French lawmakers are weighing a plan to tax what is today a tax-free move: swapping crypto into a euro or dollar stablecoin. A National Assembly committee backed the idea last week, then threw out the budget text it was attached to. Backers have since refiled it for the full Assembly, but it is still a proposal, not a tax on the books. The Assembly’s formal vote on the budget’s revenue section is scheduled for October 20. That is a vote on the section as a whole, not on this amendment.
This is news, not tax or trade advice.
Where It Stands: A Proposal, Not Yet Law
The timeline, from CoinDesk and Decrypt, the Assembly’s amendment pages and Orwl:
- On October 7, the Finance Committee of the National Assembly adopted amendment I-CF1826, the stablecoin-swap amendment. The Assembly’s page shows it was filed by Nicolas Sansu of the left-wing GDR group with 16 co-signers.
- On October 9, the committee rejected the revenue section of the government’s 2027 budget by 31 votes to 3. According to Decrypt, the full Assembly therefore starts from the government’s original text, without the crypto amendments, so backers had to table them again.
- On October 10, backers did. The stablecoin amendment came back for the floor as I-3898 from Sansu’s GDR group, and as I-3680 from the Socialist group, filed by Mickaël Bouloux. Orwl says the two have the same mechanism. The Assembly’s database listed I-3898 as “à discuter” (still to be discussed).
- Decrypt reports that the floor debate on the revenue section opened October 13, with the formal vote on that section scheduled for October 20. Cryptoast says 24 crypto amendments were filed for the floor, to be examined by October 19.
CoinDesk and Decrypt both say plainly that none of these measures has become law. As of October 15, the refiled amendments are filed for floor debate, and we found no report of a floor vote on them in Cryptoast’s tracker (last updated October 14) or the Assembly vote lists we checked. Treat the amendment as pending.
What the Stablecoin Proposal Would Do
Swapping one crypto for another generally does not trigger capital gains tax in France today. According to CoinDesk, the 31.4% flat tax applies when investors cash out or spend.
The proposal would change that for one kind of swap. If it were adopted, exchanging a crypto such as bitcoin for a stablecoin classified as an electronic money token (EMT) under the EU’s MiCA rulebook would count as a taxable sale from January 1, 2027.
Decrypt notes the amendment names no rate of its own. It defers to France’s existing flat tax, which Decrypt says rose to 31.4% on January 1 after the social-charge portion went from 17.2% to 18.6%.
What Is Covered, and What Is Not
The scope is narrower than “all stablecoins.” It targets MiCA-regulated electronic money tokens, which Decrypt describes as a category that includes most stablecoins tied to a single currency. CoinDesk says that distinction is critical: it could push traders toward alternatives outside that category.
The sources give no token-by-token list, so we are not guessing which coins fall inside or outside.
The Exit Tax and Loss Carryforward Ideas
Two other crypto ideas came out of the same committee week. Both are proposals:
- Exit tax. A second Sansu amendment would extend France’s exit tax, a levy on unrealized gains when someone moves their tax residence abroad, to crypto. Decrypt reports the threshold as a household’s crypto, including holdings kept through custodians, worth more than €800,000. CoinDesk describes lawmakers backing an extension to crypto holdings worth roughly $900,000.
- Loss carryforward. A separate amendment would let investors carry crypto losses forward for up to 10 years, which CoinDesk says would bring their treatment closer to that of stocks.
The outlets give different amounts in different currencies. We report each as its source gave it, without converting or reconciling them, and we reviewed only the stablecoin amendments, not the exit-tax one.
A Rival Amendment: Keep Swaps Untaxed
The floor also has a competing text. Amendment I-3738, filed October 10 by Daniel Grenon, a lawmaker not affiliated with any group, would write into law that swaps between crypto and MiCA e-money tokens stay untaxed. According to Orwl, if either side’s amendment is adopted, the other falls. Grenon’s note argues that taxing these swaps would hit French holders and add reporting obligations.
What Chainalysis Is Warning
CoinDesk’s story centers on a warning from François Volpoet, Chainalysis’ regional sales director for France. In an email to CoinDesk, Volpoet said the proposed tax could push investors toward DeFi platforms, peer-to-peer trading and exchanges outside international tax-reporting arrangements. He added that the amendment targets MiCA-compliant stablecoins but may leave other tokens outside its scope.
That is a forecast from a blockchain-analytics company, not a measured outcome. Volpoet himself said Chainalysis’ $9.4 billion estimate of taxable onchain activity reported in France in 2025 does not measure how trading would react.
What the Authors Say
The amendment’s own explanatory note makes the case for the change. In French, it reads:
« Par un trou dans la législation, la plus-value réalisée par la conversion en stablecoins adossés à des monnaies fiduciaires n’est pas taxée. »
Our plain-English gloss, not an official translation: through a hole in the legislation, gains made by converting into fiat-backed stablecoins go untaxed. The authors add that such stablecoins can be quite ordinary investment vehicles. The same note appears in the refiled I-3898. The committee version is on the Assemblée nationale site.
What to Watch Next
- Whether the Assembly takes up I-3898 and I-3680, or Grenon’s rival I-3738, during the floor debate, and what it decides.
- The Assembly’s formal vote on the revenue section as a whole, scheduled for October 20.
- Whether any final text keeps the MiCA electronic-money-token scope, the January 1, 2027 start date, and the exit-tax threshold.
Jamoraquai Take
A tax on the swap into MiCA-regulated tokens, at the same flat rate as cashing out, would create an odd incentive. The regulated option could become the costly hop, which is the worry Chainalysis raises. Whether traders actually reroute is a forecast, not a fact.
For readers following how EU rules shape stablecoin liquidity, including as stablecoins reach everyday apps like Samsung Wallet, the useful signal is procedural. The amendment passed committee, was left behind when the committee rejected the revenue section, and was refiled for the floor, where a rival amendment would keep these swaps untaxed. Until the Assembly decides between them and the budget clears the rest of the process, this is a live proposal and nothing more.
Sources
- Olivier Acuna, CoinDesk, Oct 14, 2026 (updated): France’s 31.4% stablecoin tax proposal risks driving crypto activity offshore, warns Chainalysis
- Jose Antonio Lanz, Decrypt, Oct 10, 2026: French Committee Backs Stablecoin Swap Tax and Crypto Exit Tax, Then Rejects the Budget
- Assemblée nationale, Amendement n°I-CF1826 to the 2027 finance bill (no. 3210), filed Oct 4, 2026: assemblee-nationale.fr
- Assemblée nationale, Amendements I-3898 (Sansu, GDR), I-3680 (Bouloux, Socialistes) and I-3738 (Grenon), all filed Oct 10, 2026
- Léa Mastrolillo, Orwl, situation as of Oct 12, 2026: PLF 2027 et cryptos : ce que le budget pourrait changer pour vos impôts (in French)
- Cryptoast, live tracker updated Oct 14, 2026: PLF 2027 : le budget 2027 et vos cryptos, suivi en direct (in French)
