain or loss, and the receiver is treated as having bought the property for the same cost. The CRA page we read puts that rule in terms of the adjusted cost base for non-depreciable property. It is a deferral, so the gain shows up later when the partner sells.
What cost base does the receiver get?
T4037 says that for a gift, you are generally considered to have acquired the property at its fair market value on the date you received it. In the example the child's cost base is $8,000. If the child sells the coins later for $9,000, the gain is $1,000, not the $7,000 the parent would have had.
The CRA says to keep a record of the value on the date you receive property as a gift. For crypto, the valuing page says to find the Canadian dollar value with a reasonable method that you use each year, and to keep the way you did it. Write down the date, the number of coins, the source of the price and the wallet that received them. Nobody can rebuild the day's value years later without that note.
What happens to crypto when the holder dies?
The owner is treated as having sold the property. T4037 lists "the owner of the capital property dies" among the cases where a disposition happens, and says that the cost to an heir is generally the deceased person's deemed proceeds of disposition, which is usually the property's fair market value just before death. There are exceptions, such as property that goes to a spouse or common-law partner. T4037 sends readers to the CRA guidance on doing taxes for someone who died for those rules.
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Fair market value just before death | $8,000 |
| Adjusted cost base | -$2,000 |
| Capital gain on the final return | $6,000 |
| Taxable capital gain (half) | $3,000 |
| Cost base for the heir | $8,000 |
That is another made up example. The gain of $6,000 goes on the deceased person's final return, and the heirs start with a cost base of $8,000. Canada does not have a separate inheritance tax, but a province may charge probate fees on the estate. Our pages on the final return after death and taxes on inheritance cover the wider picture.
The CRA crypto pages do not mention death, so nothing there tells an executor how to find the coins. Coins locked in a wallet whose keys are lost raise a practical problem as well as a tax one. We found no CRA page about it, so we do not state a rule.
Is donating crypto to a charity tax free?
Not automatically. The CRA crypto guide lists donations as a possible disposition. T4037 says a gift of capital property to a registered charity is still a sale at fair market value for the donor. The same guide describes an inclusion rate of zero on gains from donating certain listed properties, and the examples it gives are publicly traded shares, mutual fund units and ecologically sensitive land. Crypto-assets are not among the examples we read, and we did not find a CRA page that gives coins the zero rate. Until the CRA says so, assume the usual half inclusion applies, and ask the charity or a professional to confirm.
With the same numbers as above, a donor gives $8,000 of coins that cost $2,000. The gain is $6,000, the taxable part is $3,000, and the donation credit is worked out on the eligible amount of the gift. Form T1170 is the form T4037 names for calculating the gain on a gift of capital property to a qualified donee. If the donor gets something in return, the CRA calls it an advantage, and part of the gain is then subject to the half inclusion rate.
Not every charity takes coins, and a charity that does may sell them at once. That does not change your gain, which is fixed on the day you give. Our page on the donation tax credit shows how the credit is calculated.
How is the donation receipt valued?
T4037 says the eligible amount of a gift is generally the amount by which the fair market value of the gifted property is more than the amount of any advantage you receive. The charity issues the receipt, and the value on it should match the fair market value on the day of the gift. That value comes from a reasonable method, the same one the CRA valuing page describes for crypto.
The CRA page does not say what price source a charity must use for coins. Two sources can differ on the same day, so ask the charity which one it used and keep the screenshot or export. If your own record of the value is different from the receipt, write down why before you file.
What records do both sides keep?
The giver keeps the date, the number of coins, the Canadian dollar value, the wallet addresses and the adjusted cost base. The receiver keeps the date, the value on that date and the wallet that received the coins. The CRA books and records page asks for the date, the type of transaction, the value in Canadian dollars, the wallet addresses and the platform for every transaction.
The CRA says to keep records for six years after the last tax year they relate to. For an estate, the executor needs the same list for each coin, plus the value on the date of death. Our crypto tax guide sets out the wider record rules.
This page is information only. We do not prepare returns, we do not represent the CRA or any organization, we do not guarantee the figures fit your case and we are not liable for decisions based on it. The examples are made up.
Frequently asked questions
Do I pay tax if someone gives me crypto?
No. Canada has no gift tax and you do not report the gift as income. The tax effect arrives later. T4037 says you are generally treated as acquiring the property at fair market value on the day you receive it, and that becomes the cost you use when you sell.
Does the person giving crypto away owe tax?
They can. The CRA says a gift of capital property is treated as a sale at fair market value on the day of the gift. If the coins are worth more than their adjusted cost base, the giver reports a capital gain, and half of it is taxable. Gifts to a spouse are treated differently.
What happens to crypto after someone dies?
T4037 says the owner is treated as having disposed of capital property at death, and the heir's cost is generally the deemed proceeds, usually the fair market value just before death. Exceptions such as a spouse or common-law partner exist. The gain goes on the final return.
Is donating crypto to a charity tax free?
Not automatically. A donation is still a disposition at fair market value, so the donor can have a capital gain. T4037 describes a zero inclusion rate for some listed properties such as publicly traded shares, but we found no CRA page that gives crypto the same rate.
How do I value crypto on the day of a gift or donation?
The CRA says to find the Canadian dollar value with a reasonable method that you use every year. Record the date, the price source and the number of coins. For a donation, also ask the charity which price it used on the receipt and keep a copy of it.
Is there an inheritance tax on crypto in Canada?
No separate inheritance tax applies. The deceased person's final return reports the deemed sale of the coins, and heirs take the fair market value as their cost. Provinces may charge probate fees on an estate, and the executor needs the value of each coin on the date of death.