Tax

Tax lawyers specializing in crypto-assets since 2018, we advise investors and companies on all their French tax matters, combining in-depth legal expertise with a rare technical understanding of on-chain flows and decentralized protocols.

Led by Alexandre Lourimi, our tax practice stands out for its generalist approach to taxation, enriched by an in-depth knowledge of the technical and economic ecosystem of crypto-assets.

This dual expertise allows us to address, with rigor and precision, questions as diverse as personal income tax, corporate income tax, VAT, international and wealth taxation. It also gives us particular expertise in assisting clients with tax audits and litigation involving crypto-assets, and with voluntary disclosures.

Beyond client work, our team contributes to tax doctrine on crypto-assets: reference works (Droit des crypto-actifs, LexisNexis; Encyclopédie de fiscalité internationale, Doctrine), articles in specialist and academic journals, training for students and practitioners (lawyers, notaries, judges, wealth advisers), and participation in industry working groups, notably within ADAN, the French digital asset industry association. It also supports leading NGOs, pro bono, in structuring their crypto-asset donation campaigns.

Services

We advise individual investors and all players in tech and finance — start-ups and innovative projects (fintech, DeFi, protocols and infrastructure), investment funds, crypto-asset service providers — on all their tax matters.

For individuals and investors

Tax optimization of investments and wealth: we analyze the tax treatment of your transactions (swaps, staking, lending, airdrops, collateralized borrowing…) and make recommendations to control and optimize their taxation (flat tax or progressive scale? – simulator in French).
Tax residency: we assist you in establishing or transferring your tax residency outside France (domestic and treaty criteria, exit tax, French-source income). See our expertise on tax residency and crypto-assets.
Audit and voluntary disclosure: we audit your transactions, compare them with your tax returns and assist you in regularizing your situation with the French tax authorities (estimate the cost of a reassessment – in French).
Tax audits and litigation: we defend you during crypto tax audits (desk audits, in-depth reviews of personal tax situations), at the pre-litigation stage and before the courts (read our white paper).

For companies and projects

Tax structuring of projects: we ensure the compliance, optimization and security of innovative transactions and business models for corporate income tax and VAT purposes: token issuances and allocations, decentralized organizations and applications, crypto payments, staking, mining.
VAT on crypto-asset services: through tax opinions or advance rulings, we secure the VAT treatment of financial activities involving crypto-assets and of intermediation activities, which may trigger the tax liability of intermediaries.
Establishment and permanent establishment: we assist companies in setting up in France or abroad and in managing permanent establishment risk.
Reporting obligations of service providers: we assist crypto-asset service providers in their DAC8 compliance (guide in French).
Tax audits and searches: we defend companies during tax audits and dawn raids by the tax authorities, through to litigation.

When do you need a crypto tax lawyer?

Not always. For simple situations, our step-by-step guides (in French) explain how to report your capital gains, report your foreign accounts or correct your tax return yourself. A lawyer becomes useful when the question is no longer a mere formality.

You can handle it yourself	A crypto tax lawyer is justified
Simple transactions on one or two platforms, with a complete history	An incomplete history: platform closed or bankrupt, lost exports, old purchases without supporting documents
Purchases, sales and crypto-to-crypto swaps	Decentralized finance, staking, mining, NFTs, derivatives, compensation paid in tokens
A tax return or a correction for a single year, with modest amounts at stake	Several years to correct, significant amounts, foreign accounts never reported
No ongoing exchange with the tax authorities	A letter, a request for information or a tax audit already under way
A personal investment project with no change in situation	A move abroad, a transfer of wealth, a transfer into a company, or a business project (token issuance, service provider activity)

A lawyer then brings three things: an analysis of transactions whose tax treatment is unsettled, a reconstruction of flows capable of convincing the tax authorities, and representation at every stage, covered by legal professional privilege. If in doubt, take our 2-minute diagnostic (in French).

Expertises

Changement de résidence fiscale avec des crypto-actifs : exit tax, conventions fiscales et établissement stable – ORWL Avocats

Tax residency and crypto-assets

Defense during a crypto tax audit

Régularisation des plus-values et des comptes crypto non déclarés auprès de l'administration fiscale – ORWL Avocats

Crypto tax regularization

Traitement TVA des activités crypto : PSCA, marketplaces, NFT, minage et staking – ORWL Avocats

Securing the VAT model of a crypto project

Achievements

Our dual expertise—combining a comprehensive tax practice with specialized sector knowledge—is demonstrated through the following key engagements for both corporate projects and individual investors:

Tax structuring of a token issuance (corporate tax, VAT, and payroll taxes)

We have advised numerous centralized ventures and decentralized protocols on the implementation of token issuances. Our intervention specifically enabled our clients to:

Define a structured framework for Corporate Income Tax (CIT): We established a clear methodology for the revenue recognition of sale proceeds, aligning the tax treatment with the project’s delivery milestones and accounting standards.
Secure the VAT treatment of the transaction: We provided legal certainty regarding indirect tax liabilities, a position subsequently formally confirmed through a tax ruling (rescrit) from the tax authorities.
Implement a comprehensive token allocation plan: We designed incentive schemes for the project’s various stakeholders, ensuring they remained consistent with the desired performance incentives while strictly managing the tax and social security exposure for both the issuer and the beneficiaries.

