Is it illegal for me to sell my Bitcoins?

[hermanhs09]

It is not illegal to sell bitcoins,unless the goverment in your country will say that using btc at general is banned.
However buying/selling btc is some kind of a grey area,the goverment does not get taxes for it,and nobody controlls it actually.But it is not illegal in most of countries.

[BurtW]

It is not illegal to sell bitcoins,unless the goverment in your country will say that using btc at general is banned.
However buying/selling btc is some kind of a grey area,the goverment does not get taxes for it,and nobody controlls it actually.But it is not illegal in most of countries.

In the US the taxation of Bitcoins is very black and white - not gray.

You calculate the dollar difference between what you sold the BTC for and what you bought them for.  If you have a gain it is taxed as a capital gain.  End of story.  The IRS ruled on this.  If you do not pay the tax you are evading taxes.  Also very black and white.

[GreenBits]

It is not illegal to sell bitcoins,unless the goverment in your country will say that using btc at general is banned.
However buying/selling btc is some kind of a grey area,the goverment does not get taxes for it,and nobody controlls it actually.But it is not illegal in most of countries.

The taxes are actually the fine point of the matter. You can sell as much as you want, as long as you declare the sales as capital gains so it can be appropriately taxed. Failure to do this is tax evasion, which I absolutely assure you is illegal.

In the United States at least. It could be outright illegal to possess btc in some jurisdictions, period. Follow the law, it's not worth it.

[Cresciuanto]

It is not illegal to sell bitcoins,unless the goverment in your country will say that using btc at general is banned.
However buying/selling btc is some kind of a grey area,the goverment does not get taxes for it,and nobody controlls it actually.But it is not illegal in most of countries.

The taxes are actually the fine point of the matter. You can sell as much as you want, as long as you declare the sales as capital gains so it can be appropriately taxed. Failure to do this is tax evasion, which I absolutely assure you is illegal.

In the United States at least. It could be outright illegal to possess btc in some jurisdictions, period. Follow the law, it's not worth it.

but i think if the bitcoin is stil not regularize and yet not legalize. then how can one pay tax for bitcoin. is there in USA there is a framwork of Taxes for bitcoin. i dont think so. therefore i will like to say that it is not illegal for any one to use sell their bitcoin.

[Syke]

but i think if the bitcoin is stil not regularize and yet not legalize. then how can one pay tax for bitcoin. is there in USA there is a framwork of Taxes for bitcoin. i dont think so. therefore i will like to say that it is not illegal for any one to use sell their bitcoin.

Yes, there is a "framework". It is very clear.

https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/irs-virtual-currency-guidance

virtual currency is treated as property for U.S. federal tax purposes.

It is taxed.

[Cresciuanto]

but i think if the bitcoin is stil not regularize and yet not legalize. then how can one pay tax for bitcoin. is there in USA there is a framwork of Taxes for bitcoin. i dont think so. therefore i will like to say that it is not illegal for any one to use sell their bitcoin.

Yes, there is a "framework". It is very clear.

https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/irs-virtual-currency-guidance

virtual currency is treated as property for U.S. federal tax purposes.

It is taxed.

is there any virtual currency in USA which is tax payed. i have no idea about this. its mean that you want to say that bitcoin is tax payed currency. i think USA has yet not legalize it.

[socks435]

but i think if the bitcoin is stil not regularize and yet not legalize. then how can one pay tax for bitcoin. is there in USA there is a framwork of Taxes for bitcoin. i dont think so. therefore i will like to say that it is not illegal for any one to use sell their bitcoin.

Yes, there is a "framework". It is very clear.

https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/irs-virtual-currency-guidance

virtual currency is treated as property for U.S. federal tax purposes.

It is taxed.

is there any virtual currency in USA which is tax payed. i have no idea about this. its mean that you want to say that bitcoin is tax payed currency. i think USA has yet not legalize it.

I think bitcoin is legal because there is no news about bitcoin is illegal to use .. so its legal for me to use bitcoin anywhere..
If they announce that bitcoin is illegal to use why we all here using bitcoin?

[Maesters1-]

if some state declare it clearly that buy and selling of bitcoin is illegal then certainly it must be illegal for the poople of those countries. and those countries who have no statement about bitcoin or those who has consider the buying and selling of bitcoin legal then it is not illegal. then it is legal there.

[Cresciuanto]

if some state declare it clearly that buy and selling of bitcoin is illegal then certainly it must be illegal for the poople of those countries. and those countries who have no statement about bitcoin or those who has consider the buying and selling of bitcoin legal then it is not illegal. then it is legal there.

if selling of bitcoin is illegal then buying of bitcoin will also be illegal. then you buy it. i think selling of bitcoin in some countries will be illegal but just like the drugs but in some countries where they have legalize it there it will be legal to sell or buy it.

