6th November, 2026
By Anjali Kochhar
Hong Kong’s Legislative Council passed a bill on 4 November that requires crypto service providers in the city to collect customer and transaction data from 1 January 2027. Automatic exchange of that data with partner tax jurisdictions will follow from 2028.
The law brings a city that has actively courted crypto businesses with its own licensing regime into the OECD’s global tax transparency net. For investors, crypto held through a Hong Kong platform will soon be as visible to their home tax authority as a bank account, and funds moved out to a private wallet will appear in those reports too.
What the law requires
The government confirmed the bill implements the OECD’s Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF). Under its provisions, providers must record each reportable customer’s name, address, tax residence, taxpayer identification number and date of birth, subject to specified exceptions.
These identity details will sit alongside annual transaction summaries. Providers must aggregate amounts or fair market values, token units and the number of transactions, sorted by asset and category. The categories cover purchases and sales against fiat currency, crypto-to-crypto swaps and transfers, including withdrawals to external wallets.
Who is covered
The bill defines a reportable provider by its activity. Any individual or entity that, as a business, carries out crypto exchange transactions for customers falls under the rules, whether it acts as a counterparty, an intermediary or the operator of a trade platform. The Inland Revenue Department (IRD) lists dealers, brokers and crypto ATM operators as examples.
A provider becomes subject to Hong Kong’s rules through a link to the city, such as tax residence, incorporation, management or a regular place of business there. A Hong Kong branch must disclose the transactions it handles. Where a provider has already met equivalent obligations in a qualifying partner jurisdiction, it receives relief from duplicate filings.
On the customer side, tax residence decides who is reportable. The rules apply to individuals and entities resident for tax purposes in a jurisdiction designated as reportable. Governments and certain financial institutions are excluded. For entities, providers may also need to identify the controlling persons behind them.
The timeline
The CARF provisions take effect on 1 January 2027. From that date, providers must obtain a tax residence self-certification from every new customer and check that it is reasonable against the information they already hold, including know-your-customer records. Existing customers must submit their certifications by 1 January 2028.
A familiar system, extended
Hong Kong has automatically exchanged financial account information with other jurisdictions under the Common Reporting Standard since 2018. The new framework adds crypto transactions to that same cross-border system.
The IRD says it will publish the lists of reportable and partner jurisdictions in due course. The government has said all exchanges will be reciprocal and protected by data confidentiality and security safeguards, and that the department will issue guidance to help providers meet the new requirements.
Those jurisdiction lists will determine how far the law reaches. Until they are out, providers and their customers will not know which tax authorities will receive the data.
BlockWind Analysis
Hong Kong is betting that tax transparency will strengthen its pitch as a regulated crypto hub, since global institutions prefer markets that align with OECD standards. The cost falls on retail investors who used Hong Kong platforms to keep holdings away from their home tax authorities, as that option closes in 2027. Smaller exchanges and ATM operators will also face fresh compliance costs, which could push consolidation among the city’s licensed players.
