Cryptocurrency Bill unlikely to be presented in Budget 2022: NDTV

The much-awaited Bill onCryptocurrency is unlikely to be presented in the upcoming Union Budget 2022 -- 23 session, government sources told NDTV on Tuesday. The Bill, which had seen a 360 degree turn in the winter session of Parliament, going from ban to inching closer to a regulation, is still not fully ready to go forward, people familiar with it said.

Sources indicated that a decision on Bill's final structure is likely to come after the elections.

They also mentioned that Prime Minister Narendra Modi wanted global deliberations on the rules on criptocurrencies, which he suggested in his recent World Economic Forum WEF address. PM Modi called for a synchronised global action on cryptocurrencies at the virtual summit of WEF on Monday.

Sources stated that the delay is unlikely to give more clarity on the taxation of cryptocurrencies in the country. There are indications that the Centre may be considering deducting TDS tax from source TCS tax collected at source on the sale and purchase of cryptocurrencies above a certain threshold.

In December of last year, it was reported that there could be more changes to the Bill ofCryptocurrencies.

The Cabinet note, which NDTV had exclusive details on, proposed a penalty for violations by individuals as well as corporate bodies. Offences under the law will be non-bailable and could be punished with a jail term of one and a half years and a fine of up to 50 crore. The market regulator SEBI regulated the use of cryptocurrencies as assets.

The size of the cryptocurrencies in India is around 45,000 crore with about 15 million investors.

The Budget Session will start on January 31 and conclude on April 8. The first part of the session would end on February 11. After a month-long recess, the second part of the session would begin on March 14 and conclude on April 8.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the budget on February 1.