Is it illegal to buy gold in Western countries?

[paxmao]

Just to give one more answer: i'm living in the western EU (think France, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany) and in my country it's super easy to buy and sell gold... It's not only legal, it's about the only thing that's untaxed (as for now). If you buy silver, you have to pay tax (unless it's valid silver coins), but for gold it's still tax free . There might be some small print about which gold or how much, but for the general buyer, i think you won't run into any troubles.

You can buy gold online and have it shipped to you, you can buy it virtually and have the seller store your gold or you can buy it in a physical shop... When you want to sell, you usually have to go trough KYC tough, but as far as i know, that's about it.

If so, it is really strange for me, why the people in France do not buy large amounts of gold for storing their money. Maybe it is difficult to buy a micro bar of gold? Or it is difficutl to sell it because you have to prove that your gold is pure?
As I have explained, I don't see that the bitcoins are really more easy for use than the gold.

Well, firstly the people in the west tend only to have a very basic financial education. Second, gold is a store of value, but people who do have some financial education tend to invest in things that have a return.

Gold in-hand is at most to either have hidden funds or for people that may need to have something valuable and handy ... just in case... you know.

Is it illegal to buy gold in Western countries?


It's not illegal, but in may be dangerous. There was a time that the US confiscated gold from its citizens. But they didn't confiscate silver. Go for silver, or turn whatever gold you own into private property. You can do this. If you own it, it is whatever you say it is... in the free world.

Government can't say it's private property, because they don't have any man or woman who will swear on a stack of Bibles that it is his private property. This means that even if it is private property, it isn't his private property, because he doesn't own it, and therefore can't authorize what it is.

BUT, to make it easier on yourself, get silver. But do the same if government tries to confiscate silver. Designate it as private property, because government doesn't really own private property, if you push it hard enough in court. So, it's private property and not gold or silver.

Go for diamonds if that is your motive. Easy to hide anywhere, even inside yourself. Nothing gets you into Schilder's List like them.

[Agbamoni]

If so, it is really strange for me, why the people in France do not buy large amounts of gold for storing their money. Maybe it is difficult to buy a micro bar of gold? Or it is difficutl to sell it because you have to prove that your gold is pure?
As I have explained, I don't see that the bitcoins are really more easy for use than the gold.

The more I think about it the more I get confused what might be the main reason. Well, how easily people can get their hands on Gold, without anyone noticing might be the reason. You can stay at home, buy bitcoin and store it, without a third party getting involved. While its different when it comes to Gold. You have to get it from a trusted third party, so it lacks privacy.

[BADecker]

Is it illegal to buy gold in Western countries?


If the wife says "no!" then it's illegal for the husband. I mean, that's the propaganda be spread around ever since the women got the vote.

[₿itcoin]

Your correct BTC And gold are limited resources, both fight inflation, but gold value has increased steadily cause it is a seasoned asset with a small yearly growth and a proportionate demand change. BTC  is different it's young digitally transferable, totally confirmable and restricted to 21 M coins, its scarcity isn't hypothetical, and  it's controlled by code . That makes Bitcoin a rapidly changing and exponentially more growth‑oriented.

Purchasing gold is legitimate in the United States and European union, so that can't be the reason gold hasn't become  like BTC , it's just the conflicting role of money through our history and the market change.

[coolcoinz]

Bitcoins are analogous to gold; both gold and bitcoins are limited in total amount, making them an effective way to store money without paying the "inflation tax".

We don't know how much gold is yet to be excavated. Gold is limited is a narrative used by gold traders, who want to make you think it's scarcer than it really is. There's a lot more gold waiting to be mined. THe only problem is that mining is expensive, but this can change when new technologies are introduced. At some point we might be flooded with gold.

I can speak from the EU citizen's perspective, You can buy as much gold as you want, both in physical and paper form. You can go to a store in person, or order it online. I know people who have more than $100k in physical gold. The more you have the harder it is to store it though.