France's National Assembly Finance Committee adopted amendment I-CF1826 on October 7, a provision that would turn crypto-to-crypto swaps into certain stablecoins into a taxable disposal even when the investor never cashes out. If enacted, it applies to disposals and exchanges from January 1, 2027. The sponsors describe the current tax deferral on fiat-backed stablecoin conversions as a legislative loophole.
What the amendment actually changes
Right now, under French tax authority guidance, covered crypto-to-crypto exchanges without a cash balancing payment get tax deferral. Converting into fiat, or using crypto to buy goods and services, can already be taxable. The amendment strips that deferral when the investor receives e-money tokens as defined by the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation.
MiCA defines an e-money token as a crypto-asset that seeks to maintain stable value by reference to one official currency. The amendment invokes that definition without an express issuer-licensing condition. USDC is identified as an e-money token under MiCA in Circle's European white paper, which makes a Bitcoin-to-USDC swap the concrete example here: under the proposal, it becomes a taxable event.
A new math for gains and losses
The proposed tax calculation subtracts the acquisition basis of the assets surrendered from the disposal price. That can produce a gain, no gain, or a loss. Simple enough on its face, but it replaces a portfolio-based system that France currently uses.
Today, the existing method allocates part of the acquisition price of the entire crypto portfolio to each taxable disposal, using the ratio of disposal price to portfolio value immediately before the transaction. The replacement focuses on the crypto-assets actually disposed of and specifies weighted-average acquisition value for assets of the same nature purchased at different prices.
The transition trap for pre-2027 holdings
For holdings acquired before 2027, the amendment offers two routes. First, use evidenced actual acquisition costs under the new basis rules. Second, allocate the portfolio acquisition price calculated under the old rules at December 31, 2026, among the assets held then, in proportion to their values on that date.
The allocation option preserves a pool of acquisition cost — the acquisition price calculated under the old rules, not the portfolio's full market value — and distributes it among holdings. The choice between the two routes is irrevocable for the entire portfolio when the first return reporting a taxable disposal after January 1, 2027 is filed.
A hypothetical from the facts shows how much that choice matters. An investor holds Bitcoin that cost €20,000, now worth €60,000, and Ether that cost €40,000, now worth €40,000, at the transition date. Under the allocation option, Bitcoin receives €36,000 of basis — 60% of the €60,000 total acquisition cost — and Ether receives €24,000. Under actual costs, the bases stay €20,000 and €40,000.
Now run a Bitcoin-to-USDC swap. Under the actual-cost route, that swap produces a gain of €40,000 (€60,000 minus €20,000). Under the allocation route, the gain is €24,000 (€60,000 minus €36,000). The USDC basis is €60,000 in both cases. A later Ether disposal for €40,000 produces a gain of €0 under actual-cost and €16,000 under allocation.
Under current rules, the qualifying swap itself would receive deferral. Under either proposed transition route, the Bitcoin-to-USDC swap becomes a taxable event. The amendment still has to clear the full legislative process, and the January 1, 2027 start date gives holders a little over a year to decide which irrevocable route they'll take.