[QuestionAuthority]

The fact that this question even exists is a very bad statement about the public perception of Bitcoin.

[Superbitzz]

The fact that this question even exists is a very bad statement about the public perception of Bitcoin.

i dont think so. i think that is such a simple question. if bitcoin is banned in your country then it is illegal for you to buy or sell bitcoin. and if it is not bane then you are free and you can do buy or sell your bitcoin very easily. so what is wrong in this statement. i dont see any thing wrong in this statement.

[Gahs]

I heard that some people have been arrested and charged with "transmitting money without a license" for selling Bitcoins.

Does this mean it is illegal for me to sell my Bitcoins?

It all depends on the country those people are, and the laws operating there. I think they have a bitcoin-ban there, because ordinarily bitcoin is a commodity and you shouldn't need a license to sell goods unless you are dealing with illegal goods. E.g do I need a license to sell books? It depend on the laws of the land.

[Bitcotalk]

Try to sell them on exchange and try to withdraw that amount with your bank account with that you will pay all the taxes and also the bank will collect the sources of income from you and so after that you will be free to withdraw any amount you want.

[SanjaPaulina]

In my country  in Europe they dont really care if I will sell or buy bitcoins from someone.They dont care about anything whatbxou do with your bitcoins in your whole life which is good thimg in my country.

[zodin]

In my country  in Europe they dont really care if I will sell or buy bitcoins from someone.They dont care about anything whatbxou do with your bitcoins in your whole life which is good thimg in my country.

yes and so other countries have the same situation they have not restriction on bitcoin but i think the reason is that still the bitcoin user are not more in number which have any effect on the state economy therefore govt is not taking any step against bitcoin.

[BurtW]

I heard that some people have been arrested and charged with "transmitting money without a license" for selling Bitcoins.

Does this mean it is illegal for me to sell my Bitcoins?

It all depends on the country those people are, and the laws operating there. I think they have a bitcoin-ban there, because ordinarily bitcoin is a commodity and you shouldn't need a license to sell goods unless you are dealing with illegal goods. E.g do I need a license to sell books? It depend on the laws of the land.

As far as the US goes you do not know what you are talking about.

Bitcoins are not banned in the US.  They are considered a commodity for tax purposes.  However:

I was arrested for selling my Bitcoins using localbitcoins.com

I paid all of my capital gains taxes on all of my trading - that was not the issue.  The legal issue boiled down to one question:  was I operating a business or not.  They claimed it was a business, I claimed it was not.  After being forced to "donate" about $40,000 in cash and $40,000 in Bitcoin to their Federal Asset Forfeiture slush fund we agreed to disagree and they dropped the charges.  Defending me against the federal felony charge [Operating a business without a license, up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine] did end up costing us almost $300,000 of our retirement funds, our daughter's college fund, our savings, and the equity in our house.

You can read all about it here:

http://www.jmwagner.com/
http://www.burtw.com/

However, if you sell your Bitcoins though an exchange you will not run into this specific issue since there is really no way they can call it a business, go after you, and then grab all the assets they can get their money grubbing hands on.

If you use localbitcoins to buy and sell a small amount of bitcoin, that is not a business.

Since my case was dismissed before it went to trial this was not decided.  Whether this it is a business or not currently can only be decided by a jury.

It is not a money transmitter.

Also not true.  You would have to argue this point with motions before a judge and then possibly a jury.  This would have been an argument in my case but again the motions were never filed and the case did not go to a jury. 

But you have declare that you do not deal with drug dealers.

And this would help you how?  Sure, if someone says "I am a drug dealer" or "I am an undercover cop pretending to be a drug dealer"  or "I am an undercover Homeland Security agent" then you should not trade with them.  But all of these guys will lie to your face.  Then what?

The bitcoin you sell should not be used illegally.

In my case the only legal issue was whether it was a business or not.  If you use your Bitcoins to do something illegal, for example to buy a controlled substance with them, that would be a whole different case.  Anyway, how would you go about enforcing how the Bitcoins bought from you on localbitcoins eventually get used?

[wintermeasures]

Selling Bitcoins is not illegal But in some Countries the Government Banned Bitcoin because Government  Thinks that Bitcoin is Not a Safe currency. So According to me, If Bitcoin is banned in your country So don't sell it.....

[youhgt2]

if it is consider as illegal in your country then it is illegal for you but if your country has yet not given any statement about this then it is legal for you.

[Windpower]

That's a hard question, most countries don't care. Although Estonia has banned bitcoin use. Australia has also issued a statement that they will not regulate it's use.

[Universat]

if you are living in such a country where bitcoin is banned. then if you are holding or selling your bitcoin then it is illegal. but if your country has yet not given any statement about bitcoin then it is legal. and you can use or can sell it very easily. without any restriction.