Madeira, a Portuguese autonomous zone, and Prospera, an entity on Honduras’ Roatán island, are expected to accept Bitcoin as an official payment option within their borders. When buying or selling the major cryptocurrency, neither territory’s residents will have to pay capital gains tax.
Last year, El Salvador became the first country to accept Bitcoin as legal money, boosting the asset’s global popularity and development. Despite some criticism, many other countries have begun to consider following the Latin American country’s lead.
According to Forbes, the latest such territories are Madeira, Portugal’s western island, and Prospera, Honduras’ jurisdiction (placed on the Caribbean island of Roatán). The latter’s President, Joel Bomgar, stated that citizens will not be required to pay personal income taxes when trading BTC.
“Other municipalities in Honduras, as well as other firms or political subdivisions outside the United States, will be allowed to float bitcoin bonds from within the Prospera jurisdiction,” he added. This, according to Bomgar, might help the local economy by bringing in foreign direct investments.
Residents would not have to pay capital gains when trading Bitcoin, according to Miguel Albuquerque, President of the Regional Government of Madeira.
“I believe in the future, and I believe in Bitcoin. Our government will continue to work to create a fantastic environment for Bitcoin in Madeira,” he added.
El Salvador is the only country (at the moment) to recognize Bitcoin as a form of payment within its borders, therefore it’ll be interesting to see how it affects the country months later.
For one thing, the country’s tourist industry grew, making it a more appealing trip destination. Morena Valdez, the Minister of Tourism, stated earlier this year:
“We did a poll to check the activity according to the before and after of Bitcoin. The tourism sector increased in November and December. This increased by more than 30%.”
President Nayib Bukele’s administration also created various Bitcoin-related institutions, including a Bitcoin education center and a vast veterinary hospital, both of which were funded by the country’s BTC purchases.
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