VAT Audit of a marketplace

We advised an electronically supplied services (ESS) marketplace that had integrated crypto-asset payment flows, as part of its VAT risk management strategy. After conducting a comprehensive audit of the flows and various service offerings, we provided strategic recommendations to:

Position its intermediation within a consistent framework: We aligned the marketplace’s status with the nature of the services provided, thereby mitigating the risk of undisclosed agency (opacité fiscale) and ensuring a clear distinction between the platform and the underlying suppliers.
Determine and document the VAT base: We established a robust methodology for calculating the taxable amount (assiette) for both inflows and outflows denominated in crypto-assets, ensuring proper documentation for compliance purposes.

Wealth structuring of crypto-asset investments

We advised a crypto-industry entrepreneur on the estate planning and structuring of both their professional activities (remuneration model, holding company) and their personal investments (incorporation of income derived from specific tokens). Working in coordination with notaries and wealth management advisors, we implemented strategies to optimize the tax efficiency of their income and future succession.

Voluntary disclosure of crypto asset disposals and foreign accounts

We have assisted numerous early-stage crypto-asset investors in bringing their investments into regulatory compliance. After auditing all transactions and reconstructing a consolidated, documented history, we identified tax non-compliance issues, prepared amended tax returns, and substantiated the source of funds for crypto-assets held in undisclosed foreign accounts. We subsequently managed all correspondence with the tax authorities until the issuance of the notice of assessment for the omitted taxes and successfully negotiated the applicable penalties.

Tax raid related to permanent establishment (PE)

A foreign crypto-industry player was subject to search and seizure operations (opérations de visite et de saisie) at the residences of several executives and the headquarters of a subsidiary, as part of an investigation into the existence of an undeclared permanent establishment in France. We handled the defense by challenging the lawfulness of the search operations and the authorizing judicial order. Our objective was to gain access to the seized documents in order to prepare for the ensuing tax audit and to limit the scope of the investigations.

Team

Our team comprises experienced tax attorneys with a sophisticated technical understanding of the crypto-asset industry. We also collaborate with an extensive network of partners to provide our clients with seamless and comprehensive support, including chartered accountants, statutory auditors, notaries, banking institutions, and foreign counsel.

Partner

Alexandre Lourimi

Lise Jeanne dit Fouque

Léa Mastrolillo

Frequently asked questions about crypto tax lawyers

What is a crypto tax lawyer?

A crypto tax lawyer advises and defends individuals and companies on all the tax consequences of crypto-assets: taxation of capital gains, reporting of accounts held abroad, staking or mining income, VAT on crypto activities, tax residency, voluntary disclosure and tax audits. Like any lawyer, they are bound by professional secrecy and can represent you before the tax authorities and the courts.

Do I need a crypto tax lawyer?

Not always. If your transactions are simple and well documented, our free guides (in French) explain how to report or correct your capital gains yourself. A lawyer becomes useful when the amounts at stake are significant, the history is incomplete, the transactions are complex (decentralized finance, staking, NFTs), foreign accounts have not been reported, or the tax authorities have already contacted you.

What are the main tax issues for crypto-assets in France?

For individuals: calculating capital gains under the portfolio method, choosing between the flat tax and the progressive scale, the risk of being treated as a professional trader, reporting foreign accounts and the treatment of complex transactions. For companies: the corporate income tax and VAT treatment of token issuances, compensation paid in tokens, crypto payments received and made, and the DAC8 reporting obligations of service providers.

How can I legally reduce the tax on my crypto gains in France?

First, by applying the rules correctly: calculation under the portfolio method, taking into account all acquisition costs and fees, and choosing between the 31.4% flat tax and the progressive income tax scale. Then, depending on the situation, through appropriate wealth structuring or a change of tax residency, which must be genuine and carefully prepared. Our flat tax or progressive scale simulator (in French) gives a first estimate.

What should I do if I made a mistake in my crypto tax return?

Correct it voluntarily, before any tax audit: late-payment interest is then halved and the 10% surcharge does not apply, subject to conditions (French Tax Code, arts. 1727, V and 1758 A). Our correction guide (in French) explains the procedure. Where several years or foreign accounts are involved, a full voluntary disclosure is preferable.

What should I do in a tax audit involving crypto-assets?

Seek assistance as early as possible, from the first request for information: the answers given at that stage shape the rest of the procedure. Our tax letter decoder (in French) identifies the document received and the deadlines for replying. See also our expertise on crypto tax audits.

Do you work with clients outside Paris?

Yes. Our firm is based in Paris, in the 9th arrondissement, and we work with clients throughout France, including entirely remotely. We also advise individuals and companies based abroad on their French tax position.

Contact us

Describe your situation or your project: a lawyer from our tax team will get back to you to assess what is at stake.

Email us at contact@orwl.fr or call us on +33 1 88 80 36 33, or use our contact form.