Bitcoin in France: Self-service wallets escape mandatory declaration

France backed away from mandatory declaration of self-hosted wallets, a clear victory for Bitcoin advocates. On 28 April 2026, the joint committee did not deal with article 3 quater of the bill against social and tax fraud. This text wanted to impose an annual declaration on digital asset portfolios controlled directly by their users.

A failure that changes the political signal

The article in question did not refer to accounts opened on a traditional platform. It focused on wallets held directly on the blockchain, without an intermediary service provider. In short, wallets where the user keeps the keys themselves.

The chosen threshold was low. The text adopted at the assembly spoke of an annual notification once the total value of assets exceeds €5,000. This declaration was intended to convey the market value of the portfolio to the tax authorities.

So the problem was not only fiscal. It touched on the very principle of self-preservation. With Bitcoin, owning the keys means actually owning your funds. Transforming this autonomy into a concrete reporting obligation would push self-restraint into the zone of permanent suspicion.

A file that was more of a concern than taxes

On paper, the goal was to make the tax administration more visible. The amendment even explained that it wanted to address the ambiguity regarding portfolios not managed by service providers. He presented these wallets as a possible tool for reducing the tax base.

But the ecosystem primarily saw another risk. The target can be a file with a list of cryptoasset holders. Not just for hackers. Also for criminal networks looking for solvent, traceable and vulnerable profiles.

This point carried a lot of weight in the discussion. France has seen several cases targeting people associated with cryptocurrencies or their relatives. In particular, Le Monde reported on arrests in kidnapping cases linked to this sector, with targets linked to crypto-entrepreneurs.

Bitcoin defends here more than a simple tool

This sequence resembles something often misunderstood. The self-service wallet is not a techie’s fantasy. It is a logical extension of Bitcoin. The network was designed to reduce reliance on trusted third parties.

Requiring a specific statement for this practice would create a strange asymmetry. Holding your own keys has become more suspect than entrusting your funds to a platform. This is the exact opposite of Bitcoin’s philosophy, which favors individual responsibility.

Therefore, the mobilization of Adana and the National Bitcoin Institute focused on a central point: the fight against fraud must not create a map of crypto assets. Tax law may require you to declare winnings. But the annual inventory of private wallets opens another door.

Deleting Article 3 quater does not close the file. She moves it. The European framework is already moving forward with MiCA, which imposes common rules on crypto-assets, providers, issuers and transaction supervision.

Lydia M.

Lydia, a teacher and IT engineer, discovers Bitcoin in 2022 and dives into the world of cryptocurrencies. It popularizes complex topics, deciphers Web3 challenges and defends the vision of an open, inclusive and decentralized digital future.

DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY

The comments and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and should not be considered investment advice. Before making any investment decision, do your own research.